Intel^® Teach Project

Intel® Education Initiative


Vision
The Intel® Education Initiative is Intel's sustained commitment to improve teaching and learning through the effective use of technology, and to advance math, science, and engineering education and research. Intel invests approximately USD 100 million per year in education programs in more than 50 countries.

The World Ahead Program
As part of the Intel World Ahead Program, Intel will train an additional 10 million teachers in developing communities by 2011 on the effective use of technology in the classroom. The training will occur through the significant expansion of the Intel® Teach Program.

Background
This programme is designed to prepare today’s educators and learners for tomorrow’s demands. Participating educators receive extensive training and resources to plan projects that promote effective use of computers and the Internet (ICT) in the classroom. Intel® Teach is one of the official professional development programmes of SACE (South African Council for Educators).

The training model was changed in 2006. Since then schools no longer nominated one facilitator for training. Training has been provided onsite at individual schools by skilled facilitators. This has proved more effective than the previous cascaded training model of delivery and has made it possible for large groups of teachers from each school to receive top quality training. Training is provided by SchoolNet SA and is funded either by the Provincial Education Department or the school. Intel has limited funding to continue to provide free training directly to teachers.

As educators progress through the training modules included in this program, they have the opportunity to collaborate with other educators and discuss ideas for planning projects and using technology in their classroom. They also have the opportunity to develop a specific project based on learning outcomes they would like to teach in the future according to the National Curriculum Statements.  The goal is for educators to have a project that they can take back to their classrooms, one that allows them to raise the level of excellence in their classroom and meet important learning outcomes.

Project web sites:

• Intel Teach Essentials
• Intel Teach Thinking with Technology
• Intel® Teach Elements: Project Based Approaches
• Intel® Teach Getting Started
• Intel® Teach Skills for Success
• The South African corporate education site
• includes stories, cases studies and sample unit portfolios from the South African project.
• The Intel Innovation in Education international site
• read more about the Intel's Innovation in Education programme

Questions and Answers:

Q1. What is the Intel® Teach Programme?

A1. Intel® Teach is not a traditional “how to operate a PC” training programme. The programme was built on a proven model that trains educators how, when and where to incorporate ICT tools and resources into their current programmes of work, and align them with national curriculum statements.

Divided into modules, the curriculum enables teachers to develop a complete project that engages learners in the use of ICT to conduct research, compile information, and communicate with others.

Q2. How is the training being implemented?

A2. SchoolNet SA will manage the training programme. Senior Trainers will train teachers at each participating school. These facilitator-led workshops of the Intel® Teach programme will take place onsite at each school.

Q3. Why is Intel® doing this programme?

A3. Today's knowledge economy depends on the quality of our schools and the ability of our learners and educators to be independent lifelong learners with good knowledge management skills. It is well known that educators lack that extra dimension to their ICT training that focuses on how to integrate ICT with their learning programmes. The Intel® Teach Programme Essential Course provides this advanced training programme to fulfil that need.

From evaluation reports done in the USA and UK, a very high percentage of educators who complete the Intel® Teach Essentials Course, change their way of teaching and have found a renewed enthusiasm in themselves and their learners. It is this outcome that we strive to achieve in South Africa. Intel® Teach is the largest teacher development programme in the world.

Q4: How long will the programme continue in South Africa?

A4: We have now reached the stage where Provincial Education Departments are taking the programme further, with the support of SchoolNet SA. SchoolNet will continue to provide materials and trainers funded by Intel as long as the basic funding is provided by government.

Q5: Is the programme customized for South Africa?

A5. The international version of the curriculum has been adapted by Schoolnet SA, who were selected due to their reputable track record for integrating ICT into the curriculum. The University of KwaZulu-Natal will also provide credit to educators who wish to follow a pathway of learning in educational ICT. This will be subject to the educators completing their portfolios of work from the course and facilitating teachers at their own schools.

Papers on Intel Teach in South Africa

• How Teach to the Future has worked in South Africa (336 kb ZIP file)
• The question is the answer (Paper: 103 kb Word document)
  This paper was delivered at the WCCE in Stellenbosch in July 2005. It is based on the evaluations and action research of the programme over the last two years.
• Understanding ICT integration in South African Classrooms
  Perspectives in Education Volume 23 (4) December 2005