Academy Modules: Modules developed for students in the three content areas are referred to as Academy modules. The instructor's modules are created for orientation purposes and are not intended for professional development. Rather, they are designed to convey information about Academy modules and how they can be integrated into teacher education programs.

Directed Questions: A series of questions about lesson content has been included as a feature in each module. A question is presented. Once students enter their response they are able to access exemplary answers. This allows them to compare their response to responses prepared by the Academy staff.

Instructor's Home Page: In addition the Academy home page a page designed to contain information of particular interest to participating instructors has been created. A feature of the instructors home page is an email link for instructors.

Lesson Level Assessment: With each lesson, assessments have been included to evaluate students' understanding of the content covered in each lesson. These assessments are specific to the respective lesson versus the broader topic of the module.

List Serve: A program that automates the management of electronic mailing lists making all email accessible to persons who use the Academy modules (or to persons who subsribe to the listserv).

Menu: There are menus for each level and lesson in an Academy module. Links to the level menus appear in the center of the menubar. Access any level menu by clicking the level titles in the center of the menubar. Click the up arrow (top right) to access the menu for the current level or to go to the next higher menu level. For example, if you are viewing a page in a lesson the up arrow takes you to the current Lesson menu then to the menu for all Lessons then to the Table of Contents (ToC) for the entire module.

Module: A module is an instructional unit. It contains the pedagogical features necessary for instruction. Examples of features include objectives, the presentation of content, activities designed to engage the learner, assessments of learner performance and opportunities to apply what has been learned.

Module Level Assessment: With each module, assessments have been included to evaluate students' understanding of the content covered across all lessons in a module. These assessments require students to integrate what they have learned from the several lessons in responding to evaluative activities designed to assess their understanding of the broader content of the module.

Online Option: All Academy modules are designed to be offered online. However, they can also be used as resources in traditional courses. When reference is made to online modules the focus is on their being offered as web based instructional modules.

Practice Exercises: The last level in all modules is a feature containing practice exercises. The practice exercises are designed to allow students to practice what they have learned in the lesson.

Readings: References have been selected as resources for each lesson. Students are able to access the reading online. They can read the selections online or print them for reading at a later time.

Resource Option: If an instructor opts to not assign students to complete the modules online they can use features of the modules as resources in traditional courses.

Spreadsheet: In developing a tracking system to monitor the progress of students instructors may use a spreadsheet such as can be produced by Excel or other graphic systems. A grid can be created by listing students names on one side and the module features across the top. Such a spreadsheet can be maintained in electronic form or produced in hard copy and maintained as a file record.

Traditional Courses: Instructional formats such as courses and seminars taught face to face are referred to as traditional to differentiate them from online instruction taught via the Internet and the WWW.