TOPICOCHALLENGEGRANTAPPLICATION

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TropicoChallengeGrantApplication
NorthernIllinoisUniversity
NicoleOlson,JoshPetty,EdPierce,ErinSpencer

TOPICOCHALLENGEGRANTAPPLICATION

I.

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CoverLetter
ChallengeGrantApplicationCover

file
SchoolName(s):HubertH.HumphreyMiddleschool
DistrictNumber/Name:ValleyViewSchoolDistrict
th
GradeSpan:68
Grade

Totalnumberofstudents:757students

Totalnumberofteachers:90

Student/Teacherratio:15.1

%ofELL/LEPstudents:
5%ELLStudents

%ofstudentswithIEPs:16%studentswithIEPs

%offree&reducedlunchstudents:78%freeandreducedlunch

Address:777FalconridgeWay

City,State&Zip:Bolingbrook,IL60440

Website:http://www.edline.net/pages/Hubert_H_Humphrey_MS

Telephone/Fax:6309729240/6307398521

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II.

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ProposalSummary
Thisgrantisbeingwrittenforthepurposeofreceivingmoneytopurchase30

classroomcopiesofthegameTropico5,asimulation/sandboxgameinwhich
studentsactasadictatorofasmallisland.Intheircapacityasdictator,students
mustresearchproperfarmingpractices,managetheislandseconomy,andkeep
thepeopleoftheislandhappy.Succeedinginthegamerequiresstudentstodo
scientificresearchandinvestigations,gatherandrecorddata,anduse
mathematicalreasoning.
Usingscience,math,andlanguageartsasthebenchmarksubjectsforthegrant,
studentswillexplorescientificconceptsusinginvestigativeskillsandtesttheirtheories
viaexperimentation.Studentswillusemathematicalreasoningtoexaminetheirscientific
impactastheislanddictator.Finally,studentswillusetheirlanguageartsskillstopredict
theiroutcomesandtoreflectontheirfindings.
TheuseofTropicointheclassroomencouragesinformalreasoningskillsinthe
areasofscienceandmathematics.IntheUnitedStates,thePresidentsCouncilof
AdvisorsonScienceandTechnology(2010)hasstatedtheimportanceofSTEM
(science,technology,engineering,andmathematics)educationtosolveproblemsin
areasasdiverseasenergyandnationalsecurity,tocreatethenewindustriesofthe
future,andtostrengthendemocracythroughaninformedcitizenry.Themultivariable
environmentofthegamepresentssocioscientificissues,whichreflecttherealworld
concernsstudentswillencounterthroughouttheirlives.Sadler(2003)notesthatthe

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processesofinformalreasoning(whichareevidentinthisgame)helpasocietyscitizens
acquirethetoolstoexaminethesesocioscientificissues.
Tropico5isagamewhichallowstheplayertohavecompletecontroloverhis/her
createdcountry.Thisisverysimilartothecustomizationprinciple,asdescribedbyJames
PaulGee(2003).AccordingtoGee,allowingplayerstosetupthegamethewaythey
wantto,ratherthanhavingitsetupforthem,willmakethegamemattermoretothe
player(2003).AccordingtoMarincola,Yetnocountry,nomatterhowsophisticated
technologically,canadvanceitssocietyfullywithouttheinformedengagementofits
citizenship.(2006,p.4)Usingthisgame,playerswillbeabletoattempttoadvancea
countryandmakedecisionswhichdirectlyimpactthecitizensofthecountry.Those
decisionswilldecidewhether,ornot,thecountrythrivesorcrumbles.
Theproposedprojectaddressesthefollowingcommoncorestandards:

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.MD.A.2
Usethefouroperationstosolvewordproblems
involvingdistances,intervalsoftime,liquidvolumes,massesofobjects,andmoney,
includingproblemsinvolvingsimplefractionsordecimals,andproblemsthatrequire
expressingmeasurementsgiveninalargerunitintermsofasmallerunit.Represent
measurementquantitiesusingdiagramssuchasnumberlinediagramsthatfeaturea
measurementscale(corestandards.org).
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.OA.B.5

Applypropertiesofoperationsasstrategiestomultiply
anddivide(corestandards.org)
MSLS25
Evaluatecompetingdesignsolutionsformaintainingbiodiversityand
ecosystemservices(nextgenscience.org)

