Iowa Learning Technology Grants

2007 Recipients

Brief Project Description

Note: Award amounts reflect the five percent reduction in the overall request, as approved by the Iowa Learning Technology Commission. Each description was submitted by the school district.

District Size 0-600: Anita $95,000.00

The Anita Community School District and CAM High School would like to synchronize the use of technology by students and teachers by putting a high quality wireless laptop or handheld in the hands of every student at the beginning of the school year.

Getting everyone on the same digital playing field will enable teachers to better communicate with students; students to stay organized, produce high quality work and have access to research and/or software 24/7. Putting a laptop or portable in every student’s hands will help address the technology gap between students of lower socio-economic status and those of higher socio-economic status. In 2005-2006, we had 41% of our population on free and reduced lunch and in 2006-2007, it is 30%.

Market driven emerging technologies will constantly be pursued and considered by the technology team. Those chosen will be implemented only after district consensus and providing quality professional development before full installation.

We have two wireless access points in the city, one at the Library and another at a restaurant. Part of the grant would be to provide two more access points in town and investigate discounted Internet subscriptions to students who attend CAM High School. One of the access points would be our Community Center that is being built adjacent to the high school on the school’s campus. Students and parents would have access through the centers expanded hours.

Putting everyone on the same page through the use of the same technology, management data using the same systems putting all on the same network will bring together the loose technology and educational ends that exist currently in the district.

District Size 601-1500: Williamsburg $51,474.64

The purpose of this project is to improve the reading skills of the 130 Williamsburg Community School District students in grades 7-12, with the lowest reading achievement (<46th percentile ITBS/ITED). We will improve reading performance through use of a mobile wireless computer lab, allowing for one-to-one computing, and the innovative Academy of Reading (AOR) software curriculum. The lab, consisting of 30 laptops with headphones and wireless connectivity, will be used in the Reading Comprehension course all struggling readers must take. Laptops will be stored on a mobile recharging cart that will be moved from room to room as needed.

AOR is an intervention software system designed to complement existing K-12 reading curricula, with particular emphasis on struggling readers. AOR focuses on phonemic awareness, phonics, and reading comprehension and is designed to improve automaticity through practice. AOR tests student skill levels and prescribes an individualized course of instruction based on test results. Students work at their own pace through the prescribed exercises.

Intensive staff development based on the IPDM will be a key component of this project. Teachers will receive training and on-site consultation on use of wireless computers and AOR. These teachers then will train additional staff, first in the Jr/Sr high, then the elementary level as we expand the program to lower grades in subsequent years.

We will document the impact on student achievement through: 1) Measures of Academic Progress (MAP), an adaptive, computer-based achievement test, 2) ITBS/ITEDs, 3) AOR and other classroom assessments. Anticipated outcomes for our 130 lowest performing readers include:

• A two-grade improvement in reading comprehension

• An increased percentage of proficient readers

District Size 1501 – 9000: Ankeny $37,762.50

The primary focus of the project is to create a partnership between the Ankeny Historical Society and Ankeny High School. Students will use the latest innovative technology to increase the rigor and relevance of learning while making connections with residents of Ankeny by providing a valuable community service.

AHS students will use the newest technology to design and update the Ankeny Area Historical Society’s web site. The students will offer, through this web site, several enhancements that will connect their learning in American History to the history of their community. Students will build the web site and offer interviews with the local historical society and Ankeny residents via audio and video Pod casts. The Pod casts would capture area residents’ experiences living in Ankeny during the time periods studied in class and will be available to Ankeny residents through free subscriptions to the Pod casts.

Students will research and narrate audio guided tours of the museum and record them on iPods which will be checked out by museum visitors taking audio guided tours of the museum. The audio tours will also be available to visitors by downloading them at home and recording them to their mp3 players which can be used when they came to the museum. Students will continually update and expand the recordings as the museum’s collection expands.

Within the museum, students will create Keynote or PowerPoint interactive kiosks on computers for visitor’s use. Students will design kiosks for different purposes and ages of visitors. Students will create interactive games for younger visitors that will review their museum tour, and some kiosks will host video interviews or multi-media displays of artifacts.

Students will archive and record new and existing oral history interviews of area residents to DVD and the Society’s web site. Photos and artifacts from the museum will enhance computer recordings, which will be viewed by visitors to the museum.

