Tech Integration for NCSC Alt Students

Course Description

This is a short online professional development (PD) seminar on how to integrate technology in the classroom for students taking the NCSC Alternative Assessment. This PD is sponsored by the District of Columbia (DC) Office of the State Superintendent of Education primarily for DC teachers whose students will take the new alternative assessment.

Prerequisites

This course assumes that you are familiar with NCSC Alternative Assessment and the work of the Community of Practice. If you need more information, please click on the following links and video presentations.

National Center and State Collaborative (NCSC) Overview and Resources
OSSE’s NCSC and DC CAS Alt Science Webinar Series
NCSC Wiki Curriculum Resources (What to Teach)
NCSC Wiki Instructional Resources (How to Teach)
Presentation from DC Public Schools about NCSC Alt and DC CAS Alt which can also be accessed in the DCPS Educators’ Portal
NCSC Introduction from DC Public Schools from the Educators’ Portal (log-in required)

Objectives

According to NCSC, to prepare students for the new Alternate Assessment, teachers should focus on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), the Universal Design for Learning (UDL), increasing Communication skills, and Technology. They recommended that teachers embed the use of technology during instruction and assessment and provide daily, appropriate, andindividualized accommodations. Thus, the objectives of this course are to:

Help teachers prepare students taking NCSC Alternate Assessment (NCSC Alt)develop computer skills using available resources
Help teachers be familiar with online accommodations and individualization for their students
Show teachers how to adapt technology in the classroom using the Tech Matrix

Disclaimer

This short course is not about the NCSC Alt online test and its details. This is a resource on how to integrate technology in the classroom to help prepare Alt students who might not be familiar with computer-based activities or needs to increase their skills in using online tests.