De la Cruz and Bullock encourage their colleagues in the school of education to continue emphasizing the skills and ways of thinking introduced in the Technology and Instruction course. For instance, a student taking a course in math methods can evaluate math software using the criteria learned in the foundation class. However, what students find at their student-teaching placements varies as much as their personal experiences with technology. The kids play with it. They just use it as a game or a reward.
Some student teachers bring badly needed technological knowledge and practices to their schools.
Students in the PSU program have helped assemble hardware, been invited to join school technology committees, tutored their mentor teachers on uses of software, demonstrated effective ways of using software in instruction, and been hired to conduct training. The student- teacher has come with some knowledge and expertise, as opposed to the cooperating teacher holding all the knowledge to pass on. Chad Holloway, a secondary education student in the graduate teaching program and candidate for a master of education degree, brings both new ideas and new equipment from PSU to Glencoe High School in Hillsboro, where he works with teachers of U.S. and world history. He's adding excitement and opening up the world to the kids. That's one of the things that's nice about having student teachers.