Students at the Watson School of Education will soon receive technology-intensive assessment training, thanks to new federal money coming into the university.

The Watson School of Education has received a three-year grant-totaling over $2 million-from the Department of Education for technology training.

The Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers to Use Technology (PT3) grant supports improvements in the training and preparation of teachers. The funds will be used to train UNCW students, faculty and cooperating teachers to assess student achievement through technology.

“We want to make a difference in the public school classrooms by producing teachers skilled in assessment through technology at the Watson School of Education,” said Dean Cathy Barlow.

The university and the other partners in the coalition will make up the rest of the funds needed for the project. Companies working with the university include the Illuminations-Marco Polo Internet Project/ MCI WorldCom Foundation; Duplin, Brunswick and New Hanover county schools; Southeastern Vision for Education (SERVE); NC Department of Public Instruction Evaluation and Mathematics/Sciences divisions and the North Carolina Board of Education.

Technology training will be provided to 1,154 students at the Watson School of Education studying to become public school teachers and 136 faculty members, including full-time educators at UNCW, as well as area public school teachers who work with UNCW students.

“The goal is to train the whole team,” Barlow said.

The entire group will be trained in using the latest technological advances in developing efficient classroom practices.

“Until now, teachers have relied on paper and pencil for grading,” Barlow said. “Our students (at UNCW) will have a technological strategy that they will use to assess students, which will be more efficient and allow for immediate feedback.”

UNCW is one of two universities receiving the grant in North Carolina and one of seventy-five nationwide.

“This grant is very exciting. It really is a good thing for the Watson School of Education,” Barlow said.

Money received from the federal grant has been mandated to be used, not only to purchase equipment, but to pay people and time, Barlow said.

UNCW will use part of the money to hire a technology coordinator, Webmaster and video technician. The remaining funds will be disbursed for training and travel.

“Our ultimate goal is that UNCW becomes a known site for innovative technologies that are tied to assessment. We want to give them assessment techniques that aren’t laborious, that will help them save time for instruction,” said Karen Wetherill, assistant dean in the Watson School of Education.