I-4-21 Grant

MARYSVILLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS JOHN G. SILVERI, SUPERINTENDENT 1111 Delaware Avenue ♦ Marysville, Michigan 48040-1566 ♦ (810) 364-7731 ♦ fax (810) 364-3150 MARYSVILLE

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http://www.marysville.k12.mi.us It is the vision of the Marysville Public Schools that every student will excel both personally and for the benefit of humanity.

May 19, 2009 The Tellabs Foundation 1415 W. Diehl Rd. Mailstop 10 Naperville, IL 60563

Dear Tellabs Foundation; I am proud to represent the Marysville Public School District, which is located in a relatively small suburban city in southeast Michigan. Our District provides public education in Young Five’s 12th grades for approximately 2650 students, in addition to an Early Childhood Developmentally Delayed Program. The Marysville District contains three neighborhood elementary schools, one middle school and one high school. We employ 152 professional teaching staff. The Marysville Public School District seeks support from the Tellabs Foundation for $83,600 for support of our I-4-21 (Instruction for the 21st Century) project. We think this project is very much aligned with the Tellabs Foundation beliefs in providing high-quality development opportunities and supports for educators through best practice, creating world-class learning environments that are responsive to the needs of all students, and strengthening the infrastructure of the teaching profession by developing high-performing educators and teacher leaders. This project will provide the technology equipment, software and tools that will support a systematic process of staff collaboration and opportunities to provide all students with access to the curriculum and mastery of State standards. The I-4-21 project will include all students and teaching staff of the Marysville Schools. The funding requested from the Tellabs Foundation will be used to purchase document cameras for all instructional staff to enhance instruction and lesson delivery. The requested funding represents approximately 10% of the $807,862 budget for this project. With the award of this grant, the equipment and tools will be provided during the grant year, yet may be utilized in future years. Therefore, sustainability of true professional learning communities and enhanced achievement for all students will become a reality, and will prove beneficial for staff and students far beyond the grant year. We expect concrete results from this worthwhile project. These goals, which can be measured, include: Effective staff collaboration practices to design instructional lessons, construct common formative assessments, analyze student achievement data and make relevant and timely instructional decisions  Exploration and use of alternative methods, tools, equipment and software to plan instructional lessons, to increase student access to the curriculum, to provide options for demonstrating mastery and to increase student engagement  Increase student achievement of course and State standards 

We appreciate your consideration for funding, and we are excited to submit any additional information for your further review. I am aware that our narrative section has exceeded your requirement of no more than 3 pages. I hope the scope of this porject affirms the need for additional explanation. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions. Sincerely,

Marysville Public Schools

20082009

Cynthia Raymo, Director of Special Services Marysville Public Schools 920 Lynwood St. Marysville, MI 48040 [email protected] 810-455-6204

I-4-21 Grant (Instruction for the 21st Century) Organization Background The Marysville School District provides public education in Young Five’s - 12th grades for approximately 2650 students, in addition to an Early Childhood Developmentally Delayed Program. Our district contains three neighborhood elementary schools, one middle school and one high school. The Marysville Public Schools employs 152 professional teaching staff. As this grant will touch each teacher, the potential is great that every student will benefit from the grant project and will benefit from enhanced instructional activities and experiences. Marysville Public Schools is committed to our vision that every student will excel both personally and for the benefit of humanity and our mission to personalize learning through rigor, relevance and relationships. This commitment to achievement for all students is not just a set of words we put to paper, but a belief we strive to achieve. Proposed Project In our effort to realize our vision and our mission, our district has embarked upon a journey into Professional Learning Communities (PLC) (All Things PLC, n.d.). This journey has allowed many of us to see the current reality of our district, but also a vision for what we can become. A major component of a PLC is staff collaboration. This collaboration, which provides a vital support system to all staff, is focused on collective inquiry and on results. Collective inquiry involves investigation and experimentation with research based best practices to build staff knowledge, skill and capacity. A focus on results is achieved when effort is directed to purposeful decisions about student learning, which will lead to increased achievement of state standards for all students. Our district is facing very tough economic challenges, as the condition of funding for education across our state is inadequate at best, and we receive the minimum funding in an inequitable system. In spite of the funding challenges, staff and community commitment to our district and our students remains consistently high as indicated by the passing of a $74M bond in 2007. This bond will provide renovations to our three elementary schools, our middle school and the building of a new high school, due to be completed by September 2010. While we are ecstatic at the support of our community for these enhancements, the reality is that even with a bond as large as this one, it is impossible to fund everything we are certain will provide the most effective and efficient learning experiences for the 21st Century learner. Through this grant, our district will provide the students of Marysville Public Schools with a more relevant and meaningful education. This grant will provide the tools that will 2

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support a systematic process of staff collaboration and opportunities to provide all students with access to the curriculum and mastery of state standards. As these tools will be provided during the grant year and also beyond, sustainability of true professional learning communities and enhanced achievement for all students will become a reality. Provision of the equipment and tools will ensure increased achievement for all students far beyond the grant year. As our society changes, the educational landscape must evolve to provide students with the instruction, knowledge and skills necessary to be active and productive members of a global society. Our educational experiences must provide opportunities that reflect real world application and take students to new heights. This proposal will challenge educators to transform their instructional lessons, but also provide the tools to design real world experiences for students. Four overriding questions guide PLC’s and provide the foundation for staff collaboration. They guide all actions and provide the focus of our efforts to design innovative, rigorous and relevant instructional activities. These questions also guide this grant proposal. They are: What do we want students to know and be able to do? How will we know if they have learned it? What will we do if they don’t? What will we do if they already know it? Planned Outcomes This grant proposal will focus on achievement of the following goals: What is it we want students to know and be able to do? What will we do if students already know it? o

Staff will engage in collaborative professional learning community teams as they plan enhanced instructional activities for all students.

o

Staff will incorporate alternative methods, tools, equipment and software as they are planning instructional lessons

o

Students will engage in instructional activities that incorporate alternative methods, tools, equipment and software to provide greater access to the curriculum, increase achievement of state standards and to provide options for demonstrating mastery.

How will we know if they have learned it? o Through collaboration, staff will create common formative assessments for core content courses What will we do if they haven’t learned it? o Through collaboration, staff will utilize student achievement data from the course common formative assessments and classroom formative assessments to inform instruction and facilitate instructional decision making 3

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Methods/Strategies Alternative Supports to Enhance Collaborative Instructional Planning As we move toward becoming a professional learning community, we learn that schools must transform their paradigm from the teacher as simply a provider of information to the teacher as a facilitator of educational experiences that lead to high levels of learning for all students. This transformation challenges educators to redesign instructional activities so that all students can access the general education curriculum and demonstrate mastery. It also requires educators to reconsider each lesson, provide alternative methods to meet the needs of all students, and use formative data to drive instructional decisions. This commitment to providing alternative instructional methods, strategies and tools will require time, effort and resources. Most importantly, collaboration with colleagues is vital to a supported professional learning community that strives to achieve these expectations. Alternative Supports to Enhance Instructional Activities Our staff will learn more about becoming a PLC, and the commitment to do “whatever it takes” to ensure learning for all. To achieve this ideal, our staff needs additional tools to reach all students and encourage all students to meet high standards. In addition to the components of the PLC process, more research and information are available about Universal Design for Learning (CAST, 2009), and learning for the 21st Century. Instructional lessons must evolve into meaningful, engaging, real life experiences that provide activities to build a repertoire of skills, encourage collaboration and problem solving, and expose students to the demands and expectations of our global society. While staff members are willing to invest the time and effort to design these meaningful lessons, our district is unable to provide the financial resources to make essential tools available to allow staff to enhance their instructional activities. This grant proposal is focused on acquisition of these essential tools. Fundamental to this project are alternatives for students as they engage in activities to access the curriculum and options for demonstrating mastery. Various supports have been incorporated for staff to use as they design lessons and assess mastery. In addition, supports have been made available to students in school, but also at home, to increase achievement and to provide additional resources for our families. Proposed Use of Funds

Equipment

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Marysville Public Schools

Building-wide Wireless Access Points

Document Cameras for all Classrooms

Scanners

Student Response Systems for all Classrooms

Additional Student Computers for Every Classroom Electronic Notebook and Notebook Carts

