2016

Teaching & Learning with Technology Proposal

Yesica Diaz
ABC Community School
5/2/2016
 The following has been prepared for Clark County School District School Board.

The purpose of this proposal is to first educate on the importance of using technology beginning

in the classroom in elementary school. Teaching and learning with technology is essential and

we, even as adults need it.

From the alarm that woke you up for work, to the synced email app on your phone that

send you notifications of new emails, to the GPS you use to avoid traffic on the way to work to

the photocopier your secretary uses and I could go on. In fact this very proposal youre reading

has been computer generated on word and has been delivered to you via the internet. Did we just

wake up one day and become masters of the technology that surrounds us? No doubt we were

taught how to be efficient thorough users of it. Without a teacher of a sort or hands on use of our

technology, would we be so fluent in its use. The simple answer is No we wouldnt be.

Because of the comments made by the National state this in conjunction with local

agencies, the threat to suspend ALL technology usage here in CCSD has been made. The

reasoning behind this is multi fold, including budget cuts and higher scores on standardized

performance exams, wanted. The reasoning is honest and is to be commended. CCSD is doing all

they can within their realm to achieve student success. However the method used to achieve that

success is something that is very drastic and could have detrimental effects throughout the

teaching and learning process and losses for CCSD.

First let us address the concerns that are to be had if a teacher is expected to not use any

technology in her/his lesson plans, whether the subject be a core one or not. How will a teacher

complete the simplest of tasks such as creating worksheets and printing then? How will a teacher

show her/his class other countries and cultural diversity without the use of search engines and

class PowerPoints? There window to the world outside Nevada or outside the United states will
be closed. We are going to concentrate on core subjects you say? Did you know that a math

teacher greatly benefits from the use of technology in his/her lesson plans? Websites like Khan

Academy that offer great ideas and great activities to make math more enjoyable to kids, would

be cut off from our CCSD students.

I could name many more subjects and how both the teachers and students would be at a

disadvantage if they lost their access to technology. Another great concern if we were to cut

teachers resources off, would be them resigning. Our hard working and often underpaid teachers

might reason that with a district where there is lack of compensation in the form of raises there

should be great support elsewhere. CCSD teachers might reason that if they arent being given

the resources to make their already load bearing jobs easier then they might relocate to a district

that not only has more monetary resources but also allows them to use technology as a resource.

What that of the teachers that choose to stay? Will these teachers not be teaching to test for the

standardized assessments? Can we really say that numbers in a graph really indicate if our

districts students have achieved full comprehension? Or are these numbers indicative of a

repetitive set of facts these children were tested on?

That leads us to the consideration of students. In our time and era children learn how to

use a tablet before they can fully even walk! There is a great digital divide between our

generation and the current one, but that doesnt mean we should cut them off! Learning with

technology has become very beneficial for content knowledge. Technology being integrated

suggests that technology taught in isolation is not as effective as when technology is used in

subject context. For example, teaching students how to conduct internet research without a topic

to research does not carry the same relevance as conducting a web search for information on the

Gettysburg Address to write a history report. Students comprehension levels and academic
performance increases dramatically when it is presented to them in the form of technology.

Students have a difficult time with core subjects like the ones they be tested on most. Its

reasonable to believe that every resource possible would be used to reach the academic level of

each student so that their assessments are accurately interpreted.

CCSD Identification of Standards. In CCSD we uphold high standards for all

employees and students. Amongst these high standards we can find our technology standards.

CCSD computer and technology education standard 2.0 states that a student will have

productivity tools. Students will use appropriate productivity tools including but not limited to

word processing, spreadsheet, database, multimedia and telecommunications. How can we

expect our students to succeed in using this real world technology and valuable tools if it is taken

away from them in their place of instruction? The department of education is has very similar

standards for the state of Nevada. Nevada technology standards including classroom technology

integration were adopted on May 14th 2010. These standards state that for Nevadas students to

prepared for life in the digital age, students must be proficient technology users. The standards

go on to say that it is no longer adequate for instruction to focus solely on basic technology skills

as was the basis of previous versions of the Nevada Computer and Technology Standards.

Rapid changes in our global society and technological advancements change the ways

technologies are integrated into classroom instruction. The students are expected to have the

skills and knowledge required to learn effectively and live productively in an increasingly digital

society. Are we as a district willing to adhere to these statewide standards? National Common

Core standards also call for use of technology in the classroom. These standards impact

instruction across all grade levels. For every grade level there is a recommended level of

technology mastery required along with it. The most widely used technology standard in our
district is ISTE standards. ISTE standard number 3 which states that students will apply digital

tools to gather, evaluate and use information. To accomplish this standard students are expected

to locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize and ethically use information from a variety of

sources and media.

