CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

Project Proposal
Prepared for: Clark County School District Board Members
Prepared by: Cameron McDonald
Date: July 24, 2017
Proposal number: 788743-2727
CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

INCORPORATING TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATIONAL

ENVIRONMENTS IS ESSENTIAL TO STUDENT MASTERY
There can be infinite uses of the computer and of new age technology, but if teachers
themselves are not able to bring it into the classroom and make it work, then it fails.

- Senator Nancy Kassebaum

Incorporating technology in educational environments signals a paradigm shift from rote

memorization to deep learning and understanding. Used to support both teaching and learning,
technology transforms the learning landscape by infusing educational environments with digital
learning tools to accelerate student mastery. Utilizing technology in educational settings
encourages students to find meaning in their learning. Such independently acquired learning
ushers in a significant fundamental change to topical understanding in four major ways.

First, educational environments incorporating technology facilitate a deep approach to learning.

This occurs as students utilize educational technology to seek further meaning and
understanding through experience, application, practice and reflection. Rather than focusing on
memorizing selected content for academic assessment, students focus on the underlying
meaning of the topic. This is achieved as students develop understanding of main ideas,
themes and principles and apply acquired knowledge using technology.

Second, technology-driven educational environments provide opportunities for students to

receive immediate feedback. Incorporating technology to provide immediate feedback builds a
strong foundation of understanding from the beginning of a lesson. By intervening early and
often, educators are capable of monitoring student understanding while students are able to
revise mistakes or misconceptions. This helps students deepen and sharpen their
understanding of the content leading to increased student performance.

Third, technology-rich educational environments provide authentic learning experiences

capable of establishing personal and real-world relevance. Historically, a learners educational
opportunities have been limited to the resources found within the walls of a school. Technology
enabled learning allows learners to locate and use resources anywhere in the world. Though
subtle, this provides significant opportunities for learners to acquire specific knowledge tailored
to individual learning styles.
CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

Fourth, educational settings leveraging technology provide opportunities for independence and
choice. Developing learning independence requires a foundational change in a learners
mindset. By encouraging a growth mindset, students quickly recognize the importance of
continual effort and practice. This effort and practice leads to increased motivation as students
visually observe individual accomplishments. Such accomplishments lead to increased desire
to learn because of the pride felt in accomplishing a monumental task.

Incorporating technology in an educational setting transforms the learning process. By using

technology to accompany learning, students are empowered to discover new meaning suitable
to personal learning styles. With the ubiquity of digital learning tools, a new age of anytime
anywhere education is dawning. It is imperative schools have the ability to continue using
technology in education to foster student growth and content mastery.

References

Gupta, P. (2015). 20 popular technology in education quotes. Retrieved July 24, 2017, from http://
edtechreview.in/news/2112-technology-in-education-quotes.

Kenny, N. (2011). Three strategies to ensure student success and engagement. Retrieved July 24, 2017 from,
https://natashakenny.wordpress.com/2011/08/19/three-strategies-to-ensure-student-success-and-
engagement/.

Pearson. (2017). Rapid feedback. Retrieved July 24, 2017, from https://www.pearson.com/corporate/efficacy-
and-research/schools-education-research/research-reports/teaching-in-a-digital-age/rapid-feedback.html.

Purdue University. (2017). How has technology changed education? Retrieved July 24, 2017, from http://
online.purdue.edu/ldt/learning-design-technology/resources/how-has-technology-changed-education.

U.S. Department of Education. (2000). Effects of technology on classrooms and students. Retrieved July 24,
2017, from https://www2.ed.gov/pubs/EdReformStudies/EdTech/effectsstudents.html.

U.S. Department of Education. (2017). Reimagining the role of technology in education: 2017 National
education technology plan update. Retrieved July 24, 2017, from https://tech.ed.gov/files/2017/01/NETP17.pdf.

Van Melle, E., & Tomalty, L. (2000). Using Computer Technology to Foster Learning for Understanding.
Microbiology Education, 1, 713. Retrieved July 24, 2017, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/issues/
222141/.
CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

IDENTIFICATION OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY

STANDARDS

Educational standards provide the catalyst for teaching and learning. These standards are
written descriptions of what students are expected to know and do at a specific stage of their
education. Local, state and federal organizations adopt individually tailored educational
technology standards. Recognizing their importance to the learning process is fundamental to
student mastery.

Federal ISTE Standards for Students

The federal ISTE Standards for Students are intended to change the learning process by
empowering students to take charge of their learning. This is achieved through seven
overarching standards. Each standard is a generalized statement discussing how it may be
satisfied. Though important, the vagueness in description allows for reasonable interpretation
making it possible any use of educational technology satisfactorily achieves all standards.

Nevada Computer and Technology Standards

The Nevada Computer and Technology Standards are intended to incorporate skills and
knowledge students need to learn and live productively in a technology-driven society. Founded
on the federal ISTE Standards for Students, the Nevada indicators demonstrate how the ISTE
standards should be applied within specific grades as opposed to mere generalizations. The
benefit in doing this is added clarity, yet there still remain generalizations open to reasonable
interpretation.

Clark County School District Computer and Technology Education Standards

The CCSD Computer and Technology Education Standards are intended to identify specific
skills and knowledge students need to be productive in a digital society. Using the Nevada
Computer and Technology Standards as its guide, the CCSD Technology Standards explicitly
delineate how each standard is satisfied by grade level. Understanding the natural flow of
information from generalizations to specific customizations is important to recognizing
application to targeted populations.

Standards Application

Use of standards is essential to student mastery. The Nevada and Clark County technology
standards of critical thinking and problem solving will be demonstrated and explained below.
CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

LESSON PLAN INCORPORATING CREATIVITY AND

PROBLEM SOLVING BY USING TECHNOLOGY
Teacher: Cameron McDonald Subject: Geoscience/Geoscience Honors

Grade Level: High School (9-12) Topic: Nuclear Fusion

Essential Content NV Students will use a drawing program to model a Galilean Cannon and explain
Standard associated forces of said model

Time for each class: 85 minutes for each class

Objectives for the SWBAT describe how supernovas occur and the associated forces of supernovas to
Lesson understand formation of elements heavier than iron

Warm-up questions: (projected on screen using Google Slides)

Readiness: How will What did Carl Sagan mean when he said that we are all made up of star
students be brought into stuff?
the lesson? (Review, What is nuclear fusion?
activity, etc.) What is nucleosynthesis?

Lesson Steps: What

steps will you take to
implement the lesson
1. Warm-up Questions (15 minutes)
o Projected on board
2. Review nucleosynthesis and nuclear fusion video (10 minutes)
o Link on board
3. Students respond to this questions in notebook: How might nuclear fusion
be modeled differently? (10 minutes)
4. Introduce the idea of the cycle of a star (25 minutes)
o Research questions provided to be filled in using phones
5. Introduce Galilean Cannon Lab (5 minutes)
6. Students do the following in groups of 2-4 (20 minutes)
o Blueprint model of a Galilean cannon using drawing program
o Explain on drawing what each piece represents
o Insert a text box with title
o Explain how supernova occurs
o Include arrows indicating force of gravity
o Begin construction after blueprints are done

Key Vocabulary-
Methods to review Supernova
vocabulary
Assessment of
Blueprint Model Title (5 points)
Supernova Explanation (5 points)
Galilean Cannon Model (5 points for trying this will be fine-tuned during
construction)
Respective parts of Galilean Cannon identified (5 points)

Materials Computers/laptops; PowerPoint; Pages

CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

IDEAL STUDENT SUBMISSION: PART ONE