Increasing Student Achievement in Language Arts Through BYOD

Grant Proposal

Lindsay Hardin
University of West Georgia
lhardin2@my.westga.edu

Nancy Kelly
University of West Georgia
nkelly2@my.westga.edu

Abstract
The Principal Investigators for this grant are seeking funding to provide professional development to
teachers in DeKalb County. Due to standardized test scores being below the district and state levels,
there is a demonstrated need at Cedar Grove Middle, Freedom Middle, and McNair Middle Schools.
There are two main objectives for this professional development course: 1) to increase teacher
understanding of BYOD practices and 2) to improve participants content knowledge with instructional
strategies relating to digital storytelling and visual literacy. The participants of this professional
development will participate in five full-day sessions during the summer of 2017 learning about websites
and apps to increase student learning with BYOD. The five-sessions will allow participants to create
lesson plans utilizing the skills taught during the professional development course. Participants will be
expected to implement these lessons during the fall semester in their classrooms. The participants will
also participate in two follow-up sessions. One follow-up session will include a field trip to the Alliance
Theater to participate in a workshop regarding digital storytelling. The participants will be required to
attend a final follow-up session in the spring of 2018 and provide data on student achievement on a posttest covering the content standards covered in the professional development course. The Principal
Investigators are seeking $36,135.72 to fund this professional development course. The cost of the grant
will cover stipends for the participants, principal investigators, evaluators, materials and supplies for the
course, and money for the participants to grow their classroom libraries or purchase media supplies for
their class.

Increasing Student Achievement in Language Arts Through BYOD

Introduction
With a greater emphasis being placed on student achievement on assessments and increased
technology integration expected of teachers, it is difficult for some teachers to integrate technology
proficiently into the classroom (Bakir, 2016). Many veteran teachers are not comfortable with using
technology but understand its importance in engagement and instruction (Shifflet and Weilbacher, 2015).
One particular method for technology integration is bring-your-own-device (BYOD), which allows students
to use their personal devices such as smartphones and tablets in the classroom environment. Many
benefits of BYOD have been noted such as convenience for students, low commitment, potentially low
cost, and the ease to which teachers can ask open-ended questions (Imazeki, 2014). Although potential
benefits of BYOD exist, there are barriers that exist as well. In addition to the obstacles of students
lacking physical resources, teachers are also faced with the limitation of time and knowledge to effectively
implement BYOD. Often, these barriers can be addressed with the appropriate training and
administrative support (Grant, pg.34). Therefore, professional development is needed for teachers to
positively impact BYOD implementation. With a lack of time and sometimes of resources, professional
development is not always feasible for counties to provide to their teachers. The following grant proposal
seeks to provide training opportunities for 20 teachers in DeKalb County Schools. This training
opportunity will teach participants the importance of fostering technology in todays classroom, and the
impact that technology can have on student success and engagement.
Demonstrated Need
The DeKalb County Schools System recognizes the need for both BYOD opportunities (Strategic
Goal Plan Area: 1) and the need to enhance professional development to address effective use of
technology (Strategic Goal Plan Area: 3) The lack of technology integration in DeKalb County 7th grade
language arts classrooms has contributed to more students not meeting on the Criterion Reference
Competency Test (CRCT) and Milestones Assessment. The inability of teachers to effectively integrate
technology is not only a concern for test performance, but also for preparing students to be 21st century
students. The everyday use of digit tools by school-age children has increased over the years. This

presents a need for schools to implement technology in order to remain relevant (Parsons, 2015). BYOD
training will move DeKalb schools towards meeting strategic plan goals. According to a 2015 study, 77%
of DeKalb County teachers believe that BYOD programs would improve student achievement and
engagement in the classroom (DeKalb County School District, 2015). Results from the same research
show that DeKalb County has 1.71 students per device in their county. This means that teachers must
rely on BYOD in order to increase access enabling all students to interact with the technology. The
ubiquity of mobile phones, personal digital assistants, and portable tablets all offer a great opportunity to
expand access to learning through mobile learning (mLearning) (Estable, pg. 21).
The following tables show test results for three DeKalb County middles schools: Cedar Grove
Middle, Freedom Middle, and McNair Middle. Disparities in the achievement on both the Criterion
Referenced Content Tests (CRCT) and Georgia Milestones Assessment between seventh graders at
these three schools compared to seventh graders throughout Georgia provide evidence for concern. (See
Table 1) Project investigators have taken into account the countys strategic plan as well as the following
scores showing deficiencies in language arts and reading. The PIs believe achievement gaps can be
closed with sufficient training utilizing BYOD in the language arts classroom.

