Ingredients for the Ideal Lesson Plan with Technology Integration: Researching How to Improve Pre-Service Elementary Teachers' Instructional Planning

Effective instruction is the integration of many components. This research examines higher-order thinking, engaged learning, authentic learning, and technology integration (HEAT). Combined, these elements increase the effectiveness of instructional design. After reviewing foundational research on each component, a HEAT framework, or instrument, was developed for assessing the level of integration of these four components in lesson plans of pre-service elementary teachers. Instruction of the HEAT framework in elementary education methods courses is associated with improved quality of pre-service elementary teachers’ lesson plans. While the lesson plans did not reach the goal of HEAT level 3, the quality of lesson plans in the second year of implementation was significantly better than the baseline semester with no HEAT instruction.

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