0

days left

End Date:
07/31/2015

I am seeking to gain funds to allow teachers at my site to explore Gizmos and improve students math and science scores.

This proposal seeks to obtain a school wide license for Gizmos through Explore Learning for Myrtle Tate Elementary, 2450 Lincoln Rd., N. Las Vegas, NV 89115.
Goals: The goal of obtaining these Gizmos is to improve student achievement on the SBAC math assessment in the 2015-2016 school year by 43% when compared to the 2014-2015 school year. This improvement achievement will be used to measure the growth in student proficiency. Furthermore, a proficiency rate of 70% will be the goal on the 2015-2016 test science assessment.
As 2014-2015 is the first year students will be administer the SBAC in math, the results will not be obtained until late summer, the goal will be an increase of 43% in proficiency of this result. Less than half of the student’s grades 3-5 were proficient in the math CRT, a test taken in the 2013-2014 school year.
If proficiency is gained in the 2015-2016 math SBAC, this will serve as a measureable result that the implementation of Gizmos positively impacted student performance. As the SBAC is based on Common Core State Standards, this assessment acts as proof of mastery in said standards.
Meaningful Learning: By acquiring a site license for Explore Learning Gizmos, students grades 2-5 will have the opportunity to engage in inquiry based learning designed to meet various learning styles. Gizmos are designed to engage students in problems with real word applications to create meaningful learning experiences that lead to a deep understanding of content. Currently, Myrtle Tate does not have a math or science curriculum that is consistent across grade levels. Implementation of Gizmos could supplement curriculum in both content areas and allow students to expand on the learning they have acquired in previous grades using this resource. Gizmos would benefit students as they can provide individualized learning to meet the needs of diverse learners. In addition, research by Marzano shows that students who engage in such computer simulations represent an increase in student achievement by 43% over students who have not engaged in such simulations (2001). Therefore, implementation of Gizmos would positively impact student achievement as measured through state testing.
Implementation and Evaluation: With two months of school left in the 2014-2015 school year, Explore Learning Gizmos will be implemented in the beginning of the 2015-2016 school year. This gives educators the summer to become acquainted with the resource and incorporate its use into long range planning. Teachers will be given time in their first week of the contracted year, before students arrive, to collaboratively plan using these resource and its alignment to CCSS. This ensures teachers will be utilizing the resource regularly and also maximizes the effect for its vertical alignment across grade levels. It also increases the potential for a positive impact as measurement by the end of year SBAC achievement test in math and science. According to Maine Impact Study for Technology in Mathematics, educators who were given professional development in online simulations, which included Explore Learning Gizmos, outperformed educators who did not receive this training in math content knowledge. In addition, the students of the trained educator significantly outperformed the students in the control group, with the untrained educator, in math assessment scores. Therefore, implementation of Gizmos will be measured thorough the increased proficiency in math as seen by SBAC tests at the end of the 2015 and 2016 school years.
Vendor Information: Explore Learning is the vendor of Gizmos. Explore Learning is the largest library of interactive online simulations in both science and math education. Explore Learning is based out of Charlottesville, VA and services teachers across all 50 states. Explore Learning has correlated Gizmos to all state standards and over 300 text books. Explore Learning has received critical acclaim as the 2006, 2007, 2010, and 2013 winner of The best Science Instruction Solution, BESSIE Award Winner in 2013 and 2014, winner of the Distinguished Achievement Award in 2005, 2007, 2008, 2011, and 2012, and has won the Cool Tool Award: STEM Solution in 2013.
Cost: It would economically more feasible to buy a license for the entire elementary school than for the teachers grades 2-5. The license for the site will be $2,500 for the year.

Share This Link: http://www.digitalwish.com/gizmos

Name	Donation	Visits Generated	Comments
This team currently has no members. Join now or make a donation!

Spread The Word:

Top Wishes: