Copy of ET 507 Grant Proposal

Executive Summary

By its very nature, technology touches all facets of society; while it continues to help the world evolve, it is important that education evolves with it also. With this in mind, Queens Gateway to Health Sciences Secondary School is dedicated to having technology as a permanent facet in all classrooms and throughout the school.

This project is currently underway, as the school has recently moved into a new building equipped with the latest educational technology. However, many of the teachers are unable to take advantage of this technology because they are unsure how to implement it into their classrooms.

In addition, a lot of the current software is not in line with the National Common Core Curriculum Standards, which makes it difficult to implement. With the current budget cuts in the district, it has become impossible to these needs fulfilled. It is with this that we are seeking outside funding to implement a series of technology professional development for teachers and updates for the current hardware available in the school.

Overview of school/district and its community

Queens Gateway to Health Sciences Secondary School is a secondary school in Jamaica, New York. It currently serves students in grades 6-12 and is a school that is focused on Health Sciences. Every year, students are required to participate in a hospital rotation that is offered by Queens Hospital, which is connected to the school. In addition, many of the students essentially get a career focused on the health sciences. This school is currently a title I school and has an enrollment of 634 students. This mission of the school is that all of the students that graduate are prepared for college. The graduate rate is currently 96% and over 98% of the students attend a four year university. In addition, the school is works closely with parents and the community to make sure that this is achieved. The Parent Teacher Association and school were recently awarded the most active chapter in New York City. The community and the school often work together to provide educational events for the students. However, the support from the community is often limited because of the lack of funds. Queens Gateway to Health Sciences Secondary School is dedicated to providing innovative education that will help all students to achieve.

Brief statement of needs and proposed improvements

The Queens Gateway to Health Sciences Secondary School recently moved into a new building that contained the latest technology that is used in education. Each classroom is equipped with a SMARTboard, laptop, two computers and two printers. However, in a number of the classrooms throughout the building this equipment often goes unused because many of the teachers do not understand how to integrate these technologies into classroom instruction. The school has limited funding for technology professional development is lacking and having a professional development centered on technology. The school recognizes the need for technology professional development in order for teachers to successfully implement technology into their classrooms.

In addition, teachers who are currently using technology has pointed out that it is not currently aligned with the curriculum standards that is pushed today, the school has tried to work with the district and software developers to find ways to alleviate the issue. However, our needs have yet to be met. We hope that an upgrade in software will help to align the current software to the curriculum needs of the school.

Specific goals and objectives

Goal- Improve the technology professional development offered to teachers

Objective: Establish ongoing professional development that would encourage the use of technology in the classroom. In order to be successful at integrating technology in the classroom, ongoing professional development has to be established at the school. A series of technology professional development will be offered for teachers.

Goal- Update technology software in classrooms

Objective: Although there is a sufficient amount of technology in each classroom, a number of the software programs on the computer are out of date. This makes it difficult for teachers who want to use the software in their classrooms. Software in all classrooms will be updated to reflect the current curriculum needs of the school.

Specific Activities

Technology Professional Development

A series of technology professional development will be offered to teacher. Each week a session will be offered at two different times in order to accommodate teacher’s schedules. On session will be given during prep periods and on after school session will be offered. The school will hire two technology vendors to help teach the professional development. In addition, two teachers will be given the role of lead teacher to help the vendors and teachers during the session. The sessions will begin during the November professional development day, so that all teachers are exposed to what the sessions will offer. Sessions will be offered every Friday, during and after school. Currently, vendors charge $43 per hour for each session. Sessions will begin November 28, 2011 to April 30, 2012. This series will include two sessions in which all staff will meet. Overall, forty session will be given at a cost of $1720.

Software Update

In order to update the current software in the building, a vendor charges $2000 to keep all software updated for the next two years. This includes making sure that all classroom software is up to date with the current curriculum standards. The technology specialist will head this initiative and will work with the vendor. The vendor will call every six months to see if any updates are necessary. The technology specialist will review the software every three months to make sure that it is update. This initiative will start November 28 and will continue for the next two years.

Evaluation Plan

In order to ensure that we have met all goals and objectives for the technology professional development initiative, all participants will be asked to bring in a lesson plan during the sixth, twelve and eighteenth week that shows the incorporation of technology. This lesson will be one that the teachers have previously taught. They will provide a review of their lessons. In addition, teachers will fill out a survey before the series to get feedback on their current use of technology. At the end of the series, teachers will get another survey that asks for their feedback about the series and the current use of technology.

The technology specialist will keep an updated analysis of the software after it is updated. Teachers will be asked to grade the software based on their use of it and how they believe it will impact their students. Every three months there will be an analysis of how the technology is used.

Technological Intelligence

New York City Department of Education

Quiana Taylor

November 12, 2011