Powering up : learning to teach well with technology /

Subtitled Learning to Teach Well with Technology, this book is not just another how-to treatise. Based on an in-depth look at five technology-using teachers in a somewhat better-than-average, comprehensive high school, the author focuses on the conditions that facilitate integration rather than on the teaching process itself. Coppola uses interviews and analysis to identify what leads teachers to use technology to solve instructional problems. She begins with the premise that teachers are professionals. They make decisions based on personal expertise and professional needs. The decision to use technology is based on perception of the pedagogical value it adds. Coppola studies the conditions that make it possible for teachers to respond to professional problems in a professional way. The conclusion: "if school leaders are looking for high-quality, thorough, and deep integration of technology into the curriculum, they need to think about what will convince their teachers that it's worth doing at all." Coppola says, "Computers do not change teaching or schools.... But they can be powerful tools when teachers see them as a possible solution to an identified pedagogical issue." This is a must read for those who frame policy and organizational culture. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. C. L. Tannahil Eastern Connecticut State University