Table 1. Comparison of Percentages (%) of 7th Grade Students Not Meeting the Standard on the
CRCT
English/LA

Reading

Year

2012

2013

2014

2012

2013

2014

Grade 7 ( in GA)

Cedar Grove MS

19

17

16

22

22

12

Freedom MS

23

30

26

24

28

28

McNair MS

19

29

28

23

21

29

14

15

14

13

13

13

DeKalb County

Table 1 shows that Cedar Grove, Freedom, and McNair Middle Schools all scored below the
county and state averages on the CRCT from 2012 through 2014. The tables show the percentage of

students who did not meet on the CRCT. This table also shows that students scored low on both the
English/LA and Reading sections of the CRCT. In reviewing the CRCT data from 2012 -2014, results
show that a substantial number of seventh grade students did not meet the Georgia Performance
Standards for English-Language Arts and Reading. (See Table 2)

Table 2. Number of 7th Grade Students Tested in on ELA and Reading CRCT
English Language-Arts

Reading

2012

2013

2014

2012

2013

2014

Cedar Grove

308

291

280

307

293

281

Freedom

347

307

374

346

310

375

McNair

227

224

229

228

224

231

6,831

6,748

6,960

6,831

6,748

6,963

DeKalb County

While there is a more substantial difference between the three middle school scores and state of
Georgia scores, there was a more noticeable difference when the Principal Investigators (PIs) expanded
to look at Milestones data as well.

Table 3. Percentage of 7th Grade Students categorized as a Beginning Learner on the 2015 Milestone
Test
School

Number of

English Language Arts

Students
Tested
Cedar Grove MS

303

56.4

Freedom MS

368

56.7

McNair MS

223

65.6

DeKalb County

6,828

41.2

Since the state of Georgia introduced a new test in 2015, the Principal Investigators of this grant
proposal explored how students at these three middle schools performed on the Milestones in 2015.
Table 3 shows the percentage of students who were categorized at beginning learners on the 2015
Milestones End of Grade Assessment. All three schools had at least 15% more students in this category
than the county average. While the county is implementing BYOD programs at the county levels, perhaps
there is a need for specialized professional development for these schools to showcase instructional
strategies and also content-based programs that will help improve student achievement.
In exploring the professional development available to DeKalb County teachers, there is a lack of
professional development geared toward BYOD initiatives. By providing specialized professional
development focusing on BYOD, participants will see the benefits of integrating the programs into their
classrooms. BYOD programs allow students to access learning anytime and anywhere and appeal to a
variety of learning styles. Therefore, BYOD professional development serves as an appropriate solution to
increase student achievement.
Bring-your-own device
Bring-your-own device (BYOD) systems allow students to use devices they already own (e.g., a
cell phone, tablet or laptop) to submit responses via text message or through a Web browser (Imazeki,
2014). It is important not to view BYOD in isolation, not to focus only on the device. BYOD can only take
place within the context of certain enablers, such as a suitable wireless broadband infrastructure, with
supporting policies and procedures for secure and appropriate use, such as those outlined by UNESCO
(2013 as cited in Parsons, 2015, pg.478-479), and may be associated with other initiatives such as a
move towards cloud based resources (Lennon, 2012 as cited in Parsons, 2015, pg. 478-479). In addition,
it does not operate independently of the teaching and learning process, driving changes in curriculum and
pedagogy (Cochrane et al, 2014 as cited in Parsons, 2015, pg. 478-479). Many institutions are starting to
implement a bring your own device (BYOD) policy, in which students and teachers are given minimum
specifications for the electronic devices they must choose, but rather are given the option to purchase
their own device (Edudemic et al, 2012 as cited in Estabelle, 2013).
Goals and Objectives

This professional development aims to provide instructional strategy instruction to participants.

The content covered in the professional development will help participants increase student achievement
through the use of BYOD tools taught during the course. The following goals and objectives guided the
plan of operations for this course.
GOAL ONE
To provide professional learning experiences that will equip teachers to implement BYOD in middle school
classrooms.

Process Objective
Facilitate interactive lessons on creating Google Classroom to at least 12 DeKalb County middle school

teachers.
Provide instruction on add-ons for Google Classroom that can be incorporated with BYOD: Google Docs,

Google Slides, and Google Sheets.

Outcome Objective
90% of participants will implement Google Classroom once per quarter during the 2016-17 school year.
GOAL TWO
Increase BYOD teaching capacity and content knowledge for teachers in seventh grade language arts
classrooms.

Process Objective:
Provide interactive professional development on different language arts applications to at least 12 DeKalb

County middle school teachers:Newsela, VoiceThread, and Bitstrip.

Participants will learn how to implement digital storytelling and visual literacy through the use of BYOD.
Familiarize participants with websites for digital storytelling: Prezi, Animoto, Voicethread, Blabberize.
Outcome Objective:
90% of participants will demonstrate proficiency in using content-specific apps promoting digital
storytelling and visual literacy by the end of the summer training sessions.
Since the DeKalb County School District utilizes online teacher and student toolboxes to
encourage teachers to utilize technology in the classroom, there is support for technology use in the
infrastructure of the district. The PIs will incorporate information relevant to the platforms supported by the
district that can also be supported by BYOD programs. There is potential for increased student
engagement with the use of BYOD focused instruction. BYOD encourages students to be active learners,
which can have positive effects on achievement. Since one of the main purposes of BYOD programs is
to engage the learner with hands-on activities, teachers understand the pedagogical advantages of using
BYOD in classrooms. Students with low math and reading scores typically learn better with hands-on

activities instead of lecture and traditional note-taking (Cardon, 2010). Students need opportunities to
become engaged with classroom content and each other. Therefore, professional development to
increase student achievement will focus on teaching the participants instructional strategies that can
increase student engagement and content knowledge.
The DeKalb County School District supports BYOD instructional methods, as noted in their
strategic plan. The goals of this professional development focus on the instructional strategies that can be
accomplished with BYOD in the classroom. It is important to remember that many teachers are excited to
utilize technology in their classrooms, but are not sure where they should start (Hsu, 2016). The first part
of this professional development will give teachers the basics of how to integrate BYOD into their
classrooms. In order to provide teachers with tools for BYOD, participants will first create a Google
account. Once an account is created training will move into particular applications that can be accessed
through Google Apps for Education. In order to show teachers the benefits of BYOD, participants will
explore and develop their own Google Classroom, a Google App for Education that facilitates classroom
instruction. After setting up Google Classroom, participants will begin to explore other applications that
can be used in conjunction with Classroom. Other applications will also be showcased that can make
BYOD learning instructionally effective.
The second part of the professional development will center on how to utilize these applications
and platforms to improve student understanding of language arts concepts. Once teachers are
comfortable with the basics of implementing BYOD in the classroom, the sessions will shift to showcase
how BYOD can support content in a language arts classroom.
Plan of Operation
The plan for this professional development is for 20 DeKalb County teachers to participate in five
day-long professional development sessions during the summer focusing on BYOD implementation in 7th
grade language arts classes.
Day 1
On the first day, the PIs will introduce the goals and objectives for the professional development,
the schedule for the course, the technology that will be introduced, and the team members for the

sessions. The participants will then take a pre-test to assess content knowledge covering content
standards: SL 7.1, RI 7.9, W 7.3, and RL 7.3.
Table 4. Standards to be Covered During Professional Development.
Standard
SL 7.1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacherled) with diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others ideas and expressing
their own clearly.
RI 7.9: Analyze how two or more authors writing about the same topic shape their presentations of key
information by emphasizing the different evidence or advancing different interpretations of facts.
W 7.3: Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique,
relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
RL 7.3: Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact (e.g., how settings shape the
characters or plot)

In order to facilitate the learning for participants, two resource books will be used to guide facilitation.
Each participant will receive a copy of Digital StoryTelling Guide for Educators by Midge Franzel and
Make Me a Story: Teaching Writing Through Digital Storytelling by Lisa Miller. Participants will then
discuss the pre-survey/interview they took before this course to determine their comfort level with using
technology in their classrooms. The second part of the first day will consist of introducing participants to
the technologies, such as Newsela, Voicethread, and Bitstrip that will be used throughout the week and
creating a Google Classroom, which will help teachers facilitate BYOD in their classrooms. Participants
will act as students throughout the sessions to experience what their students will experience. They will
also create their own Google Classroom to utilize in their classroom. The Google Classroom will be used
to house discussions and comments from the participants. These comments will form the starting point for
the debriefing sessions at the beginning and end of Days 2 through 5.
Lunch will be brought into the training sessions on all days for participants. Participants will be
encouraged to work through lunch with other participants in order to continue the collaboration. After the
lunch break, participants will create content for their classes with the help of the facilitators. Each day will

focus on a specific tool that can be used with BYOD. During the afternoon session, high school students
will work to help the participants learn and experiment with the new technology tool introduced. These
students will be recruited from high schools in DeKalb County that have successfully used these tools to
improve student achievement and engagement. As the session ends, participants will be required to
share their thoughts about the days activities. They will either post a comment to Google Classroom, or
be required to create a Google Doc and upload the document to Classroom. This will give participants
practice with using Google Classroom. Participants will also be expected to share their content creations
at the end of the day. This will create a resource for participants to access when they return to their
classrooms. Table 5 showcases a sample weeklong course.