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CCSS.Science.11.B.3cSelectthemostappropriatedesignandbuildaprototype
orsimulation(corestandards.org)
CCSS.Math.Content.7.EE.B.3
Solvemultistepreallifeandmathematicalproblems
posedwithpositiveandnegativerationalnumbersinanyform(wholenumbers,
fractions,anddecimals),usingtoolsstrategically.Applypropertiesofoperationsto
calculatewithnumbersinanyformconvertbetweenformsasappropriateandassess
thereasonablenessofanswersusingmentalcomputationandestimationstrategies
(corestandards.org)
CCSS.ELALiteracy.W.7.2.a
.Introduceatopicclearly,previewingwhatistofollow
organizeideas,concepts,andinformation,usingstrategiessuchasdefinition,
classification,comparison/contrast,andcause/effectincludeformatting(e.g.,
headings),graphics(e.g.,charts,tables),andmultimediawhenusefultoaiding
comprehension(corestandards.org)
MSLS15
Constructascientificexplanationbasedonevidenceforhowenvironmental
andgeneticfactorsinfluencethegrowthoforganisms(nextgenscience.org).
MSLS22
Constructanexplanationthatpredictspatternsofinteractionsamong
organismsacrossmultipleecosystems(nextgenscience.org).
III.

Narrative

A.

Background

HubertH.HumphreyMiddleSchoolislocatedinBolingbrook,Illinois.The
schoolserves757studentsinsixth,seventh,andeighthgrade.Ofthesestudents,

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78%arelowincome.Theethnicityofthestudentsisbrokendownasfollows:16%
White,24.6%Black,51.5%Hispanic,5%Asian,3%other.Fivepercentofthe
studentsareEnglishLanguageLearnersand16%ofthestudentshaveIEPs.
Furthermore,2%ofthestudentsintheschoolarehomeless.
In2012,72%ofstudentsmetorexceededontheISATsinscienceandthat
numberdroppedto55%in2013.In2012,81%ofthestudentsmetorexceededon
thereadingportionoftheISATsthatnumberdroppedto57%in2014.Student
mathematicsscoreshavealsodeclined.In2012,82%ofstudentsmetorexceededin
mathandin2014,only52%metorexceeded.Theachievementgapbetweenblack
andwhitesubgroupsintheschoolhascontinuedtoincreasewithanaverageof10%
gapin2010whichincreaseda29%gapin2014.
Theschooldoesaverageasmallerclasssize.Theaverageclasssizeis17
whichconsistsofcotaughtclassesforlowachievingstudentsandstudentswithIEPs.
Theschoolretains82%ofitsteachersfromyeartoyear.HumphreyMiddleSchool
averages$6,959ofmoneyspentoninstructionalspendingperstudentwhichisabove
theaverageforthestateofIllinois.Theschooliswellequippedwithtechnology
housingfourcomputerlabswith30computersperlabandfourcomputercartswith35
computerspercart.EachclassroomalsohasamountedSmartBoardforstudentand
teacheruse.Computerswerereplacedin2013forallteachersandin2014forall
studentsbringingtechnologyuptodate.
B.

Fundingrequest

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Theprimarypurposeofthiscomputergameistohelpincreasescience,math,
andlanguageartsscores.Thelearningobjectiveforscienceistohavestudentslearn
andhypothesizeaboutscientificconceptsofinvestigationandexperimentationasthey
simulateanenvironmentinwhichtheyarethedictator.Inthisgame,studentsactions
changethesurroundingsoilandweatherconditions,pollutionlevels,andbeautyofthe
environmentallandscape.Eachstudentwillgrowaspecificcropandmustpredictthe
bestwaytoprofitfromtheircropwhilehypothesizinghowtheirdecisionsaswellas
theiractionswillaffecttheirsurroundings.
Usingmathematicsskills,thestudentswillmonitoreachoftheirfarmsasthey
maintainthefinancesofthecosttorunthefarm,workerwages,profitsandlosses,
income,andthesalesfromtheconsumptionofthecrop.
Usingskillsfoundinlanguagearts,studentswillbeabletodooutsideresearch
tolearnmoreinformationontheircropandtheeffectsofdecisionsonboththe
environmentandtheeconomy.Studentswilldoaformalwriteupexplainingthe
causeandeffectscenarioforeachofthedifferentdecisionstheymadethroughoutthe
courseofthesimulation.Studentscanalsobrainstormideasfortheirsimulationby
meetingingroupstodiscussideasforfuturegrowthwithotherfarmersandreflecton
whattheylearnedthroughwriting.
ThepopulationofstudentsatHumphreyMiddleSchoolwillbenefitfromthis
simulationastheycancomparetheeffectoftheirdecisionsinarealworldenvironment.
First,studentswillbeabletoidentifydirectlywithwhattheyarelearningastheywillsee
animmediatecorrelationbetweentheeffectsoftheirdecisions.Thiswillhelpstudents

