home

=Bell Middle School iPad Project﻿ =

This is a wiki about our implementation of the addition of iPads in our history department's curriculum at Bell middle school.
This year, the 8th grade social studies department had $15,000.00 budgeted for our department. In the climate of differentiation, RTI (response to Intervention), honors curriculum and non-honors curriculum, and the new literacy strategies that our school is implementing, it was important to find a way to meet these diverse needs and have the flexibility to address other changes over the next decade. The need to communicate with the students, the other teachers, the aids, parents, and everyone else in a simple and comprehensive manner about lessons, expectations, and progress was also an important consideration. After much research, conversation, and cost assessment, the decision was made to purchase 20 iPads, a charging cart to store and charge the iPads, protective cases, and screen covers.

Our first Goal: To develop a policy for the use of the new iPads that requires all instructors to develop new lesson plans and share those plans and the products of those plans in order to establish common assessments and improve those assessments for learning.

 Three possible options for the iPad use policy are: 1. to allow teachers to check out the iPads and use them in any manner they choose with no record or feedback; 2. to allow teachers to check out and use the iPads, but only use the loaded applications and provide feedback; or, 3. to allow teachers to check out and use the iPads after they develop a draft lesson plan that includes the rubric, the standards addressed, and their plan for assessment and with the agreement and understanding that they will share the products of the lesson plan for students and teachers in the entire department to assess.

 The first option matches up with the traditional textbook approach. The department gets new books, teachers use them and nobody shares lesson plans or outcomes. Many teachers prefer this option because they are concerned about standardizing lesson plans and squeezing out creativity or flexibility. (DuFour 2007). However, because nobody shares outcomes, there is no data to support the views of the adherents to this type of approach. This is what the district is trying to move away from.

 The second option is only a mild step beyond what is being done now. There is a dearth of information on the web about how schools are integrating the use of iPads into their curriculums other than to use them as e-book readers or for their limited education apps. (McCrea 2010). Such a narrow approach would not facilitate the implementation of a common assessment. It might even result in very limited use of very expensive tools.

 The third option makes the most sense because it will not only establish a bank of lesson plans for the department to draw from and improve upon over time, but it will also serve as a means to activate our PLC and implement our common assessment. Using iPads to update and enhance our social studies department’scurriculum is uncharted territory. But, it is precisely because it is uncharted that we have this opportunity to develop a policy for using the iPads as a means to implement our common assessment.

 Teachers spend about 1/3 of their time in assessment. (Stiggens 2008, p.16). The distinction between assessments for report card grades, final exams, whether standards have been met (assessments of learning) and the types of assessments that increase learning (assessments of learning) is not always considered. Practical reasons exist to continue with assessments of learning. However, it is also important also to guide the students in assessment as a means to enhance their learning experience. Having a common assessment is an important step toward ensuring that our students’ learning experience is at a quality level. A common assessment does not mean that all teachers in one department need to teach their subjects in the same order and in the same fashion for the entire school year. Instead, a common assessment can be a concerted effort to identify four or more discreet benchmarks that a department wants to assess in common per year. This type of approach has been referred to as “the gold standard in educational accountability.” (Reeves 2004).

 Implementation of the iPad usage policy will not yield an immediate result. The social studies department will need to convene and choose at least one topic to focus on at first. One example lesson plan that our department could use as part of our initial common assessment is the short constructed response. If we choose Abraham Lincoln, for example, and have the students post a short constructed response on their iPads about how they think President Lincoln would react to a modern policy, we could use their answers as our data to gauge how well we are getting the information about President Lincoln across to them.

 To further develop our use of common assessments, the iPad use policy will need to be in place for at least a semester. Once teachers have developed the lesson plan bank and have shared the products of those lesson plans, we will be able to choose from those examples to create additional common assessments. And our students will be able to conduct self assessments that will help them to see whether they are understanding and learning the topics presented. Having the lesson plans and products to review and comment on over the course of the semester will only strengthen our PLC.  Evaluation should not be an afterthought, but instead a keystone element to the creation of lesson plans. Rather than segmenting the learning process into units and chapters that are taught, tested, and crossed off the list, the learning process can be continuous and cohesive so that students realize what has happened, what can happen, and re-evaluate their understanding as the year progresses. “Teachers must be able to develop assessment strategies, gather evidence, analyze what they see, and ultimately, make instructional adjustments to respond to student needs. Both teachers and students become learners. Teachers become more focused on what and how to teach, and students become more self-directed, motivated, and focused on learning.” (Valencia 2002). The opportunity that the new iPads present is going to enhance Bell Middle School ’s social studies department and make the learning experience for our students better than it is now.

References
 DuFour, R. (July 30, 2007) Common Formative Assessments Retrieved December 15, 2010 from www.allthingsplc.info/wordpress/?p=46 McCrea, B. (Jan. 27, 2010) Measuring the iPad's Potential for Education retrieved Decemebr 17, 2010 from@http://thejournal.com/articles/2010/01/27/measuring-the-ipads-potential-for-education.aspx Reeves, D. (2004). Accountability for Learning: How Teachers and School Leaders Can Take Charge. Alexandria, VA : Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, pp. 71 <span style="font-family: Georgia,'sans serif';">Stiggins, R. (2008) Student-Involved Assessment FOR Learning (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey : Pearson Merrill Pearson Hall. <span style="font-family: Georgia,'sans serif';">Valencia, S. (2002) Understanding Assessment: Putting Together the Puzzle retrieved December 15, 2010 from @http://www.eduplace.com/state/author/valencia.pdf