Table 5. Sample Schedule for BYOD Professional Development

Sample Summer Schedule for BYOD Professional Development

Day 1

Day2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

8:008:30

Team Briefing

Team Briefing

Team Briefing

Team Briefing

Team Briefing

8:309:30

Welcome to the
Program;
Introductions;
Content Preassessment;
BYOD Survey
Discussion (8:3010:00)

DebriefingDiscussion

DebriefingJournaling

DebriefingDiscussion

DebriefingJournaling

Focus

SL 7.1

RI 7.9

W 7.3

RL 7.3

SL 7.1, RI 7.9,
W 7.3, RL 7.3

9:3012:00

Discussions in
the BYOD
Classroom

Reading and
Analyzing
Informational
Text
(RI 7.9)

Narrative Writing
with Digital
Storytelling
(W 7.3)

Visual Literacy
in the
Classroom
(RL 7.3)

Creation of
lesson plans
involving Webbased tools

12:001:00

Working Lunch

Working Lunch

Working Lunch

Working Lunch

Working Lunch

1:003:30

Overview of the
Web-based tools
for the week;
Creation of
Google
Classroom

Newsela
introduction and
creation

Voicethread
introduction and
creation

Bitstrip
introduction and
creation

Creation of
lesson plans
involving Webbased tools
(1:00-2:15)

Animoto
introduction and
creation

Prezi
introduction and
creation

Blabberize

3:304:00

Session Recap/
Ticket out the
Door

Session Recap/
Ticket out the
Door

Session Recap/
Ticket out the
Door

Session Recap/
Ticket out the
Door

Content PostAssessment;
Session Recap/
Ticket out the
Door

4:004:30

Team Debriefing

Team Debriefing

Team Debriefing

Team Debriefing

Team
Debriefing

Follow-up sessions
There will be three follow-up sessions scheduled once the school year resumes. The three sessions will
occur during the fall semester to encourage immediate integration. The sessions will be held in
September, October, and December. During the first two sessions, participants will be encouraged to
bring artifacts from their classroom lessons for feedback and revision. The first session will also allow
participants to review the information covered during the summer sessions. Hopefully, participants will
also have new tools to share with their classmates. The second follow-up session will feature a trip to the
Alliance theater for a digital storytelling workshop. Throughout the first two sessions, the feedback and
usage of technology will help reflection on the professional development structure. The December
session will focus again on technology tools, but data will be shared regarding student achievement.
Evaluation
Many researchers argue that it is important to include internal and external evaluations of a
professional development in order to know if it is successful (Kortecamp and Steeve, 2006). Therefore,
along with evaluation completed by the PIs, it is necessary to include external evaluation of the
professional development as well.
The external evaluator for this project will be Dr. Bertha DAlba, an assistant professor in the
Department of Educational Technology and Foundations at the University of West Georgia. Since Dr.
DAlba serves as the instructor for MEDT 7490, she is familiar with Visual Media Practices. This allows

10

her to not only evaluate the course for data analysis purposes, but also for content purposes as well. Dr.
DAlba will collect the data for the evaluation of the course, as well as complete the analysis of the data,
and complete the final report for the professional development course.
The data will be collected using a multi-method approach. The data that will be collected
correlates with the goals and objectives of the course. The data collection for the course will include daily
feedback from the participants (A); observation checklists and notes (B); transcripts of the daily
debriefings held during the summer and Fall follow-up sessions (C); and lesson plans created by the
participants (D).
Utilizing Kirkpatricks Evaluation Model (1994), data will be collected to determine the participants
understanding and implementation of BYOD instructional strategies. To determine the effectiveness of the
professional development course, data will be collected to see the participants reactions, learning and
behavior. The daily feedback, observation checklists, and debriefings will assess how the participants are
reacting to the course. The information that participants will share during the follow-up sessions will give
information about the participants learning and behaviors. Another way that the participants learning will
be assessed is through the use of a pretest and posttest assessment (E). In order to see changes in
student learning, data will be collected using a student pretest and posttest to determine the impact of the
professional development on student achievement (F). Table 6 details how each data collection piece
correlates to the program objectives.
Table 6. Data Collection Instruments
Data Collection Instruments
Program Objectives

1. Provide interactive professional development on

creating and accessing Google Classroom to at least
12 DeKalb County middle school teachers.
2.

Participants will learn about add-ons that synchronize

with Google Classroom.

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3. 90% of participants will implement Google Classroom

once per quarter during the 2016-17 school year.
4. Provide interactive professional development on
different language arts applications to at least 12
DeKalb County middle school teachers.

5. Participants will learn how to implement digital

storytelling and visual literacy through the use of
BYOD applications.

6. 90% of participants will demonstrate proficiency in

using content-specific apps promoting digital
storytelling and visual literacy by the end of the
summer training sessions.

(A) Daily Feedback- At the end of each session, both initial and follow-up, participants will
complete a brief survey to ensure their satisfaction with the course. These surveys will serve not only as
feedback for the facilitators, but also allow facilitators to have a record of attendance and participation.
The feedback from these surveys also allows the facilitators to adjust the course. The data collected with
this tool will evaluate objectives 2, 5, and 6.
(B) Observation Checklists and Notes- The external evaluator will attend various sessions
throughout the professional development course to collect data on the setting and environment of the
course. The evaluator will also collect data on the leadership and management of the course. When the
evaluator attends a session, a checklist will be provided to ensure that progress is being made in the
course. The evaluator will also take notes focusing on the interactions between the participants and
facilitators and the structure of the course. The data collected with this tool will evaluate objectives
1,2,4,5, and 6.
(C) Debriefings- Transcripts of daily debriefings will be created by the facilitators at the end
of every session, both Summer and Fall follow-up. Through the daily debriefing sessions, facilitators will
make note of participants reactions to the content of the course, the delivery of the course, and concerns
about the course. The facilitators and evaluator will also have access to the debriefings left on the course
Google Classroom. As the participants leave for the day, they will be asked to complete a ticket out the
door with feedback to begin the debriefing sections. The evaluator can analyze the transcripts and
comments on Google Classroom to determine trends with the management and leadership of the course.
The data collected with this tool will evaluate objectives 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.
(D) Lesson Plans Created by Participants- During the final day of the summer session, the
participants will create lesson plans utilizing the strategies taught during the course. These lesson plans
will be implemented during the fall semester in their classrooms. The lesson plans will be turned in on
Google Classroom to allow the facilitators and evaluator to check for understanding of the content

12

covered. Participants will then share their experiences implementing these plans during the follow-up
sessions. The data collected with this tool will evaluate objectives 2, 3, and 5.
(E) Pre- and Post- Survey/Assessment- Prior to the start of the professional learning
sessions, interviews of participants will be conducted to gain information on views, perceptions and
feelings toward BYOD instruction. Interviews will be administered via video chat and telephone calls.
Project Investigators will be responsible for gathering this initial data to determine initial barriers to
implementation. Participants will complete surveys to determine the information they learn throughout the
course. The surveys will assess content knowledge that is mastered by the participants as well as allow
participants to share any feedback at the end of the course with the facilitators and evaluator. The data
collected with this tool will evaluate objectives 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6.
(F) Student Pretest and Posttest Assessment- Participants will be required to provide their
students a pre and posttest to assess the achievement of the students with the content skills. The
participants will give the pretest before a unit then utilize instructional strategies taught in the professional
development course. At the end of the unit, participants will give a posttest to see if the instructional
strategies improved student achievement. At the final session in December, participants will bring this
data to share with the group and compare how their students performed. This will also allow participants
to share their successes and challenges with the content. The data collected with this tool will evaluate
objectives 5, and 6.
Partnerships and Project Team
The planning for this proposal has been coordinated by both the project investigator, Lindsay
Hardin and co-project investigator, Nancy Kelly based off of the demonstrated need in three selected
DeKalb county schools: Cedar Grove Middle, Freedom Middle and McNair Middle. Input has been
solicited from the superintendent Dr. R. Stephen Green, as well as the principals of the focus schools,
Candace Alexander, Dr. Marchell Boston, Ronald Mitchell. workshop facilitators, as well as the external
evaluator. April Swain has been selected as facilitator of the professional development sessions. Mrs.
Swain is a lead teacher in the area of Language Arts and has demonstrated effective technology
implementation in her classroom. Her accomplishments have been validated through election as
Technology Teacher of the Year. In an effort to support collaboration and hands-on learning there will be
five high school media students available to assist with workshop activities. This project team team has

13

decided that consulting with academic coaches would also be beneficial to project goals. Dr. Lisa Cohorst,
Instructional Coach with Gwinnett County Public Schools, has agreed be in attendance during the
summer workshop. Coaches are on contracted time during the summer and will be paid through external
sources. Dr. DAlba, the external evaluator will work in conjunction with the facilitator and academic
coach to develop assessments that are in-line with project goals.
Participants
The participants for this professional development will be selected by the three school principals.
Priority will be given to seventh grade language arts teachers (at least three from each school) and the
additional five participant slots will be left up to the discretion of the principals, allowing for volunteers.
Principals will be encouraged to select volunteers that have been considered teacher leaders and that are
open to technology initiatives. The use of these volunteers may allow for cross-curricular demonstrations
throughout the school year.
Community Partnership
The PIs have determined that it would be beneficial to have the professional learning LEAs (Local
Educational Association) partnership with the Alliance Theater at the Woodruff Arts Center in order to
reinforce and enhance knowledge gained during summer PD sessions. Their Digital Storytelling program
allows middle and high school students to work alongside an Alliance Arts for Learning (AA4L) Institute
teaching artist to explore the full creative process of telling a digital story with tools such as images, text,
audio, interactive illustrations, and music. Digital Storytelling is a 12-session in-classroom residency. The
AA4L Institute can bring iPads to use at schools that do not have the technology.
(alliancetheatre.org/content/digital-storytelling). The initial establishment for this partnership will be
through the field trip experience during the second follow-up session.
Capacity
The project team will consist of several paid employees who will plan, design, and carry out the
professional development. The project team will be required to attend meetings in the months prior to the
professional development. A week before the course, the team will be asked to attend pre-planning for the
course. All employees are required to attend the five sessions during the summer, the two follow-up
sessions, and the final follow up-session. The duties are listed below:

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Project Investigator
Lindsay Hardin will serve as the Project Investigator. Mrs. Hardin has been in education for 5
years. She has spent her entire career teaching seventh grade language arts. Mrs. Hardin teaches at
Trickum Middle School in Gwinnett County. She has served as a teacher leader, mentor, and curriculum
chair. She is currently pursuing a Specialist Degree in Instructional Technology at the University of West
Georgia. Mrs. Hardin will be responsible for designing and planning the professional development.
Co-Project Investigator
Nancy Kelly will serve as Co-Project Investigator. Mrs. Kelly has been in education for 13 years.
Her teaching career began in New York as a mathematics teacher for grades six through eight. Upon
moving to Georgia she has continued to educate students in the area of mathematics. Mrs. Kelly has
served as a teacher leader, mentor and department chair. Her passion for education has led her to
pursue a specialist degree in Instructional Technology at the University of West Georgia. Throughout her
career, Mrs. Kelly has provided trainings on best practices and instructional strategies for mathematics.
She is dedicated not only to the growth of the students in her classroom but to empowering teachers to
grow in their craft as well. Mrs. Kelly will be responsible for designing and planning the professional
development along with Mrs. Hardin.
Project Facilitator
April Swain will serve as facilitator for this project. Mrs. Swain has been in education for 15 years
and is passionate about Language Arts instruction. Mrs. Swain has taught previously in the DeKalb
County school system, giving her the ability to relate to participants. She is currently the Reading Support
Coordinator at Edwards Middle School in Rockdale County. During her time in Rockdale County Mrs.
Swain has been voted Teacher of the Year. She has served as a language arts department chair, teacher
leader and mentor. Over the past few years, she has been determined to find ways to incorporate
technology into her instruction as a means to increase student motivation and achievement. Mrs. Swain
will provide instruction during the professional development course.
External Evaluator

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Mrs. Bertha DAlba will serve as the external evaluator for this course. She is a professor at the
University of West Georgia. She will attend all session throughout the course of the professional
development. She will analyze the data collected and provide feedback on the course.
Facilities
All training sessions for the summer 5-day institute will take place at the DeKalb County School
System Administrative and Instructional Complex. This facility is located at 1701 Mountain Industrial
Boulevard. Stone Mountain, GA. It has been determined that this facility would be a familiar location as
numerous trainings are held here for DeKalb teachers throughout the year. This location is also the most
cost efficient for the project team as DeKalb County Schools is offering this facility for use free of charge.
Two of the follow-up sessions will take place here as well. The field trip portion of this project will take
place at the Alliance Theater at the High Museum.
Timeline
Summer 2016

Summer 2017

September 2017

October 2017

December 2017

Receive Initial
Funding

5 Summer PD
Sessions

Follow-up
Session 1

Follow-up Session
2: Alliance Field
Trip

Final Follow-up
Session

Conclusion
Certainly, a professional development course designed to help teachers reach their struggling
students is beneficial to the students, teachers, parents, and school district. This grant would provide an
opportunity for teachers to engage their students and motivate them to succeed in the classroom. This
professional development course will equip teachers to instruct more than a regular student, they would
be equipped to instruct a 21st century student. Living in a technologically heavy time, it is time that we
use technology to improve student learning and understanding of key concepts.