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maketheconnectionthatmateriallearnedinclassappliestotherealworld.Usinga
problembasedlearningstructure,eachstudenthastheabilitytocustomizehislearning
whilesolvingrealworldproblems.Thelongtermeffectwillresultinstudentswhohave
adeep,lifelongunderstandingofthecauseandeffectrelationshipofthedecisionsthey
makeonprofitandlossaswellastheenvironment.
Thefundsrequestforthegrantwillgotopurchasingenoughgamesforone
completecomputerlabor30games.Thegamecostsanaverageof$40perPCandwith
30computersrequiringthegame,$1200willberequestedforthegrant.Allstudentsin
seventhgradewillbeexpectedtoparticipatethroughtheirscienceclasseswithsupport
fromtheirmathematicsteacherandlanguageartsteachercreatingacrosscurricular
project.Scienceteacherswillhelpstudentsunderstandtheprincipal/purposeofthe
gameandassiststudentswithplantingtheircropinanenvironmentallyfriendlyway.
Mathteacherswillhelpstudentsinterprettheirnumbersastheyreviewprofitandlossas
wellhaswhatdecisionshaveledtoanincreasedprofitoraloss.Languageartsteachers
willteachstudentstoresearchkeyelementsthatwillhelpwiththeirprojectaswellas
helpstudentsdoaformalwriteupabouttheirfindingsduringandafterthegamehas
commenced.
C.

Projectexecution

Initially,twoseventhgradescienceclasseswillparticipateinthispilotprogram.This
projectiscrosscurricular,andsupportinginstructionwillalsobetaughtinthetheseventh
grademathandlanguageartsclasses.Assuch,thelessonplansforthisprojectwillbe
codevelopedbythesesixinstructors,withthetwoscienceteacherstakingthelead.

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UsingtheASSUREmodel,theprojectinstructorshavedeterminedthatgamebased
learningwillbeanextremelyeffectivestrategytoreachscience,math,andlanguagearts
learningobjectiveswiththesestudents.LessonplansreflectmanyofGees(2003)
principlesoflearningpresentingoodgamedesign,e.g.,theagentprinciple,theidentity
principle,wellorderedproblems,thefishtankandsandboxprinciples,systemthinking,
andsituatedmeaning.
Oncethesoftwarelicensesarepurchased,thegamewillbedownloadedandinstalled
oneachofthe30computerswithintheschoolscomputerlab.Theprojectleadswill
coordinatewithITpersonnelforthis.Theinstructorswillthenbecomefamiliarwiththe
gamebygoingthroughitssuppliedtutorialandbywalkingthroughthelessonplans.The
instructorswillalsodeterminethemostappropriatetimetoimplementtheselessons
withinthecourseandwillrevisethelessonplansastheyseefit.Uponpurchaseofthe
licenses,thisportionoftheprojectwillbeallottedthreeweeks,andthelessons
themselveswilltaketwoweekstocompletewithintheclass.Summativeevaluationsare
expectedtotakeanadditionalthreeweeks.
AllthecomputerswithinthelabmeetorexceedtherecommendedWindows
requirementsforthegame,whichare:
OS:Windows7(64bit),Windows8(64bit)
Processor:2.5GHzQuadCoreCPU
Memory:8GBRAM
Graphics:GeForce500orhigher,AMDRadeonHD5000orhigher
DirectX:Version11

