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Officials unveil new online teacher professional development program Thursday, Sep 7, 2006 By Betsy Turner Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - Arkansas teachers can now take required professional development courses online through a new program, Arkansas IDEAS, introduced Wednesday. Gov. Mike Huckabee praised the state Department of Education and the Arkansas Education Television Network for making the online professional development option available so teachers can conveniently meet continuing education requirements anywhere in the state. "We are going to be able to take professional development where teachers are rather than simply asking them to come where we are," Huckabee said in unveiling the program at a news conference. "It also means we are using the latest tools and technology to give teachers the best tools of teaching an educational capacity." The governor said the program is another step in Arkansas' education reform effort, along with increases in teacher salaries and standardized test scores. Arkansas IDEAS was created by ACT 2318 of 2005 to help teachers meet a state requirement that all certified school employees complete 60 hours of professional development each year. State Rep. Betty Pickett, D-Conway, who sponsored the legislation, said the program would give support to teachers to improve the quality of their instruction, which she said is large factor in student success. AETN Education Director Kathleen Branton said the online portal is available free to all educators in the state through the Education Department. She said teachers can access more than 70 courses, which typically last six weeks, starting in October. AETN will offer 4,000 course enrollments starting in October, Branton said. "It is designed to achieve professional development online day or night, seven days a week," Branton said, "and its available free and that is equity in education for all teachers in the state of Arkansas." Branton said teachers can also get professional development courses by watching programs on the AETN Scholar Channel, a statewide television channel. She said teachers can get credit by accessing the online portal and completing an assessment of the television programs. |
