Millennium Project Grant Update - Usage of WMS Laptops and Peripheral Devices

Access to all WMS Online Calendarsà http://ctteams.wikispaces.com/Schedule

Laptop Carts

Due to delays in purchasing and configuring equipment for all four laptop carts to be in full use, December was the first full month that all four laptop carts were in the rotation at Windham Middle School. The data below that was submitted to the CT State Department of Education Outside Evaluator on May, 16, 2011, shows that all grade levels have increased their usage of the laptops except Grade 8 between December of 2010 and April of 2011:

DECEMBER WMS LAPTOP CART USAGE APRIL WMS LAPTOP CART USAGE CHANGE IN USAGE

Grade Level / # of Days Scheduled-December 2010 / # of School Days- December 2010 / % of Time Used
5 / 8 / 17 / 47%
6 / 15 / 17 / 88%
7 / 11 / 17 / 65%
8 / 10 / 17 / 59%
Signing Out Laptop Carts / Grade Level / # of Days Scheduled- April 2011 / # of School Days- April 2011 / % of Time Used
5 / 16 / 16 / 100%
6 / 15 / 16 / 94%
7 / 14 / 16 / 88%
8 / 9 / 16 / 56%
/ Grade Level / % Points Change from December to April
5 / 53%
6 / 6%
7 / 23%
8 / -3%

Laptop carts should be used all day every day. If you are using a cart, please make sure that you have signed up for it on the online calendar. If a cart is not signed out by a member of the grade level to which it is assigned on a day that you would like to use a classroom set of laptops, please feel free to sign it out using the online calendar at: http://www.my.calendars.net/teamsgrant.

Signing Out Stationary Computer Labs

If all of the laptop carts are signed out, check to see about the availability of the Computer Lab in B150, Sydney Gilbey’s Lab (Room B050) or Kathy Parkin’s Computer Lab (B004) which are available during their lunch and planning periods. The online calendar to sign out the stationary Computer Labs is located at: http://www.my.calendars.net/gilbeyslab.

Mini-Labs

Mini-labs have been deployed to all interdisciplinary teams. Each team has been given the freedom to choose how to use their mini-lab. Some teams are keeping all four laptops together in one teacher’s classroom and students are using them for center-based work, e.g., research, math virtual manipulative practice, writing practice, etc. Some teams are using their mini-labs for small group project work.

We have anecdotal data on how the mini-labs of 4 laptops are being used by the interdisciplinary teams. However, we need further data to show how students are benefitting from having access on their teams to a mini-lab. The final grant evaluation report will be due at the end of September. Please share with Jane Cook the successes and frustrations that you’re having with your mini-labs.

Peripheral Devices

There are a number of peripheral devices that are available for all WMS educators to use. They include:

·  10 Data Projectors

·  2 Digital Still Cameras

·  4 Digital Video Cameras

·  1 Scanner

You can sign up to borrow these peripheral devices at: http://www.my.calendars.net/wmsperipherals.

WMS Writing and Technology Center

The WMS Writing & Technology Center is located in the back of Room B020 and is open: 8:40 AM to 10:20 AM & from 11:20 AM to 1:00 PM five days a week. Please send your students to the Center. To date, here are some of our accomplishments:

·  We have trained nearly 100 WMS students to serve as Peer Tutors.

·  All Peer Tutors and other WMS students are encouraged to enter the Connecticut Writing Project Student Magazine writing contest. One WMS student won the 8th grade Poetry prize and is published in the 2011 CT Student Writers magazine. He was honored at a celebration at the University of Connecticut on May 10, 2011. To find the 2011 CT Student Writers magazine with his poem, Drowning in You, go to the CT Writing Project Connecticut Student Writers Web page at: http://cwp.uconn.edu/publications/csw.php.

·  In March of 2011, Peer Tutors created text-to-movie videos using Xtranormal to encourage their classmates to take the Connecticut Mastery Tests (CMTs) seriously. They shared test-taking tips and strategies in their Xtranormal videos which ran as ads that were aired on the WMS Morning News during the time that students were taking the CMT. You can hear how the students helped each other prepare to take the CMTs by viewing their videos on the WMS Teacher Resources Wikispace at: http://wmsteachersresources.wikispaces.com/XtraNormals+for+CMT%27s.

·  Twelve WMS students who are Peer Tutors or Peer Tutors in training are working on writing books to be published by Student Publishing at http://www.studentpublishing.com/.

·  Peer Tutors run a poster business, creating posters for teachers in the district. You can see samples of their work around the building and in the Center. To the right is a sample of one of their posters:

·  Data from the 101 online forms completed by Peer Tutors and their Tutees to date show that WMS students are gaining skills and confidence as writers:

o  An overwhelming number of Tutees have had a positive experience in the WMS Writing and Technology Center and would come back again for further support as evidenced by the data below:

o  This is supported by the data that shows that once a Tutee has visited the Center, s/he will go back more than once for help. The data shows that 44% of the Peer Tutors had worked with their Tutee before.

o  Few peer tutoring sessions (only 2%) go poorly, while tutors rated 86% as either good or dynamite!

o  Positive quotes from Tutees in the Comments section of the form include:

§  “I had a very helpful day and [my tutor] helped me become a better writer, thanks for all the help.”

§  “My experience was awesome!”

§  “This was the best tutor ever”

§  “Good help i'll be back tomarrow! (sic)”

§  “When can I get to finish?”

The online calendar to sign up is located at: http://www.my.calendars.net/wmsowl.

Goals for the Millennium Project

The major goal of the Millennium Project is to transform Windham Middle School into a 21st Century Learning Environment. This aligns with the three Connecticut Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program goals of:

1.  Further integrate technology into teaching and learning

2.  Improve student technology literacy

3.  Increase student academic achievement

To achieve these goals, we need to be using technology as a tool to support teaching and learning. We need to be integrating technology across the curriculum. We need to be using technology seamlessly as a tool for teaching and learning.

If we have not succeeded in at least beginning to transform Windham Middle School into a 21st Century Learning Environment by integrating technology across the curriculum and using the laptop carts, mini-labs and peripheral devices all day every day, it will be difficult to justify to the CSDE why they should have awarded us the Millennium Project grant and in the future, it will be difficult to justify applying for any further grant funds.

WMS Millennium Project Grant Updates, 5/18/11 – Page 1