INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY GRANT PROPOSAL

Name of Applicant: Cara Humphries

District/School: Muscogee County School District

Date: 7/15/18

Total Cost of Project: $700

Title of Project: STEM Project-Based Learning

To what organization will you submit this grant application in the future?: Stemfinity
www.stemfinity.com

I. Why is this project important (In 2-3 paragraphs, describe the need for the project and its
relevance to the shared vision for instructional technology)?

Reese Road Leadership Academy (RRLA) located in Muscogee County School District
is a Title I school serving a diverse group of learners. RRLA’s vision for instructional
technology is to equip students with 21 st century skills by modeling leadership habits, best
practices, and utilization of Web 2.0 tools. Our students come to school eager to learn.
Regretfully, some students at RRLA come from low-income families and may not have the
same opportunities and access to technology as others. It is our job as educators to provide
every avenue possible for students to reach their full potential.
Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) require students to think critically and answer
open-ended questions especially in Reading/Language Arts
(Fig.1).https://www.georgiastandards.org/Georgia-Standards/Pages/ELA-K-5.aspx. Many of
our students have great difficulty with these skills. Through the integration of problem-
solving and technology standards (Fig. 2) http://www.iste.org/standards/for-
students#startstandards to support language arts content, students will be able to meet
standards.
There are a variety of learners at RRLA including a large population of students with
disabilities, gifted students, and students from lower and middle class families. Our school is
also a magnet academy with magnet classes in each grade level. Due to our diversity and
need for blended/project-based learning, this project is crucial to the implementation of
instructional technology and student-centered learning at Reese Road Leadership Academy.
Our school is equipped with class sets of laptops, Chromebooks, and tablets, but lacks
materials needed for STEM learning. With the integration of STEM Project-Based Learning,
our students will acquire the skills needed to reach at/above proficiency in Reading on
Georgia Milestone Assessments. The STEM kits can also be used year after year and can
impact many Reese Road Roadrunners. Students will develop life-long skills to ensure
college and career readiness.

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 Figure 1. Third grade Georgia Standards of Excellence for Reading

Figure 2. ISTE Standards for Students

II. What would you like to accomplish (In 2-3 paragraphs, describe the project and list instructional
objectives/project outcomes.)?

STEM Project-Based Learning will allow students to collaborate with each other through
technology, channel critical thinking skills, and build deeper understanding of content. If
granted, funds for this project will purchase STEM Lab kits for each grade level. These kits

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 include all of the resources needed to teach project-based lessons. The Media Center will house
the STEM kits for teachers to check out for use in the classroom.
Instructional/Project Outcomes:
 Students will build deeper understanding of texts through technology tools and project-
based learning to support language arts standards. (ELAGSE3RI1, ISTE3a-3d)
 Students will use collaboration tools such as Google Docs to work together to brainstorm
ways to recreate story elements from texts read independently or whole group. After
designing their story elements, they will use tools from the STEM kits (Legos) to build
their version of the story. (ELAGSE3RL3, ISTE4a-4d)
 Students will demonstrate knowledge of writing process through the use of research
skills, online concept mapping, and other digital tools. (ELAGSE3W5, ISTE3a, ISTE6a)
 Students will build critical thinking skills through open-ended tasks using materials from
the STEM kits. (ISTE 1)

III. In what ways is this project an example of exemplary technology integration (In 2-3 paragraphs
discuss your project regarding one or more of the following: LoTi, SAMR, TPACK, TIM,
etc.)?
STEM kits are a great way to integrate technology in the classroom. These kits are very
diverse and can accommodate all learners at any level. STEM integration has the potential to
be at a LoTi level 5-6 depending on the creativity and experience of the teacher.
Through the use of STEM kits, teachers can teach across the curriculum, by incorporating
literacy, math, science, and technology skills into one lesson. Kits will also be used to spark
critical-thinking skills and engage students in technology, while teaching content standards.
Students will have a variety of choices within these activities with the teacher facilitating
lessons. Through STEM kit utilization, teachers are able to build a higher understanding of
content standards and help students reach their full potential. Web 2.0 tools can easily be
used along with activities provided in the kits. With correct implementation of STEM
activities, all students will be prepared to pursue careers related to technology.

IV. How will you complete the work? (Describe how the project will be completed.)

A. Describe how the instructional objectives/project outcomes will be met (2-3 paragraphs).
The instructional objectives will be mastered through classroom implementation. Kits
will be organized by grade level content standards, with literacy to match each lesson. Each
kit will have the standards, instructional objectives, and a brief 5 question pretest/posttest
that can be accessed on the Muscogee County Share drive on a Google Doc. The media
specialist will model how to implement these kits for teachers.
Since our school is striving for more engaging, technology-filled lessons, teachers will be
required to implement at least 4 lessons per month. Teachers will record data from
pre/posttests in order to see if the kits have an impact on student achievement. Teachers will
also discuss their data during data team meetings.