In conclusion I have attached a detailed lesson plan that demonstrates the importance of

being able to use technology in lesson. This specific lesson plan is applied to a foreign language

section but includes technology to research other cultures other school ideals and translating a

simple friendly letter from English to Spanish. Please see below.

 Integrated Technology Foreign
Language Lesson Plan
A technology integration lesson plan for ABC Community School

Name of lesson: Spanish Pen Pals!

Grade Level Appropriateness: Adapted through for grade level 5

Technology Content Standard Addressed: ISTE standard number 3 which states that

students will apply digital tools to gather, evaluate and use information. To accomplish this

standard students are expected to locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize and ethically use

information from a variety of sources and media.

Other Content Standard Addressed: The CCSD foreign language and social studies

standards that will be met are:

1. Interact with cultural competence and understanding.

2. Connect with other disciplines and acquire information and diverse perspectives in order to

use the language to function in academic and career-related situations.

Objective: The students will understand how to develop insight into the nature of language and

culture in order to interact with cultural competence. Students will learn how to effectively use a

translating search engine and how to compose a friendly letter.

Materials needed to facilitate the lesson:

Elmo overhead projector

Pencil
 Paper

Computer/laptops

Skype

Postage stamps

Envelopes

Suggested group size: Entire Class participation

Procedures:

DAY 1:

Explain to students the components of a friendly letter

Include:

Heading

Date

Greeting

Body

Closing

Signature

Explain to students that we will be making our own friendly letters, first in English and then

using a translating website to Spanish. The reason they will be doing this is to be able to send

them to a pen pal in from an elementary school in Mexico. Explain to them that Ms. Diaz has an
aunt who is an elementary school teacher in that country and she has agreed to have her class be

our pen pals. Then proceed to let children get started on their brainstorming map, to include

questions theyd like to ask their pen pal and things they would like for their pen pal to know

about them.

Day 2: (Reserve the library or computer lab in advance)

Have the students pair up in sets of two per computer. Today they will continue working on

their friendly letter brain storm map. In order to become better acquainted with the area where

there pen pals are from they will be research elementary school in the Mochis Sinaloa Mexico

area. This will not only help the students to be more culturally aware but also to be able to ask

there pen pal more specific questions. Tell the students that Ms. Diaz aunt Mrs. Olivias class is

doing this same lesson plan as them!

Day 3: (Reserve the library or computer lab in advance)

Today will be the day that the students compose their friendly letter on a word document. Since

on Microsoft Word spelling and grammar check is enabled we will not be peer editing. Have

each child save their word processed friendly letter on the classs shared drive folder on the

schools network. (All of this should take the students the entire time in the computer lab/

library.)

Day 4: Explain to the students that since our pen pals are Spanish speaking out letters will have

to be translated into Spanish so that they will be able to read them. Tell them that Mrs. Olivias

class will also be translating their letter into English for us. We will be using Google Translate

and making a second copy of our friendly letter but in Spanish.

Day 5: Today everyone will be assigned a person to whom to address their letter and that will be

there assigned pen pal. After that we will be printing signing our translated Spanish letters and

putting them all in one big manila envelope to be sent to the our pen pals school. After this

surprise the class and tell them that we will be having a Skype session with Mrs. Olivias class.

Explain to the students to be on their best behavior and respectful of what and who they see on

the other side of the screen. Explain to them that Mrs. Olivias school doesnt have updated

computers with web cams so the entire class has reassembled after school at a local internet caf.

Explain to the students that we will be giving them a tour of our school via Skype web cam on

one of our laptops.

Assessment:
A. Prepared, having read B. Follow agreed-upon C. Pose and respond to D. Review the key ideas
or studied required rules for class specific questions by expressed and draw
material; explicitly draw discussions and carry out making comments that conclusions in light of
on that preparation and assigned roles whether contribute to the information and
other information known in group or individually. discussion and elaborate knowledge gained from
about the topic to explore
on the remarks of others. the project.
ideas under discussion.

Point out of 25: Point out of 25: Point out of 25: Point out of 25:

Teacher Comments: Teacher Comments: Teacher Comments: Teacher Comments:

TOTAL POINTS OUT OF 100: