ESU Instructional Technology Program Receives National Recognition

ESU Logo

Posted by: admin on August 23, 2013, No Comments

The Master of Education in Instructional Technology program at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania (ESU) has been granted national recognition by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

Pamela Kramer Ertel, Ed.D., dean of the ESUCollege of Education, said the exemplary program met every standard during the recent program review, which involved the transition to a new specialized professional association, the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), with all new standards that had to be met.

ESU was one of one of a small group of such programs to receive this national recognition based on the new ISTE Standards.

“I’d like to thank Beth Rajan Sockman, associate professor of media communication and technology, who played a key leadership role in the preparation of this report,” said Dr. Kramer Ertel. “This is one of many important steps in our NCATE review process. It was tremendous for the department and the strong efforts have been very successful.”

Dr. Sockman is the graduate coordinator of the program, which prepares students to integrate instructional design principles with instructional media. They are taught how to tailor instruction to meet the needs, abilities and goals of the learner using multimedia, the Internet, mobile devices, video, desktop publishing, and digital photography production.

“ISTE proposed new program standards in Fall 2012 and very few universities have yet to address them,” said Sockman. “We are very proud that the Instructional Technology program is one of less than 10 programs that have received national recognition under the new program standards. We knew that aligning the program to the standards would be a rigorous challenge, but we are dedicated to helping instructors use technology to create meaningful, effective learning experiences for their students of all ages.”

ESU also offers instructional technology specialist certification that permits the holder to function in a support role for K-12 classroom and school activities. This certification can be obtained with or without the master’s degree.

For more information about the ESU Master of Education in Instructional Technology program or instructional technology specialist certification, please contact Dr. Sockman at 570-422-3621 or by email at bsockman@esu.edu.