CALL FOR CHAPTER PROPOSALS
Proposal Submission Deadline: July 30, 2011
A book edited by
Dr. Shuyan Wang & Dr. Taralynn Hartsell
The University of Southern Mississippi, USA
To be published by IGI Global: http://www.igi-global.com/authorseditors/authoreditorresources/callforbookchapters/callforchapterdetails.aspx?callforcontentid=e8045db9-bc9d-4932-b316-696eb1c69ddf
Introduction
An effective technology leader should be a public advocate for the use of technology in various organizations, capable of providing guidance in various aspects of using technologies such as technology plans, professional development, academic and grant writing, and other responsibilities. A technology leader should be fully involved in creating a technology plan that provides direction for the successful integration of technology into the existing educational environment with an eye toward the future. For the technology leader, facilitating and organizing professional training to faculty and staff members in keeping up with the development of technologies is a vital role. Professional development not only involves the actual training that educators receive for learning new skills and strategies, but also requires instruction that assist educators to impact student/classroom learning. Among other responsibilities at research intensive institutions such as universities, technology leaders are expected to conduct research, write and publish manuscripts in peer-viewed journals, and secure external funding to promote technology integration. Because of the high demands of today’s leaders, understanding how to effectively manage time as a professional is difficult. Further, learning what each task encompasses is also difficult without some prior knowledge of the processes. By better understanding each of these tasks, individuals will be able to manage their time more effectively and have a foundational knowledge to assist them with engaging in these activities. Full understanding of one’s responsibilities in the field is important for a technology leader to ensure successful technology integration. Without knowledge of one’s roles and responsibilities in the position, performing routine tasks may become difficult.
This proposed book provides detailed information on these aspects. The book will serve as a reference for technology professionals or leaders in the education field to make certain that he/she performs all of the tasks and obligations necessary. As the technology leader reads through the chapters, he/she will obtain a sense of structure and basic information on designing, developing, implementing, and evaluating technology projects to ensure maximum success.
Objectives of the Book
The objectives of this proposed book are two-fold. One objective is that the technology professional will be able to identify and define theoretical aspects of technology leadership. The proposed book will include sections that not only provide general information, but also the major components, procedures, and evaluations of creating a technology plan, conducting professional development, performing academic and grant writing, and discussing the responsibilities of the technology leader. The second objective is to provide the technology leader with concepts, tools, strategies, and applications through reference citations. These types of resources accommodate the theoretical aspects of the book as the technology professional practices the tasks that have been discussed. In short, the book is intended to guide the new technology professional into performing all of the roles and responsibilities appropriated to him/her. Furthermore, the book serves as a systematic introduction to the profession as a whole for those studying to become technology leaders in education.
Target Audience
The target audience includes technology coordinators, technology specialists, educators, trainers, and administrators working in K-20 settings in various disciplines (e.g., education, corporate training, instructional technology, workforce development). Almost every institution has someone who acts as a technology leader from organizing technology training to employees toward developing complete technology systems (e.g., computer labs, networks/telecommunications). Thus, this reference book would be applicable to anyone who is in this role of integrating technology for teaching, training, or learning purposes. The book may also be adopted for support of educational technology related subjects in advanced graduate degrees. Graduate programs in administration or instructional technology would be likely audiences for this book because of its broad content.
The book will be divided into six sections, each consisting of 4-6 chapters. The book will cover topics such as creating technology plans, planning for professional development activities, writing grants and academic publications, and defining responsibilities that a technology leader would need to fulfill. This book evolved as a graduate course project in which several students began writing chapters for the book that helped dictate the book outline. Nonetheless, several topics in this area are still missing in addition to the ones proposed by the student authors. To make certain that a complete volume of topics are covered in this important area of technology leadership, we are looking for authors to write about these areas (or additional ones proposed by the author). Some topics given below are very general, and we encourage authors to write chapters that may focus on one particular aspect.
Section One: Defining Technology Leadership
Historical Evolvement of Technology Leaders
Roles Technology Leaders Hold in Various Organizations
Role in Managing and Supporting Technology
Section Two: Technology Planning for the Technology Leader
Definition and Development of a Technology Plan
Needs Assessment/Goals and Objectives
Implementation Process of the Technology Plan
Assessment, Evaluation, and Revision of the Technology Plan
Analysis and Comparison of Existing Technology Plans
Section Three: Leading the Professional Development
Professional Development for Technology Integration
Designing a Professional Development Program
Implementing the Professional Development Program
Evaluating and Reviewing the Professional Development Program
Analysis and Comparison of Effective and Non-effective Programs
Section Four: Academic and Grant Writing
Educational Research Considerations for the Technology Leader
Academic Writing and Publishing for the Technology Leader
Securing External Funding
Dissemination of Practice
Section Five: Responsibilities of a Technology Leader
Roles of a Technology Leader
Evaluation, Management, and Support
Personnel Management
Handling Unexpected Problems and Issues
Leadership Issues Concerning Instructional Technology
Section Six: Trends and Future Directions
Case Studies of Technology Implementation by Technology Leaders
Future Directions in Technology Leadership
Professional Resources for Technology Leaders
Submission Procedure
Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit on or before July 30, 2011, a 2-3 page chapter proposal clearly explaining the mission and concerns of his or her proposed chapter. Authors of accepted proposals will be notified by August 15, 2011 about the status of their proposals and sent chapter guidelines. Full chapters are expected to be submitted by November 30, 2011. All submitted chapters will be reviewed on a double-blind review basis. Contributors may also be requested to serve as reviewers for this project.
Publisher
This book is scheduled to be published by IGI Global (formerly Idea Group Inc.), publisher of the “Information Science Reference” (formerly Idea Group Reference), “Medical Information Science Reference,” “Business Science Reference,” and “Engineering Science Reference” imprints. For additional information regarding the publisher, please visit www.igi-global.com. This publication is anticipated to be released in 2012.
Important Dates
July 30, 2011: Proposal Submission Deadline
August 15, 2011: Notification of Acceptance
November 30, 2011: Full Chapter Submission
January 15, 2012: Review Results Returned
February 15, 2012: Revised Chapter Submission
March 15, 2012: Final Acceptance Notifications
April 15, 2012: Final Chapter Submission
May 30, 2012: Final Deadline
Inquiries and submissions can be forwarded electronically (Word document) by mail to:
Dr. Shuyan Wang
Associate Professor
The University of Southern Mississippi
Department of Technology Education
118 College Drive #5036
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
Phone: 601-266-4446
Fax: 601-266-5957
Email: shuyan.wang@usm.edu
Dr. Taralynn Hartsell
Associate Professor
The University of Southern Mississippi
Department of Technology Education
118 College Drive #5036
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
Phone: 601-266-4446
Fax: 601-266-5957
Email: taralynn.hartsell@usm.edu