Writing Matters with One Laptop Per ChildIncreasing student access to tech-rich literacy environments.
Teaching Matters is conducting a collaborative pilot with the New York City Department of Education to test One Laptop per Child (OLPC) mobile computing devices in connection with our Writing Matters content in a middle school ELA classroom. The purpose of the pilot is two-fold. First, we want to determine if the OLPC device can significantly lower the cost of technology access for schools by lowering the total cost of ownership (hardware and ongoing maintenance.) Second, we want to test this environment in conjunction with a curriculum that has been specifically designed for one-to-one computing. Many laptop programs have failed to increase student achievement and purposeful learning because teachers have been provided with devices and training but no suitable content that takes advantage of the power and appeal of the technology..
Goal 1: Lowering Total Cost of Ownership
Currently schools pay up to $1300 for laptop devices and comprehensive managed support. This price makes it difficult for Teaching Matters to scale the technology-enhanced curriculum it is designing for social studies and literacy. Through this project we will document the number of laptops that require outside maintenance to identify a total cost of ownership. Teaching Matters will purchase replacement laptop (at a rate of one laptop for every ten students) allowing the cost of ownership to be 10% above the initial cost of the laptop. This will be tested over one full year. Our test school currently uses the managed care services extensively provided through the DOE, thus providing useful comparison data.
Goal 2: Improving Instruction
To fully understand the purposeful use of the one-to-one computing in the classroom,, Teaching Matters began by observing traditional learning environments. We selected the writing classroom as one area where technology has shown promise for improving student success. We observed two major challenges to improving the quality of student wiriting that could be addressed through effective application of technology.
First, new teachers often lack the knowledge and experience needed to effectively implement research-based practices for teaching writing. While schools offer coaching and institutes to prepare teachers, teacher turnover reduces the scalability of these important professional development models. In addition, we found that teachers needed on-going information and specific strategies for teaching the craft and mechanics of writing.
Second, middle school students, especially boys, demonstrate significant decline in writing performance and motivation levels from elementary to middle school. Research has demonstrated that technology, in combination with effective instruction, can increase students’ writing performance. Moreover, the gains among underperforming students are even more significant than those of average and high performing students.
Writing Matters uses technology to address both of these concerns. First it uses the technology to scale the distribution of a structured, flexible, curriculum that helps new teachers advance their knowledge of how to teach writing. Our curriculum is scaffolded to offer additional supports, teaching narratives, sample texts, animated content, explaining key skills, and student exemplars that can be utilized by new teachers to learn effective practice. It also organizes the teaching process making the various stages clear to both teachers and students. Second, Writing Matters offers online tools and visual resources designed to engage struggling and middle school learners, as well as, clear embedded instruction on when and how teachers should use the technology within the context of rigorous, research-based practices in writing instruction.
The objectives of this pilot are to:
- 1) Test whether OLPC laptops are viable on the NYC school network
- 2) Test whether the device can support middle school core and new literacy objectives around research, writing, revision, and publishing.
- 3) Determine if the device can support Writing Matters and Voices and Choices digital content.
- 4) Identify modifications required to the laptop or to the content programs to ensure compatibility.
- 5) Determine whether device is accepted by middle school students and teachers as an acceptable alternative to higher end devices.
- 6) Observe improvements around motivation for writing, quantity of writing, and meaningful use of technology.
- 7) Document the number of technical support issues encountered by students and the degree to which they can be resolved without outside intervention.
** Note. The Center for Children and Technology is conducting a larger research project on Writing Matters impact on student achievement.
- § Secure devices.
- § Teaching Matters’ technology staff will test a device with Writing Matters content. Identify adjustments that need to be made prior to distribution.
- § Teaching Matters’ technology staff will collaborate with DOE to modify the devices to function on the DOE network.
- § Teaching Matters’ technology staff will distribute devices, with limited to no training to make observations as to what students can do with the laptops on their own.
- § Students will take devices home and the school will organize experimental time with the tool, providing students access to web information on their use.
- § Teaching Matters’ professional developer will conduct site observation of the distribution and experimentation taking notes on necessary training.
- § Teachers and students will participate in Writing Matters program model training on January 23.
- § Teaching Matters professional developer will work with classroom to set up a process for documenting tech support issues from January – June.
- § Teaching Matters’ Director of Educational Services (DES) will conduct site observations with DOE, to observe motivation and uses of technology as compared with classrooms using regular technology.
- § Teaching Matters’ professional developer will document progress on weekly basis and update DES on tech issues.
- § Teaching Matters professional developer will meet with teachers and principal to review student work quality with teacher, and compare with prior writing samples from the class.
- § Final report will include recommended modifications to program, laptop, and training model based on pilot.
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