Grant Proposal

Implementation of Bring Your Own Technology into Clarke County Middle School Social

Studies Classroom

Project Director: Jon Wilson

E-mail: wilson.jon@newton.k12.ga.us

Phone: (678) 468-0458

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 Abstract

In this grant proposal, a call for professional development in Clarke County, Georgia

is proposed which will help introduce and develop the concept of bring your own device

(BYOD) into middle school social studies education. The countys College and Career Ready

Performance Index (CCRPI) indicates that as a whole, Clarke County middle school social

studies classrooms are underperforming in relation to the rest of the state. While many

students face an economic disadvantage in the county, a significant number of learners have

access to digital devices through the use of federal programs which provide free or reduced

cost cellphones to families in need. This proposal calls for five professional development

workshop sessions over the course of a week in the summer in which middle school social

studies teachers from Clarke County will partner with the instructional technology team from

the Newton County School System to learn about different resources and management

styles to incorporate BYOD into their classrooms. These sessions will be followed up by two

meetings in the fall and one in the spring to see how the implantation is going and provide

further direction and guidance when necessary. Gains will be measured through surveys and

observations in order to determine whether the goals and objectives of the professional

development, which are aimed at improving student engagement and achievement in the

middle school social studies classroom, are obtained.

2
Introduction

Social studies teachers have been long faced with the challenge of engaging students

in a content that is often rated as one of the least interesting subjects by learners. While no

fault of their own, these teachers must overcome a negative perception of their content area

while reaching out and educating students in a topic that many find boring. In order to do

this, teachers need to find new and exciting ways to present the information and have

students interact with the content on a weekly and daily basis. One way in which many

teachers have tried to reach their students is through the integration of digital devices and

the use of personal technology in the classroom. While this idea has gained steam over the

course of the last decade as technology has become more prevalent in the personal lives of

children, many teachers are in need of professional development opportunities in order to

gain a better grasp on the concept and develop means of platform integration into their

lesson plans.

Demonstrated Need

The Clarke County School District is an interesting study as it has a wide range of

diverse learners from all different backgrounds and experiences. Middle school classrooms

are achieving below the state average in CCRPI scores, with the social studies content area

being one of the consistently lowest scoring areas. As demonstrated in the review of

relevant, current literature as well as the analysis of statistical data from the district, there

is a need for Clarke County middle school social studies teachers to learn and implement

new ways to engage students using technology. A bring your own device (BYOD) platform is

one way in which to accomplish increasing student engagement and therefore student

achievement. The case for a BYOD pedagogy in Clarke County can be seen through a review

of current literature on BYOD and personal device approaches to classrooms in systems of

similar nature to Clarke County.

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Literature Review

While there is a stark contrast in the scores between schools within the system, the

Clarke County School District as a whole struggles with economic issues and achievement

scores that range on the lower end of the state averages. While many students come from a

harsh economic background, many have access to personal technology devices, such as

laptops, iPads, iPhones, and other resources that can be utilized in the classroom. Students

already use these devices for a significant portion of their communication between each

other as Thomas and Orthober (2011) found in their study that 60% of the students they

researched sent or received at least 20 text messages per day. Lee (2014) additionally

discovered that students who owned cellphones or other mobile devices were more likely to

engage in social media outlets such as Facebook to communicate, which was also found to

be a possible distraction from academics. Students are using cellphones consistently on a

daily basis to communicate, even in low income families due to the prevalence of

government funded programs which provide personal electronic devices to families in need.

It is important that teachers understand how to utilize these devices in the classroom for

learning rather than allow them to be a distraction.

As the data shows, Clarke County Schools is in dire need of help in reaching its

middle school social studies students in new and exciting ways. With the prevalence of

personal technology devices among adolescents and teenagers in the present day and the

interest stemming from those resources, it is apparent that the utilization of such tools in

the classroom would be necessary. A Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) pedagogy would

allow for students to interact with the social studies content using means that they are

comfortable with and interested in. Due to the lack of training in previous college in-service

programs (Skophammer & Reed, 2014), it is necessary for teachers to engage in

professional development to understand BYOD pedagogy as well as compile resources that

can be used in the classroom taking this approach to education. In addition to the necessity

4
for understanding how to use the devices in the classroom, BYOD professional development

is also necessary to help build classroom management with technology devices as Donovan,

Green, and Hartley (2010) found in their research as they observed classrooms who

engaged in 1:1 technology settings. While allow students the ability to use devices in the

classroom has great benefit, teachers must also be educated as to how to manage the

challenge of giving students that much freedom. As Charles (2010) discussed in her

findings, there must be a give and take relationship between teacher and student with

BYOD.

This unfamiliarity with BYOD pedagogy and the workings of new technology devices

can bring tension to the classroom. Teachers experience an uneasiness when having to use

are allow students to use devices that they are not familiar with (Greg et al., 2013). It is

important that professional development be encouraged and participated in by teachers as

new generations continue to increase their use and dependency on technology. As Greg et

al. (2013) discovered, student engagement and achievement increased once they were

allowed to use technology in class and teachers grew comfortable in allowing students to

become the center of instruction.

