Dr. Jennifer Parker joined the MALDT family in May of 2020. In the MALDT program, Dr. Parker has taught EDU 590, 653, and 710. Dr. Parker truly believes in the maroon and gold – she was born in Mt. Pleasant while her father was on faculty, and is an alumnus with a Bachelors, Masters, and Doctorate from Central Michigan University. Dr. Parker brings to CMU expertise in instructional technology, interactive learning, and school improvement through data analysis. She was part of the very first Cohort of ISTE Certified educators and continues to contribute to several ongoing ISTE projects.
Dr. Parker explained, “My ISTE Certification is truly a badge of honor. I was thrilled to be part of the #ISTEcert launch in Washington D.C. I feel fortunate to be counted as one of just over 1,000 educators to earn #ISTEcert. The process had me digging deeper into the ISTE Standards and opportunities to stretch and grow my instructional practice through Ed Tech. I am very excited by the possibilities this opportunity brings to the CMU MALDT program.”
Dr. Parker agrees with Dr. Liz Kolb’s mantra of Learning First, Technology Second (2017). Parker went on to say, “Digital age teaching and learning should be about finding innovative ways to embed higher quality experiences for students. Technology shouldn’t be used to entertain students or tech for technology sake – it should support the content and be used to scaffold and enhance the learning”.
As an international presenter, Dr. Parker was on the main stage at ISTE 2017 and earned the ISTE Outstanding Leader Award in 2018. She has also traveled and presented nationally as a McREL Certified trainer in Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. This led to her being a part of the 22iTRIG team that brought Technology Classroom Readiness initiatives to Michigan educators. As the State Lead for Professional Development for the MISchoolData portal, she is well-versed in facilitating both face-to-face and online professional development using technology.
As an instructional technology consultant with Macomb Intermediate School District, Dr. Parker supports 21 school districts in the use of instructional technology. She co-facilitates a 2 year blended learning academy for educators and is probably best known as one of the co-creators of the 21things4 project. This suite of websites, now supported by the State REMC Association, includes the 21things4teachers, 21things4educators, 21things4students, and MITechKids. The sites are each aligned to the ISTE Standards (adopted by Michigan as the MITECS) and built to connect K-12 educators to free resources, lessons, and curriculum to integrate educational technology into the content area.
The 21things4educators and 21things4students are the proud recipients of the ISTE Seal of Alignment. The #ISTESOA means the resources have been critically evaluated to align with the ISTE Standards. Dr. Parker explained, “When people find out that the 21things4 are FREE, and that we are pointing them to curated tools and ready-to-teach resources they are hooked! We have been going strong since 2009 and are very proud to continue to be relevant and valued in the Ed Tech world.”