20082009

While our bond will provide 1-2 wireless access areas in each building, the availability of a wireless network throughout each building will allow teams of teachers to work collaboratively on an ongoing basis to focus on lesson design, creation of common formative assessments, analysis of student achievement data and development of re-teaching opportunities. This network would be made available to all staff in each of our five buildings. The ability to be mobile and meet in collaborative teams is vital to sustainability of professional learning communities. The content of team meetings is the key to enhanced instructional lessons and relevant learning opportunities. Staff will have greater flexibility and productivity with this boundary-free wireless access. Thus, they will be able to make productive use of planning time, team time and time that all staff spends outside of the school day. The bond will provide interactive white boards and projection systems for each classroom. However, alternative equipment will be essential for the 21st Century classroom. Document cameras provide a visual representation of actual objects including manipulatives, textbooks, content area experiments, and projection of documents and photographs. This exposure to real images increases the authenticity of the activity, will enhance student engagement and increase student achievement. Scanners, which provide the ability to scan various documents including common formative assessments, are an important piece of a systematic, data-based model. Common formative assessments are developed collaboratively by a team of teachers. These assessments lead to timely data and information and are essential to instructional decision-making. This decision-making occurs most efficiently through the ability to scan common formative assessments and evaluate student performance through a data management system. Once scanned, the data from these assessments provides vital information about student achievement of standards and will lead to re-teaching, extension activities or the decision to move on to the next instructional unit. While our district has committed to providing a data management system, scanners, with access to a computer and a printer, are an essential piece in this data-based decision-making model. A vital component to a school that takes responsibility to do “whatever it takes” is utilizing formative data as a basis for learning. When the collection of data becomes an integral part of instructional activities, learning becomes more individualized and student achievement is increased. Student Response Systems allow students to respond to questions and prompts and results in immediate feedback to the teacher. This feedback, which is an illustration of the knowledge and skills of students, can lead to prescriptive, focused and individualized instruction and decision-making. Access to technology will be indispensable to learning for the 21st Century. As teachers plan instructional activities with student choice built-in, students must have the opportunity to access technology within the classroom. Student computers will allow students to access resources, utilize assistive technologies and provide evidence of learning. For many students, the ability to use multiple learning modalities increases their achievement of standards. The availability of text-to-speech and speech-to-text support, written expression support, and organizational tools will provide alternative methods to access the curriculum. These notebooks, which are smaller in size but equal in capability, will provide students and staff with more effective and efficient opportunities and greater access to supports and sources of information.

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Marysville Public Schools

Classroom Set of Computers for Scanners Laptop Computers to Support Student Assistance Teams

Projectors and Printers

MP3 players for Students

Video Cameras and Digital Cameras Headphones Microphone Headsets

20082009

Access to technology and information is a vital function of a professional learning community. This includes scanners to provide access to immediate formative assessment information. The availability of scanners will allow teachers to create, administer, and scan formative assessments. The results will be available immediately and inform and drive instruction. A district that has embraced a model of student support must establish a process that focuses its effort on prevention, rather than excessive effort on remediation. In an effort to build capacity in staff to incorporate this prevention model, collaboration through our Student Assistance Teams is fundamental. The ability of these teams to function systematically and efficiently requires availability of certain technology tools. These technology tools and supports include technology stations available in a conference room at each building. These stations will provide a laptop, printer, projector and software. Our bond initiative has provided projectors for all classrooms, thus increasing the ability to provide relevant and significant instructional lessons. However, the ability to project an image becomes important when teams come together for meaningful collaboration. The ability of these teams, including Student Assistance Teams, to function systematically and efficiently requires availability of certain technology tools. These tools include the ability to create student-centered action plans in real time utilizing a computer/notebook, projector, printer and specific software so that all members can view the action plan and walk away from the team meeting with a copy of the plan detailing each member’s responsibilities. The ability to access the general education curriculum and demonstrate mastery of standards is the foundation of Universal Design for Learning. Students must have access to multiple modes of learning. The opportunity for repeated exposure to information is vital for many students. In addition, MP3 players provide a format that is comfortable for most students. Video and digital cameras provide the opportunity for students to capture digital images, which may then be used with voice-over capabilities to create multimedia presentations. The ability to utilize text-to-speech software requires headphones so that multiple students may be accessing this support simultaneously. These headphones reduce distractions. Staff will be providing alternatives for presenting curriculum and information through podcasting and narrated PowerPoint presentations. This requires microphone headsets to allow for recording of these multi-media presentations.

Software Brainpop

Camtasia

Brainpop creates animated, curriculum-based content that supports educators and engages students and is ideal for both group and one-on-one settings. Brainpop, which is aligned to state standards, can be used in numerous ways including introducing a new lesson or topic, illustrating complex subject matter and/or reviewing before a test. The availability of this resource to all staff and students, at school and at home, provides another alternative for students to access information. Information taken from http://www.brainpop.com/about/ This software will provide teachers with the option to narrate power point presentations and will be loaded on a laptop computer at each building. These narrated PowerPoint lessons may then be uploaded to the student’s

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Marysville Public Schools

Accessibility Suite Software

Behavior Tracker

20082009

MP3 player and/or a classroom website. Students will have access to these lessons to view during the lesson, as a review and at home for reinforcement. This software provides text-to-speech support for any online, word processed, scanned or PDF file. In addition, this software provides the ability to read anything on the computer screen, and also provides writing and math support. This assistive technology support will be available at school, and will be made accessible for all students at their home. “Results should be understood as evidence (data) that something worked (or did not work). All results, good or bad, provide feedback that can guide us, telling us what to do next and how to do it better,” (Schmoker, 2006). The ability to use data for decision-making is a foundation of a professional learning community and Universal Design for Learning. Certain software programs provide the opportunity to input specific student performance data, preferably in a portable notebook while observing behavior, and create a graphic representation of that data. This graphic representation of data aids in decision making as trends and a student’s response to intervention become clear.

Staff Technology Staff

Lesson Development Stipends Stipends for Teacher Leaders

Substitutes for Technology Tool Training

Personnel will be vital to the success of this grant. The acquisition of this level of technology will require additional staff to order, initialize and ensure implementation of equipment and software. In addition, this person would be responsible for managing the technology equipment and software and provide ongoing staff support. As quality lesson redesign takes a great deal of time and effort, it is important to provide support to staff for these activities. Stipends will be provided to staff working after school or in the summer to incorporate alternative methods, software, and tools into their lessons. The likelihood that change will take place is often dependent upon the staff commitment. To this end, teacher leaders within a building can provide the support and encouragement that is often necessary to build capacity and bring about meaningful change. Enthusiastic, effective teachers, who emerge as teacher leaders, will be provided a stipend as they support and encourage the change process. As staff development is key to implementation of new tools and strategies, it will be important to provide adequate training and time for staff to acquire the knowledge to utilize these tools to maximize student learning. Training will take place during the school day to increase the likelihood that staff will participate.

Project Timetable - Fall 2009 Award Grant Proposal Submitted Grant Proposal Awarded Technology support position posted, interviews held

Fall 2009 Fall 2009 Fall 2009

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and staff hired Equipment/Software Ordered Equipment/Software Installed Data Collection Protocols Identified and Created Staff Training Provided Equipment Software Data Collection Requirements Staff Training Follow-up Lesson Observations Data Collected Data Analyzed Data Disseminated Grant evaluation completed

20082009

Fall 2009 Fall 2009 Fall 2009 Fall 2009 – Winter 2010 Fall 2009 – Winter 2010 Fall 2009 – Winter 2010 Spring 2010 Winter 2010 – Spring 2010 Fall 2009, Spring 2010 Spring 2010 Spring 2010 June 2010

Budget See Appendix A for complete budget detail. Evaluation The following data will be collected and analyzed to evaluate the effectiveness of this project: Qualitative Data Staff Survey: Staff surveys will be provided to gather data on staff perception of the relevance and effectiveness of PLC collaborative team meetings for instructional planning, creation of common assessments, analysis of student achievement of standards and informing future instruction. In addition, data will be gathered about the perceived effectiveness of alternate methods to enhance instructional experiences and student achievement. . Parent Surveys: Parent surveys will be provided to gather data on parent perception of student engagements in instructional activities, student attitudes toward the enhanced instructional experiences and student achievement of course standards measured by common summative assessments. Student Surveys: Student surveys will be provided to gather data on engagement in instructional activities and attitudes toward the enhanced instructional experiences.