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Budget Summary

17

18

19

Budget Narrative

20

Section 1. Personnel Requested personnel costs will total $11,000. Lindsay Hardin will be the
Project Director/Investigator (PI) for the grant planning and workshop. She will work in conjunction with
Nancy Kelly operating as Co-PI and will responsible for all contact needs, planning, staffing, and serve as
a liaison to all Local Educational Association (LEA) participants.
Ms. Hardin and Ms. Kelly will devote one summer towards project development. The salary has
been set at $5000 for Ms. Hardin and $3000 for Ms. Kelly for the entirety of this project (summer and
three follow-up sessions. April Swain has been chosen as workshop facilitator and will be compensated a
total of $3000. This includes eight workshop days totaling $2400 and two prep days totaling $600. She
will be paid at a rate of $300 per day.
Section 2. Fringe The total budget allocation for fringe benefits is $2000. Fringe benefits will be
calculated at a rate of 25% for project salary. The PI and Co-PI are affiliated with a higher-level institution
and therefore will receive fringe benefits at the above-mentioned rate. Lindsay Hardin will receive $1250
(.25 x $5000) and Nancy Kelly will receive $750 (.25 x $3000) in fringe benefits.
Section 3. Support Personnel Total expenditures for supporting personnel will be $1670. Five
high school senior digital media assistants will be employed to assist with hands-on activities for three
days during the summer. Students will be paid minimum wage ($7.25 per hour) for a total of 24 hours. In
addition, teachers will be participating in a field trip to the Alliance Theater. There is a $25 fee for each
participant ($500) as well as a rental space fee of $300.
Section 4. Participant Costs Teacher stipends will total $10000. Twenty teachers will receive
stipends of $500 each for summer session (5 days), and three follow-up sessions. Teachers must be in
attendance for the duration of the project and will receive stipends on last follow-up session day. In
exchange for stipends, teachers are expected to actively participate in activities, implement instructional
strategies the following school year and provide peer coaching in their respective school buildings.
Section 5. Travel Travel expenses are $253. Travel expenses for the follow-up field trip session
to the Alliance Theater will be reimbursed at a rate of $0.55/mile. Distance will total 20 miles from DeKalb
County Schools to the High Museum for a total of $11 per person. Twenty-three individuals will be
reimbursed (20 LEA participants, 1 facilitator and 2 PIs).

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Section 6. Additional Costs An additional cost of $1656 is budgeted to cover the cost of lunch.
Lunch expenses will total $9 per person, per day for a total of 8 workshop days. The 23 meals are for the
20 LEA participants, two PIs, and one facilitator. Lunch will be included in budget fees due to the nature
of the professional learning days. The planned schedule is very involved and will not allow for official
lunch breaks. Participants are expected to work through lunch and as a result there is a need for catered
meals.
Section 7. Evaluation Costs The selected external evaluator cost is $4000. Dr. DAlba will
serve as a consultant in all aspects of project evaluation. She will submit a summer and final follow-up
report of program evaluation. She will be responsible for collecting and analyzing process and outcome
data. In addition she will be required to conduct one on-site visit during the summer.
Section 8. Materials and Supplies All materials and supplies will total $2880.
Each teacher will receive two Professional Books:

Digital storytelling guide for educators by Midge Franzel. $24 each for 20 teachers ($480).

Make me a story: Teaching writing through digital storytelling by Lisa Miller. $20 each for 20

teachers ($400).
In addition to the professional books teachers will need some autonomy in selecting supplemental
materials to support visual literacy lesson planning. Each teacher will receive $50 to purchase books in
order to build a classroom library. Each teacher will also receive $50 to purchase media and software
applicable to digital storytelling. (20 x $100= $2000)
Indirect Costs
Indirect costs for sub grants are calculated following calculations, whichever is lower: either (a)
8% of project costs excluding tuition or (b) the institution has federally negotiated indirect cost rate. In this
case, we are calculating indirect costs at 8 percent. Costs for sections 1-8 in the budget summary total
$33,459. Indirect costs total $2676.72 ($33,459 x .08).
The final budget summary reflects a total of $36,135.72 including indirect costs.

Data Collection Instruments

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Interview Protocol on Perceptions toward BYOD

Prompt: With this grant proposal, I am looking at the potential of the Bring-your-own-device (BYOD)
model (particularly in the area of middle school language arts) to increase student engagement and
academic performance. In the questions below, when I refer BYOD model, please know that I mean the
BYOD Classroom, as implemented by a teacher and students.
Opening
1.
What is your current role and responsibilities with DeKalb County School District? How long have
you been with the district? How long in K-12?
2.

Are you familiar with the BYOD model? Can you explain what you believe it is in your own words?

Highly Engaging Learning Environments

3.
Looking at the right-hand column of the table below, what are areas of potential and limitation when
looking at BYOD as a means to increase student engagement?
4.
Focus Areas

Highly Engaging Learning Environments.

Intellectual

Stimulate curiosity
Appeal to student interests
Lend to problem-based learning
Build on prior knowledge

Minimize negative behaviors

Minimize classroom distractions
Reduce disengagement
Increase on-task time
Allow students to take ownership of their learning

Engagement

Emotional/Behaviora
l Engagement

Social Engagement

Increase group collaboration

Promote accountable talk

Provide opportunities for public presentations

Provided opportunities for communitybased/service

learning

C. Resources for Implementation

1.
What can teachers achieve that they could not in the traditional pre-BYOD classroom environment?
2.
Does your district provide students with technology devices (laptops, tablets)?
3.
How often do students bring devices such as smartphones and tablets to class?
4.
If resources were not an issue, how often would you incorporate BYOD in your classroom lessons?