B. Describe the time involved (project length including amount of time each day/week).

Teachers will implement at least one lesson per week/ 1 hour for each lesson.

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 C. Describe the people involved (grade level/subject & # of students, teachers and/or staff,
other stakeholders).
 Each grade level K-5 will have a kit.
 557 students
 30 teachers (3-K, 4-1st , 4-2nd, 4-3rd, 4-4th , 4-5th , 7-SWD)
 Media specialist (organization, monitor of supplies)
 Academic coach (data tracker of kit effectiveness)
 2 Administrators (teacher accountability)

D. Describe the materials needed for the project.

 Tablets
 Chromebooks
 Laptops
 STEM kits
 Children’s literature

V. What is the timeline for assessing accomplishments and objectives/project outcomes (In 1-2
paragraphs, describe program evaluation procedure.)?
Students will take a pretest, Quarterly Benchmark Assessment (QBA), in August for
language arts/reading skills that correlates to their grade level. These skills will be taught
through the STEM kit implementation. Each kit will also have pre/posttests for classroom
data. In December, students will take a posttest QBA. Teachers will compare data from QBA
tests and decide how effective the kits are for their students. Teachers will also compare the
scores from the previous year QBA given at the same time, but without the STEM kit
implementation. These comparisons will determine how impactful the kits are for our
students. A final QBA will be given again in April. At the end of the year, teachers will
collaborate to decide how to increase STEM kit effectiveness as well as strategies for
implementation for following school year.

V. How will the students be impacted by the project (In 2-3 paragraphs, include details regarding
how the impact on students will be assessed and reported to students, parents, teachers, and
others.)?
STEM project-based learning kits will allow teachers to spark creativity within our
students and build on their current knowledge. Teachers will be able to personalize learning
through the use of STEM kits to support content standards and incorporate technology within
the classroom. Blended learning environments prove to increase student achievement among
low-SES students (Schechter, Macaruso, Kazakoff & Brooke, 2015). Along with addressing
the needs of low-SES students, STEM kits will allow teachers to encourage the use of
technology for all students. Digital divides between genders exists commonly among
students, and STEM project-based learning will help RRLA to eliminate divides and promote
technology for all (Beede, Julian, Langdon, McKittrick, Khan, & Doms, 2011).
Teachers will be trained on how to implement STEM project-based learning during pre-
planning. They will have time to explore kits and get ideas for implementation. The media
specialist will model how to use these kits in the classroom.
Students and parents will learn about the STEM implementation during the first PTA
meeting in August. They will get updates about the project throughout the school year on

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 Classdojo. Those that do not have access to a device, will have a paper copy of assessment
information.

VI. What is the proposed budget? Include information on the following:

A. Materials/supplies: $700
B. Equipment: $0
C. Total Cost of Proposed Project: $700
D. Additional Funding Sources: n/a

VI. List your supporting references.

Beede, D., Julian,T., Langdon, D., McKittrick, G., Khan, B.K., & Doms, M. (2011) Women in stem: A

gender gap to innovation. U.S. Department of Commerce. Retrieved from

http://www.esa.doc.gov/sites/default/files/womeninstemagaptoinnovation8311.pdf.

GaDoe. (2015). Georgia Standards of Excellence. Retrieved from

https://www.georgiastandards.org/Georgia-Standards/Pages/ELA-K-5.aspx

ISTE. (2018). ISTE Standards for Teachers. https://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/20-14_ISTE_Standards-

T_PDF.pdf

Schechter, R., Macaruso, P., Kazakoff, E. R., & Brooke, E. (2015). Exploratio n of a blended learning

approach to reading instruction for low ses students in early elementary grades. Computers in

Schools. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07380569.2015.1100652.

Stemfinity. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.stemfinity.com/.

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 INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY GRANT PROPOSAL
EVALUATION FORM/SCORING RUBRIC

Total Points (out of 200): __________

1. Impacts a variety of skill levels and/or learning styles or impacts an important target population.

Possible number of points: 40 __________

2. Clearly identifies standards and learning objectives/project outcomes being addressed.

Possible number of points: 40 __________

3. Pedagogically sound, based on research and/or best practices.

Possible number of points: 40 __________

4. Clear plan for assessment of project and goals with examples of implementation methods.

Possible number of points: 40 __________

5. Impacts large number of students and/or can be recycled/reused.

Possible number of points: 40 __________

General Comments:

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Adapted from: T he Education Foundation of Oconee County, Inc.

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