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Home > Our Plan
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Rationale:
The integration of technology into the classrooms can contribute to increased student achievement. This occurs when technology is available to students on a wide spread basis and when teachers create activities that integrate the technology meaningfully. While the handheld computer doesn’t have the full functionality of the desktop computer, access in a 1:1 environment may be more important. The mobility and functionality of handheld computers lend themselves to the K-12 environment in a cost effective method. Plan: Our Goal: To Develop a National Model for Handheld Computer Integration within the Seaford School District “I think it is important to encourage others to try new technologies and to extend themselves into new areas. Whether it is a colleague, someone who works for you, or someone you meet at a conference, encourage him or her by talking enthusiastically about something you've recently learned. Take the time to show him or her how to get started. Share your sandbox. Sometimes it takes someone's holding your hand to get you going; pass on that favor to other people. It is to everyone's benefit to create a stimulating, creative, and renewing work environment.” (Stevenson, 2002) The power and potential of the Handheld Computer (Palm or Pocket PC) is just beginning to be realized by educators around the country. According to Pownell and Bailey (2001) the “handheld computers are at the forefront of the fourth wave in the evolution of technology. Each wave has ushered in new ideas of teaching and learning with and about technology.”
The Seaford School District began using handheld computers in the secondary classrooms in the fall of 2004. These computers were be purchased from a variety of state, federal and local resources and were designated for in-class and take home use by students. This instructional integration was the focus of professional development for teachers and staff during the summer and fall of 2004.
The instructional uses of the handheld computers will be encouraged in secondary schools. As a starting point, the district focused on these integration strategies:
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One of the implementation components was be the availability of the handhelds to be checked out for home use by students. While students may not be able to access the Internet functions of the handhelds from home, students could use the technology as a reference tool to access encyclopedias, create Microsoft Word documents, complete spreadsheet functions and access 3rd party software. This assists in bridging the digital divide that exists in the Seaford community.
However, these instructional projects only focused on student use in the classroom and home environments. The teachers and staff in the secondary schools within the Seaford School District also needed access to handheld technology inside and outside of the classroom and school setting in order to become familiar with the technology and to implement effective integration strategies. In order to become familiar with handheld computers, it was essential that they be given access to the new technology within a structured Learning Community that fostered interaction, collaboration and experimentation. Learning in this “digital sandbox” should not only increase teacher skills, but motivate them to become avid users.
The Learning Community is a peer group of 4-5 participants who meet formally four times per school year to complete a series of structured activities. These activities are designed to share new handheld ideas, document usage on the project web site, read and react to one new piece of research, and participate in the PFSE technology discussion group, TeacherPRO. Participants meet in twelve Learning Communities throughout the 3-year study. However, having the support group of their Learning Community within their school assists teachers by having informal access to questions and sharing The Validity of Building Learning Communities with Handheld Computers: Studies have proven that the potential of handheld computers can increase student motivation and achievement. SRI International conducted an extensive study in 2002 that showed the following results from schools participating in the Palm Educational Pioneer (PEP) program (Crawford, 2002):
· 89% of teachers found the handheld computers to be an effective instructional tool for teachers · 93% of teachers believe that handheld computers can have a positive impact on student achievement · 95% of the teachers said that their students were comfortable using handhelds · 72% of the teachers said that handheld computers were more easily used in the flow of instruction than desktop computers
Another study found that teachers are motivated to develop their own technology skills when the skills are linked to effective professional development. Furthermore, “numerous literature surveys link student technology achievement to teachers’ opportunities to develop their own computer skills.” (Roschelle et al. 2002, page 90). It has been documented that when teachers and staff have access to computers and technology outside of the classroom, they increase the integration of these technologies inside their classrooms (Becker, 2000).
This proposal calls for teachers to meet regularly in structured Learning Communities with peer support group to share implementation issues and to conduct research on handheld integration. This peer support and mentoring model reflects the findings of Teacher Professional Engagement and Constructivist-Compatible Computer Use by Becker and Reil (2000). They found that teachers who participate in professional growth structures (interactive teachers) using their peers were more likely “to have their students use computers on a regular basis during class time than teachers who did not (private practice teachers).” They also offered the following summary of findings: This comes as no surprise. Meaningful integration of computers and instruction is a difficult task, one that requires contact, collaboration, and support from professional peers, the school organization, and the educational community as a whole. If the inferences we draw from this data are correct, the current focus on testing students and holding teachers accountable is likely to engender a system in which teachers do the same thing to students. If, on the other hand, what we want from our schools is thoughtful and creative problem-solving and constructive, independent thinking, the most effective way to achieve these goals may be to design a system where teachers are encouraged to be thoughtful and creative problem solvers in the design of learning environments for students. (page 29) A study conducted by ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), “Conditions for Classroom Technology Innovations” (Zhao, Pugh, Sheldon and Byers, 2002) found that successful integration of technology innovations in the classrooms was linked to “teacher proficiency in using hardware and software and in understanding conditions that support technology use.” This supports the notion that teachers need to be comfortable and familiar with technology before they implement it in the classroom.
