What is the problem and what do I already know?

Technology at Fannin is not being used as a tool to impact learning and teaching. It’s functional and administrative. Technology in the actual hands of the students could be SO MUCH MORE!

I am proposing a 1:1 initiative in a 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade class (TBD) to see if technology integration can be successful with the use of iPads in a 1:1 setting.

I know that the iPads that we have on campus that are checked out are used as a tool to perform common tasks on programs like Moby Max and Istation.

I want to see the iPad transform into a tool that allows students to create and collaborate while still learning the content and skills that are in the curriculum.

How will I measure the success?

Success (or failure) will be measured by feedback and observations.

In the beginning, teachers and students will take a survey so that I can discover their familiarity with different types of technology.

The teacher survey will include questions about document cameras, desktop computers, interactive projectors, etc. (This is what our district calls standard classroom technology.) I will also include questions about iPads, technology integration, technology for personal use, comfort with technology, etc.

The student survey will include questions about mobile technology, how often they use tablets/iPads in and out of school, how they feel about using an iPad for learning, etc.

Surveys throughout the year will be directed strictly at the teachers.

Survey questions will include information about iPad usage in the classroom. Examples include: How many days a week are iPads being used for math, reading, science, social studies, etc.?

What is the time being spent on the iPads in one session?

Are students using the iPads to create presentations/projects?

How many presentations/projects were made in a month’s time?

Why measure at all? Who wants to know how it all ends?

Results will be shared with the classroom teacher(s) who participated, campus administrators, district technology staff, district curriculum staff, and possibly the assistant superintendent of student success.

Results will be gathered and presented through a simple PowerPoint shared at an after school meeting.

The purpose of measuring this initiative is to discover if it helped students become 21st century learners by creating presentations, publishing work online, and becoming a part of the mobile and connected world around us.