Quantitative Data Instructional Tools: The number of teachers who utilize alternative methods, tools and strategies as they are planning instructional lessons. 8

Marysville Public Schools

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Common Formative Assessments: The number of courses utilizing common formative assessments for all core content courses. Level of student proficiency on common formative and summative course assessments. A correlation will be investigated between the use of alternative methods, tools and strategies and the level of student achievement. Standardized Assessments: An increase in the percentage of proficiency on standardized assessments, including the MEAP, ACT, and MME for all students, including students considered at-risk and students with disabilities. Student Progress Data – An increase in the positive pro-social behaviors (or a decrease in the negative behaviors) of identified students. References All Things PLC (nd). About PLC’s. Retrieved on 12-29-08 from http://www.allthingsplc.info/about/aboutPLC.php Brainpop, (2009). Retrieved on 2-23-09 from http://www.brainpop.com/about/ CAST (Center for Applies Science Technology) (2009). Universal Design for Learning Guidelines. Retrieved on 1-29-08 from http://www.cast.org/publications/UDLguidelines/version1.html Schmoker, M, (2006). Results Now: How We Can Achieve Unprecedented Improvements in Teaching and Learning. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development: Alexandria, VA.

Budget Detail - Tellabs Foundation Budget Detail Equipment Wireless Access

Vendor CDWG

Cost $13,600 each - 1 per building

Ruckus ZoneDirector

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Marysville Public Schools

20082009

Points

(Wireless central manager) and ZoneFlex (Access Points)

$74,800

Document Cameras for all Classrooms Scanners

Troxell

Student Response Systems Student Computers for Every Classroom Electronic Notebook

CityAnimation

$500 each - 152 teachers $83,600 $405.00 each - 2 per building $4,460 $1709 per 32 classroom kit – 2 per building

Electronic Notebook Carts Classroom set of Computers for Each School Library and for Scanners Laptop Computers for Staff Collaboration and Instructional Design Projectors

Datamation

HP

$37,600 Dell

$1000 each for 130 classrooms

$143,000 Newegg.com

$430 each A set of 30 per building and 12 additional for staff use

$76,626

Printers

$1600 each - 1 per building

$8,800 Dell Desktop

Desktop: $1000 each --30 per building -- $176,000

DELL

$1,500 each 1 per building for SAT and 1 per building for Camtasia

$16,500 Data Image Systems Epson PowerLite Cannon

$625 each - 1 per building

$3,440 $110 each ink - $25.00 per cartridge 3 per building for SAT and for use with scanners

$2,640 MP3 players for Students Video Cameras

Apple

Ipod Touch @ $229 each - 20 per building

$25,200 Kodak

$193.00 for camera, batteries and memory card 5 per building

$5,308 Digital Cameras

Cannon

$133 per camera - 5 per building

$3,650 Head Phones

REMC

3.00 per set -- 5 sets per 130 classrooms = 650 sets

$2,145 Microphone headset

REMC

5.00 per set for 152 staff

$836

Equipment Total $664,605 10

Marysville Public Schools

Software BrainPop

Camtasia

https://www.brainpop. com/store/step2.weml ?group_id=1

$2495 per school for all district access at school and home

Tech Smith

$299 each 1 per building

http://www.techsmith.co m/?CMP=KgoogleTSCtmh ome&gclid=COOX0pSM1 pgCFRBbagodQWxdcA

Premier AT Accessibility Suite

Behavior Tracker

20082009

ReadingmadeEZ.c om http://www.readin gmadeez.com/edu cation/Accessibilit ySuite.html Behavioral Information Tracking System

$13,725 $1,645 $3,300 for all district access at school and home

$219 each license 7 copies $1,687

Software Total: $20,357 Staff Technology Staff Lesson Development Stipends Stipends for Teacher Leaders Substitutes for Technology Tool Training

$25.00 per hour 40 hours per week - $40,000 Up to $300 per staff member (@$25 per hour) $20,000 to be distributed as above $500 per Teacher Leader

$32,500 $100 per day per substitute – 152 staff Document Cameras and Student Response Systems

$15,200 Camtasia, BrainPop, Premier AT, Behavior Tracker

$15,200 Staff Total: $122,900

Tellabs Foundation Request Total: $83,600 Grant Total: 11

Marysville Public Schools

20082009

$807,862

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