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Network:BroadbandInternetconnection
HardDrive:4GBavailablespace
D. Evaluation
Thisunitwillbeevaluatedusingmultipleformsofassessment.Theareasoffocus
willincludemath,Englishlanguagearts(ELA),andscience.MathandELAwerechosen
becausetheyaretheprimarysubjectareasoffocusforThePartnershipforAssessment
ofReadinessforCollegeandCareers(PARCC)assessments.Someoftheskills
practicedwithinthisunitarenecessaryforsuccessonthePARCCstandardized
assessmentexam.Asaresultofthisunit,weareexpectingtoanincreaseinourPARCC
scoresinbothmathandlanguagearts/literacy.
Tomeetthemathcomponent,allstudentswillbeginbycreatingabasic
spreadsheetusingeitherMicrosoftExcelorGoogleSheets.Eachspreadsheetwillbeset
uptoresembletheregisterofacheckbook.Columnsincludedate,transaction
description,paymentamount,depositamount,andbalance.Thisspreadsheetwillbe
usedbystudentstotracktheirfinancialpaymentsanddeposits.Thiswillrequirestudents
tousepreviouslylearnedadditionandsubtractionskillsinapracticalandmeaningful
way,andalsoteachthemhowtouseacheckbookregister.Balancespreadsheetswillbe
checkedforaccuracyattheconclusionofeachweek.
WhenfocusingontheELAcomponent,muchofthiswillbedonethroughreflection
writing.Thesewritingswillbeassignedonceperweek.Inthesewritings,studentsshould
thinkaboutthemajordecisionstheymade,whytheymadethem,whattheywerehoping
toaccomplishbymakingthatdecision,andwhetherornotthedecisionsworkedas

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intended.Ifthedecisionsdidnotworkasintended,studentsshouldincludetheirthoughts
aboutwhattheypossiblycouldvedonedifferently.Thiscomponentwillfocusonthe
writingabilityofstudents,andwillalsorequirethemtoengageinselfreflection.Thegoal
ofthisreflectionisalsototeachstudentsthattheiractions,insideandoutsideofthe
game,haveconsequences.
Alsowithinthiscomponent,studentswillalsoperiodicallybegiventimetoverbally
reflectupontheirexperienceswithfellowfarmers.Followingthesesessions,students
willberequiredtowriteabriefreflection,focusingonwhattheylearnedduringthistime.
Allreflectionswithinthisunitshouldbetyped,andnothandwritten.Thisisarequirement
sostudentshaveanopportunitytoworkontheirtypingskillsinameaningfulsetting.This
isusefulbecausestudentswithinthestateofIllinoisarenowrequiredtotypetheir
responsesintheextendedresponseportionofthePARCCstandardizedassessment.
Withinthesciencecomponent,studentswillbetaughtpropertechniquesforthe
successfulgrowingofcrops.Ifutilizedcorrectly,thisshouldleadtoincreaseyieldswithin
thegame,andcanalsobeusedoutsideofschoolaswell.Studentswillalsousetheir
researchskills,learnedinELA,tocompleteresearchaboutthecropsthattheyare
growingwithintheirvirtualenvironment.Studentswillusetheinformationthatthey
learnedintheirresearchtowritea13pageresearchpaperaboutthehistoryofthatcrop.
Thisassignmentalsoprovidesvaluablepracticeforbothtypingandwriting,whichare
includedinthePARCCassessments.
Thegoalistousethisprogramandunitforaminimumofthreeyears.Eachyear,
PARCCscoreswillbeevaluatedtocheckforoverallgrowthwithintheschool.Iftest

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scoresindicatecontinuedannualimprovement,thisunitwillbecontinuedtobeutilized
withinthecurriculum.Ifthereisnoindicationofgrowth,thisunitmaybereevaluatedfor
inclusionwithinthecurriculum.
References
CommonCoreMathStandardsfrom
http://www.corestandards.org/
Gee,J.P.(2005).LearningbyDesign:goodvideogamesaslearningmachines.
ELearning,2
(1),516.
Marincola,E.(2006).Whyispublicscienceeducationimportant?JournalofTranslational
Medicine,4(1),7.
NextGenerationScienceStandardsfromhttp://www.nextgenscience.org/
PresidentsCouncilofAdvisorsonScienceandTechnology.(2010)
Prepareand
Inspire:K12Science,Technology,Engineering,andMath(STEM)Education
forAmericasFuture
.Retrievedfrom
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/pcaststemedfinal.
pf
Sadler,T.D.(2004).Informalreasoningregardingsocioscientificissues:Acritical
reviewofresearch.
Journalofresearchinscienceteaching
,41(5),513536.