The main goal of the course is to provide students with a model of how to teach these subjects with technology rather than just how to use technology. The content of the course includes the use of computers for discovery learning, experimentation, simulation and modeling, forming and testing conjectures, problem solving, decision making, computation and data processing as well as communication, information retrieval, and course management. Students learn these tools by participating in sample activities in class in one or more of the three subject areas. The course is team-taught by three curriculum and instruction specialists in the areas of science, math, and social studies. It begins with a segment including a general introduction to computers in education, ethical issues surrounding computer use, and introduction to the Internet, searching strategies, and html.
Students begin constructing their own web page as an ongoing assignment.
Following this introductory component of the course, the three instructors each teach a separate segment of the course, focusing on tools which have application in their particular subject area. No one doubts the major impact the computer has made in society in recent years, and the impact has been strong in science education. Because of its impact and potential, it is essential that elementary science teachers recognize its power and how it can be used for learning. Since a microcomputer is only one of many instructional tools that preservice teachers must study, little time is spent examining and implementing various science software programs. Hence preservice teachers may lack the expertise needed to make good use of the new technologies available to them.