Posted on May 1, 2002 at 12:35 p.m.
BIRMINGHAM, AL — The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Education tomorrow will open its new “21st Century Classroom.” The new facility will ensure that future Birmingham area teachers will be trained to educate youngsters using the latest technology. A dedication ceremony will be held at 3 p.m. Thursday, May 2, in the Education Building, Room 150 901 13th Street South.
The “21st Century Classroom” was created with a five-year, $300,000 gift from BellSouth of Alabama and is part of an ongoing program to create a series of 21st century classrooms that offer educational technology training to future teachers and to new and veteran teachers at several Birmingham area schools. Thousands of teachers and their students will benefit from the 21st Century Classroom, which is a showcase for the school’s vision for an education technology development center.
“This is our teaching laboratory,” said Michael Froning, Ed.D., dean of the UAB School of Education, “and since we know that the next generation of teachers is going to be required to infuse technology into their teaching, we need a laboratory in which we can train them. Most of our methods courses will be taught in this classroom so student teachers in the late stages of their education will have access to cutting-edge equipment, and they will be able to practice using technology in a classroom setting instead of in a computer lab.”
The 21st Century Classroom will be an equipped classroom that features 32 laptop computers with wireless networking, sound equipment for multimedia and video presentations, CD-ROM technology and access to Internet 2. It also includes:
- A speakers’ podium equipped with a computer system, connections for laptops and other devices
- A digital document presenter
- Countertops with sinks where students can conduct science experiments while they research information on computers
School of Education faculty will also receive technology training at this facility. They will be able to apply for mini-grants, paid for through the BellSouth gift, to develop curriculum, training materials, CD-ROMs and Web pages.
The UAB School of Education has nearly 1,500 students and more than 60 teacher educators and faculty. The school offers 11 majors and more than 30 specializations in curriculum and instruction, special education, counseling, physical education and educational leadership.