About the Author: About our authors

Robert W. Maloy is a senior lecturer in the Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies in the College of Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he coordinates the history and political science teacher education programs. He also codirects the TEAMS Tutoring Project, a community engagement/service-learning initiative in which university students provide academic tutoring to culturally and linguistically diverse students in public schools throughout the Connecticut River Valley region of western Massachusetts. His research focuses on technology and educational change, teacher education, democratic teaching and student learning. He is coauthor of 8 other books: Kids Have All the Write Stuff: Revised and Updated for a Digital Age; Wiki Works: Teaching Web Research and Digital Literacy in History and Humanities Classrooms; We, the Students and Teachers: Teaching Democratically in the History and Social Studies Classroom; Ways of Writing with Young Kids: Teaching Creativity and Conventions Unconventionally; Kids Have All the Write Stuff: Inspiring Your Child to Put Pencil to Paper; The Essential Career Guide to Becoming a Middle and High School Teacher; Schools for an Information Age and Partnerships for Improving Schools. Robert has received a University of Massachusetts Amherst Distinguished Teaching Award (2010), the University of Massachusetts President's Award for Public Service (2010), a School of Education Outstanding Teacher Award (2004), a University Distinguished Academic Outreach Award (2004) and the Chancellor's Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Community Service (1998 and 1993).

Ruth-Ellen Verock is a senior lecturer in the Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies in the College of Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She coordinates Bridges to the Future, a 1 year intensive master's degree and secondary teacher license program serving school systems in western Massachusetts. Prior to joining the university, Ruth was an elementary school classroom and reading teacher in Virginia and Massachusetts. Her academic research focuses on new teacher education, technology in teaching and community service learning in K to 12 schools. She is coauthor with Robert W. Maloy and Sharon A. Edwards of Ways of Writing with Young Kids: Teaching Creativity and Conventions Unconventionally. She received the School of Education's Outstanding Teacher Award in 2007. She served as coordinator of the 2003 University of Massachusetts/WGBY National Teacher Training Institute (NTTI) and was an educational researcher for the 1999 to 2000 Harvard University Evidence Project.

Sharon A. Edwards is a clinical faculty member in the Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies in the College of Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Retired from public school teaching, she taught primary grades for 32 years at the Mark's Meadow Demonstration Laboratory School, a public laboratory school in Amherst, Massachusetts. As a clinical faculty member, she mentors undergraduate students and graduate student interns in the early childhood teacher education, constructivist teacher education and secondary teacher education programs. Her college teaching and workshop presentations focus on children's writing, reading and math learning; curriculum development; instructional methods and diversity and equity in education. She also codirects the university's TEAMS Tutoring Project. In 1989, Sharon was the inaugural recipient of the national Good Neighbor Award for Innovation and Excellence in Education given by the State Farm Insurance Companies and the National Council of Teachers of English for her work with young children's writing. She received her Doctor of Education degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1996. She is coauthor with Robert W. Maloy of 2 other books: Ways of Writing with Young Kids and Kids Have All the Write Stuff.

Torrey Trust, PhD, is an associate professor of Learning Technology in the Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies in the College of Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she is the co-coordinator of the Learning, Media and Technology master's degree program. Her research and teaching focus on how technology can support teachers in designing contexts that enhance student learning. Dr. Trust is the past president of the Teacher Education Network for the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) (2016 to 2018). Her research, teaching and service to the field of educational technology have received noticeable recognition, including the 2016 ISTE Online Learning Network Award, 2017 Outstanding Research Paper Award for the Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 2017 American Educational Research Association (AERA) Instructional Technology Special Interest Group Best Paper Award, 2017 ISTE Emerging Leader Award, 2017 Association for Educational Communication & Technology Division of Distance Learning Crystal Award (second place), 2018 Making IT Happen (ISTE) Award and 2019 AERA Technology as an Agent of Change for Teaching & Learning (Special Interest Group) Early Career Scholar Award.