According to Stephen and Evan (2000), “Learning communities established by mentoring relationships encourage collaboration, communication and team work and provide on-going support in both technology and pedagogy for both mentors and mentees. Learning communities emerging from a nurturing and supportive environment allow members to exchange ideas, share experiences and learn together to accommodate individual learning styles.” Each participant in this project is required to do the following over a three-year study: · Agree to use a handheld computer extensively for a 3 year period of time · Participate in a Learning Community as an active member during this time period and post observations and computer usage reports onto a web site designed for this project · They will share professional uses for the handhelds, to research integration strategies and the exchange uses for the handhelds. Summaries of the meetings will be posted on the web site. · Keep an on-line journal of their uses for technology that will be part of the Learning Community web site developed for and devoted to this study · Participate in pre and post surveys of participant perceptions and attitudes towards handheld technology. The survey will be the Handheld Computer Implementation Survey. Data will be collected by the school and by the district in the fall of 2004, spring of 2005, the spring of 2006 and 2007. Project Match with the Plan for Social Excellence Vision: This project reflects the following technology visions of the Plan for Social Excellence, Inc. as established at the original North Salem site: 1. Building an electronic environment where teachers, students, and administrators had network access to new technologies. The Seaford School District will fund the implementation of a wireless network within each school using school district funds. These networks will be implemented in the fall of 2004. The handheld computers will then have the capacity to allow the staff member total access to his/her network files, e-mail, calendar and the Internet in a mobile environment. This electronic environment of using handheld computers will allow staff members the freedom to experiment with different applications without network limitations.
2. Implementing alternative teaching and learning strategies that support the new technological environment to better meet the needs of all students. As staff members meet in their Learning Communities, they can share different uses that they have mastered. There will be 12 Learning Communities activities created that will structure the quarterly meetings (4 per year). Each session will have time for sharing and questioning, as well as login time for TeacherPRO discussion and on-line journal entry. There will be one class set of handheld computers available for classroom use so that teachers can begin creating instructional strategies for the technology integration. As staff becomes more familiar with the technology, they will be encouraged to use the technology in their classrooms as a tool to motivate student interest. This will be supported through a variety of professional development sessions aimed at creating higher-level technology integration lessons.
3. Creating a new infrastructure, designed to support a new curriculum, integrated with technology that would increase student ability to become pro-active learners. As staff members begin to use the handheld computers in a “24/7” environment, they will begin to explore integration ideas and strategies that would benefit students in several ways. First, as teachers become motivated to use handheld computers, students would be also become motivated to become expert users. Second, students would have access to handheld computers outside of class through a check out system. This will allow them to use the technology to accomplish other instructional assignments beyond those planned for the classroom. All of the staff interactions will be documented on a new web site that will chronicle the use of the handhelds, as well become an instructional resource for classroom integration ideas and strategies. The North Salem Technology Project (Lessons Learned: Evaluation of the North Salem Technology Project) identified several frameworks for replication that are present in this proposal: · The importance of leadership and control by teachers (“implementation contributed to creating a sense of unity and shared purpose”) · The importance of systematic and ongoing outreach to teachers (“…encourage teachers’ embrace of technology as a valuable tool and to stimulate not only their full participation in project activities but also their creative initiative in applying newly developed technology-related skills to their teaching.”) · The success of the “teachers first” strategy · The critical role of staff development (peer learning communities) · Skill acquisition enables project buy-in (“initial skill development motivates and catalyzes teacher buy-in and participation”) This project meets the tenets of the Plan for Social Excellence. As the Seaford School District began a 3 year study of handheld computers in the fall of 2003, members of each of the existing Curriculum Innovation Teams participated. Several times during the meetings and site visits, the discussion arose from various members about the importance of teacher access to handheld computers.
The establishment of Learning Communities promotes the concepts of teacher empowerment outside the usual bureaucratic structures. As staff members meet in their Learning Communities to share and exchange ideas, they will become more empowered to use the technology in creative and innovative ways. The research cited indicates that as they become more comfortable with the technology, they will incorporate it into their classrooms and work environments.
Other schools and school districts can replicate this project as they work to implement technology, and the Learning Community model is not limited to handheld computer technology. The three-year study will measure growth in teacher perceptions as measured by the use of the scoring rubric as a self-assessment instrument.
A web site will be established for the following purposes to assist others in a replication:
· A journal of the Seaford School District implementation plan will be available for other schools and districts. · Data collected with the scoring rubric will be displayed throughout the project. · Teacher anecdotal information will be chronicled by grade level and subject level. · This web site will assist the learning community model by providing a collection of research and other documented sites for each learning community to access monthly during their learning community meetings.
Implementation Concept:
The school district has been approached about a collaborative grant opportunity with the University of Delaware to implement handheld computers in support of Project DEAL (www.udel.edu/soe/deal).
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