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5.
6.

What resources do you feel you would need to successfully implement BYOD instruction?
What changes are you seeing in your district so far that would help make BYOD a reality?

D. Closing
1. Is there anything else you would like to add about the potential or limitations of the BYOD classroom
model?

Pre and Post Survey

24

25

26

Observation Checklist
The observation checklist is adapted from Noonan, Langham, and Gaumer Erickson (2013).
The professional development provider:

Observed?
Yes

Preparation
1. Provides a description of the training with learning objectives prior to
training to gain participants

2. Provides readings, activities, and/or questions to think about prior to

the training during each session
Introduction
3. Provides an agenda before or at the beginning of the training
4. Connects content to participants context (e.g., community, school,
district)
5. Includes the empirical research foundation of the content (e.g.,
citations, verbal references to research literature, key researchers)
6. Engages the participant in a preview of the content (e.g., material,
knowledge or practice)
7. Builds on or relates to participants previous professional
development
8. Aligns with school/district/state standards or goals
9. Emphasizes improving student learning outcomes
Demonstration
10. Builds shared vocabulary required to implement and sustain the
practice
11. Provides examples, demonstrates, or otherwise illustrates the
content/practice
12. Illustrates the use or applicability of the material, knowledge or
practice for the participant
Engagement
13. Includes opportunities for participants to practice and/or rehearse
new skills
14. Includes opportunities for participants to express personal
perspectives (e.g., experience, thoughts on concept)

27

No

15. Includes opportunities for participants to interact with each other

related to training content
16. Adheres to agenda and time constraints
Evaluation
17. Includes opportunities for participants to reflect on learning
18. Includes discussion of specific indicatorsrelated to the knowledge,
material, or skills provided by the trainingthat would indicate a
successful transfer to practice
19. Engages participants in assessment of his or her acquisition of
knowledge and skills
Mastery
20. Includes follow-up activities that require participants to apply their
learning in a new setting or context
21. Provides continued feedback through technical assistance and
resources
22. Includes coaching to improve fidelity of implementation

References

Bakir, N. (2016). Technology and Teacher Education: A Brief Glimpse of the Research and Practice that
Have Shaped the Field. Techtrends: Linking Research & Practice To Improve Learning, 60(1), 21-29.
Cardon, P. L. (2000). At-risk students and technology education: A qualitative study. The Journal
of Technology Studies, 26(1). doi:10.21061/jots.v26i1.a.8

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Cochrane, T., Antonczak, L., Keegan, H. & Narayan, V. (2014) Riding the wave of BYOD: Developing a
framework for creative pedagogies, Research in Learning Technology, Vol 22.
DeKalb County School District. (2015). DeKalb county school district technology plan. Stone Mountain,
GA.
Estable, M. (2013). A review of considerations for BYOD m-learning design. Distance Learning. 10(3).
21-26
Edudemic. (2012). How BYOD fits into the insanely crowded world of educational technology.
Retrieved from http://edudemic.com/2012/06/byod-edtech/
Grant, M.,Tamim, S., Brown, D., Sweeney, J., Ferguson, F. & Jones. L (2015). Teaching and learning with
mobile computing devices: Case study in K-12 classrooms. Tech Trends 59(4).32-45.
Hsu, P. (2016, January 16). Examining current beliefs, practices and barriers about technology
integration: A case study. TechTrends, 60(1), 30-40. doi:10.1007/s11528-015-0014-3
Imazeki, J.(2014) Bring-Your-Own-Devices: Turning your cell phones into devices for good. Journal of
Economic Education. 45(3). 240-250.
Kirkpatrick, D.L. (1994). Evaluating training programs. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.
Kortecamp, K., & Steeves, K. A. (2006). Evaluating professional development of American history
teachers. Theory & Research in Social Education, 34(4), 484-515.
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Noonan, P., Langham, A., & Gaumer Erickson, A. (2013). Observation checklist for high-quality
professional development in education. Center for Research on Learning, University of Kansas,
Lawrence, Kansas.
Parsons, D. & Adhikari, J. (2015) The ups and downs of BYOD: A sociocultural perspective, Retrieved
from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283347390
Shifflet, R., & Weilbacher, G. (2015). Teacher Beliefs and Their Influence on Technology Use: A case
study. Contemporary Issues In Technology And Teacher Education (CITE Journal), 15(3), 368-394

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