District Size 9000+: Cedar Rapids $79,730.88

The goal of our project is to transform the way teachers teach and students learn by placing interactive whiteboards and student response systems in targeted middle school math classrooms. Each participating classroom will be equipped with an interactive whiteboard which will be connected to the classroom computer, a projector, an interactive slate which can be used to control the whiteboard from anywhere in the classroom, and a set of student response devices which will allow the teacher to capture formative and summative assessment data on a regular basis. The interactive whiteboard comes with software that allows teachers to easily design and modify existing lessons, quizzes, and assessments to make them more interactive. The lessons can be saved in several different formats and posted to the schools’ websites so students and parents can access them for review or practice.

The initiative will support and enhance quality teaching with technology, providing teachers with training, peer collaboration, and sustainable technology resources to extend exemplary practices and promote engaged learning. Teachers will participate in a summer workshop to learn about the interactive whiteboard technology. During the school year, project participants will work in teams, producing model lessons utilizing interactive technology tools to support the NCTM process standards of problem solving, reasoning and proof, communication, connections, and representation. Lessons will follow a Launch/Explore/Summarize format in which students are presented with a problem, work in various groupings to solve the problem, and then share strategies in the large group. A cache of saved lessons on the district website will enable teachers to avail themselves of the planning done by participants. Teachers will have the opportunity to share ideas, examine student work, and discuss the use of this technology with one another in a monthly seminar.

At large: SE Polk $95,000.00

The Southeast Polk Community School District (SEP) submits this proposal to equip our environmental study station with much needed technology. SEP and Metro Waste Authority (MWA) are engaged in a joint venture to develop a K-12 ecology field station. MWA has provided us with the use of the buildings and land and will cover the operational costs until we become self-sustaining. SEP intends to bring the facility up to code and eventually cover the operational costs. This joint venture is a continuation of SEP’s well-publicized efforts at cleaning waterways and measuring water quality. When complete, this environmental study center will be a model for other schools interested in outdoor environmental education.

We will use the ILTC grant money to equip the facility and high school classrooms as follows:

• Data acquisition – Vernier probeware, digital microscopes, Canon digital cameras, Canon videocameras

• Manipulation of data - TI-84+Silver calculators and two Gateway portable labs

• Communication of results using multimedia productions and on-line research – one portable Apple lab and multimedia presentation unit

SEP will provide the matching funds to develop the technology-rich curriculum and provide ongoing professional development to train teachers in the use of the new technology.

The infusion of technology into this project has three major goals:

1) Improve student achievement in the area of science through the use of inquiry-based investigations dependent on using the technological tools of a professional scientist.

2) Promote technology literacy and develop the skills needed by a 21st century citizen.

3) Provide students with one-to-one access to technology in a field setting and in the classroom.

At large: Okoboji $103,075.00

This will be a two-pronged project. Component 1 will provide all students in Okoboji High School with a laptop computer to keep and use throughout their years in school. Component 2 will be to develop a learning web portal that addresses the specific needs of Okoboji High School. Both parts will emphasize the needs of three high-need population groups: low-income students, low-achieving students, and special needs students.

One-to-one computing is no longer a rarity. Maine has adopted statewide 1:1, and South Dakota is following. Research in 95 Michigan districts has shown that when each student has a computer, learning improves. Research in other states that have adopted one-to-one computing more recently has documented that the ambience for learning is better. Research has also shown that districts that incorporate content-rich web portals correlate closely with improved achieving, as opposed to traditional district websites that are informational rather than learning-oriented.

Ironically, one-to-one learning and web portals are rarely found in the same schools; it’s generally one or the other. This project will combine them. Students will use their laptops to access learning content via the portal.

Low-income students who lack internet capabilities will have additional access to the school so as to be connected. Low-achieving students will be given remedial software such as Kurzweil 3000 Read-Aloud, as well as a counterpart to IEPs, Personalized Educational Plans, along with access to a PEP team. These students, along with those on IEPs, will benefit from differentiated instruction that reaches them by accessing programming that will be geared toward their learning styles.

In addition to serving students’ needs, the portal will be designed with entries for teachers, parents and administrators. The project will include extensive professional