Northeast Arkansas Educational Coop EETT Grant Project

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Northeast ArkansasEducational Coop EETT Grant
Project
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Overview of Goals

• Student achievement, including technology
  literacy, of all students is improved through the
  use of technology
• Teachers effectively use technology and
  research-based practices to support student
  learning
• Technology is integrated throughout the curriculum

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Professional Development

• To assist teachers of mathematics and applied
  content areas in developing the needed skills to
  use InterWrite pads in their classroom

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Professional Development

• Content-focused development of InterWrite lessons
• Integrated content lessons consisting of family
  and consumer science and agriculture applications
• Cooperatively created DVD Lessons to used as
  future training sessions
• Created peer support through interpersonal
  contact and through discussion boards

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Future Professional Development

• 3-day professional development conducted by EETT
  2007/2008 participants for 15 new teachers to
  share knowledge gained and technology usefulness
  in the classroom.
• This PD is to take place 4/28, 5/5, 5/12, 5/19

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Resources Used in EETT

• InterWrite Pads and all resources provided by
  InterWrite (including web resources)
• Computer technology
• Video/DVD production
• Email discussion groups

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Parental Involvement

• Lessons put on-line in PDF format for
  parents/teachers to see
• Display of InterWrite pads for teachers during
  parent-teacher conference to spur discussion
• Demonstration of InterWrite pads for parents

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Parental Involvement

• Lessons saved and emailed to absentee students in
  PDF for completion
• More open communication with parents regarding
  what students are doing in class

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Evaluation Process

• Survey sent to teacher-participants on current
  technology use prior to beginning training
• Used to establish a baseline for
  teacher-technology use
• Survey sent to students regarding technology use
  in the classroom prior to teacher-participant use
  in the classroom
• Used to establish student benefit from teacher
  use of InterWrite pads in the classroom

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Evaluation Results

• Results of the evaluation will not be available
  until after the 2007/2008 school year and into
  the 2008/2009 school year

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Project Shortcomings

• What worked well?
• Acquired equipment and got to use it in a
  hands-on situation and take it home instead of
  having to go back and persuade administration to
  purchase
• Able to learn about software in the professional
  development, try in class, and then repeat the
  process to determine best practices

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Project Shortcomings

• What worked well?
• The ability to capture material from textbooks
  and project through the InterWrite pads instead
  of having to draw on a chalkboard/whiteboard

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Project Shortcomings

• What barriers did we encounter?
• Technology coordinators at district level not
  prepared to handle technology
• Barriers associated with learning/implementing a
  new technology in the classroom (new software,
  singularities in hardware, software manuals)

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Project Shortcomings

• What prevented us from being more effective?
• Some participants had difficulty with transition
  from SmartBoard technology to InterWrite
  technology
• Time constraints in conjunction with teacher
  schedules

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What Did We Learn?

• Applied sciences participants became more aware
  of how geometry frameworks fit into their
  curriculum thereby assisting participants in
  developing a deeper understanding of how geometry
  is used in real-life contexts

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What Did We Learn?

• Discovered that InterWrite has many lesson plans
  coordinated with framework topics that can be
  easily transitioned into classroom lessons
• Great tools incorporated into InterWrite software
  make teaching geometry more effective

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What Did We Learn?

• Participants appreciate how they can customize
  the toolbar for personal preferences
• Much easier to import Arkansas ACTAAP release
  items for use in class

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Primary Outcomes

• Creation of a training DVD that can be used as a
  professional development tool to assist teachers
  new to InterWrite the basic operations of the
  device
• Improved participant knowledge of technology
• Accomplished through the development of lessons
  by each teacher