Building on their knowledge of content-based instruction curriculum development and teaching strategies, teachers work in a supportive lab setting to begin developing pilot materials for use in their own classrooms which use technology in creative ways while speaking to existing standards. During the weekend workshops, the participants share what they are working on and receive feedback from the CoBaLTT staff and other participants in order to make revisions. The materials they create are piloted in the classroom, if possible, and participants may collect exemplars of students' work as part of the portfolio they assemble to demonstrate their understanding of the professional development material. Throughout this period, they will be sharing questions and information with colleagues and project staff via an email listserv and the web. Teachers share informally their experiences using technology-based materials in their classrooms, the new materials in development as a result of the summer institute and their explorations of key sites on the Internet.
Teachers refine their knowledge of writing goals and objectives as well as task descriptions.
They also investigate online resources for creating informal assessments and activities as well as digital portfolio creation. Teachers share their lesson plan ideas and get feedback from the group in order to make final adjustments to their materials before submitting them to the CoBaLTT website. Teachers are encouraged to share their digital portfolios of creative technology use with others in their districts. Building on knowledge gained through their collaboration over the previous twelve months, these teachers will establish routines and practices intended to maintain the momentum gained and to sustain their sense of community. It is anticipated that the teachers will standardize their exchange of information on technology-enhanced materials, their effectiveness, their limits and their strengths through the Internet and electronic mail listservs.