Data Review

Quantitative

The Clarke County School District in Athens, Georgia faces these same challenges in

their social studies classroom as well, particularly at the middle school level. Clarke County

is a Title I system, meaning that greater than 35% of its students qualify for free or reduced

lunch. In some cases, such as that of Burney-Harris Lyons Middle School, that percentage

can grow to over 90% of the student population. With these statistics come distractions that

compete for the students attention and can detract from their focus on learning. Looking at

the data from Burney-Harris Lyons Middle Schools CCRPI social studies scores in

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comparison to the rest of the district and state (see Table 1) (Governors Office of Student

Achievement, 2015), it is apparent that there is a need to find a new way to reach students

as the percentage of students falling below the proficient level is greater than the rest of the

county and state. In comparison, Clarke Middle School in the same district yet different

portion of the county is experiencing greater achievement in the same areas and actually

out-performing the rest of the county and state in their social studies CCRPI scores (See

Table 2) (Governors Office of Student Achievement, 2015). Clarke Middle School does not

face the same economic disadvantages that Burney-Harris Lyons Middle does so therefore

their students do not face the same distractions away from the classroom.

Table 1-Burney-Harris Lyons Middle School CCRPI Comparison

Burney-Harris Lyons Middle Clarke County State of Georgia

Beginning 42.4 33.3 27.1
Developing 34.5 35.3 37.4
Proficient 16.4 18.8 22.3
Distinguishe 6.7 12.4 13.2

d
Source: Governors Office of Student Achievement (2015) Georgia school reports. Retrieved

from: https://schoolgrades.georgia.gov/school- search?f[0]=field_district

%3A41&f[1]=field_clusters%3A12

Table 2-Clarke Middle School CCRPI Comparison

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 Clarke Middle School Clarke County State of Georgia
Beginning 23.3 33.3 27.1
Developing 28.8 35.3 37.4
Proficient 22.4 18.8 22.3
Distinguishe 25.5 12.4 13.2

d
Source: Governors Office of Student Achievement (2015) Georgia school reports. Retrieved

from: https://schoolgrades.georgia.gov/school- search?f[0]=field_district

%3A41&f[1]=field_clusters%3A12

Qualitative

Clarke County realizes that there is a need for teachers to find new and innovative

ways to engage their students and make learning interactive. According to the countys

strategic plan, the school system wants to bring in new innovative ideas that support and

diverse learning environment and help their teachers connect and grow through the latest

professional development opportunities (Clarke County School District, 2015). According to

the report, professional development in areas of instructional technology has been identified

as an area of need through observations of classroom learning environments (Clarke County

School District, 2015). Bring in the Newton County School System instructional technology

team to instruct, model, and guide Clarke County middle school social studies teachers

would provide an economically efficient professional development opportunity in BYOD

pedagogy and practices. With this desire for professional development in instructional

technology practices by Clarke County and the ready availability of the Newton County

instructional technology team, an obvious connection can be made that a partnership would

be of great benefit. In order for this partnership and opportunity to be successful, clear

goals and objectives must be set in order to guide the professional development to an

effective implementation.

Goals and Objectives

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 The purpose of this professional development opportunity is to educate Clarke

County School District teachers with the pedagogy of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), allow

them to grow professionally in their comfort level using BYOD, and compile resources that

can be used by students to engage the material and content using their personal technology

devices in the classroom. All of the resources gathered during this professional development

opportunity and the pedagogy taught will be in line with the Georgia Performance Standards

for middle school social studies education with a focus on helping Clarke County School

District students improve their CCRPI scores.

With the intent of helping middle school social studies teachers in the Clarke County

School system increase their achievement scores and student engagement through the use

of personal technology in the classroom as well as a BYOD pedagogy, specific goals and

objectives have been created and established for the scope of this professional development

opportunity. Goals were set in order to help teachers familiarize themselves with BYOD

principles and identify and compile a list of resources compatible with the Georgia

Performance Standards in middle school social studies. Additionally, goals were set to help

teachers begin to gradually incorporate more personal technology into their lesson plans for

student use in the classroom in the hope that student engagement, and therefore

achievement, will increase in a student-centered learning environment. As Spires, Lee,

Turner, and Johnson (2008) found in their research, students were much more comfortable

and engaged in their use of laptops and cellphones to engage material than they were with

regular pen and paper. Engel and Green (2011) discovered in their research that the use of

personal technology and BYOD led to increased attendance and success while Mayall (2008)

noted that using technology allows middle school students to feel more confident, which

leads to the success. In order to take these steps, goals and objectives were created

focusing on the development of BYOD use throughout the school year.

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 There are two main goals for this professional development opportunity, which are

further refined by the objectives that each goal aims to accomplish.

Goal 1: Teachers will learn about BYOD and be able to demonstrate their understanding by

the end of the professional development.

Objective 1: By the end of July 2017 and the summer professional development

opportunities, teachers will be able to define BYOD and explain its pedagogy.

Objective 2: By the end of the first semester 2017, teachers will have developed the skill

to utilize personal electronic devices that may be used in the classroom.

Goal 2: Teachers will identify and learn about BYOD pedagogy in the social studies content

area.

Objective 1: By the end of July 2017 and the summer professional development

opportunities, teachers will be able to access online social studies resources

Objective 2: By the end of the first semester, teachers will be able to implement digital

social studies resources into their classrooms.

As these goals and objectives provide an outline for the hopes of this professional

development opportunity, it is important to keep in mind that a framework must be built

around them in order to guarantee the projects success. A plan of operation must be

developed with the intent to help teachers accomplish these goals and objectives with a

schedule that is conducive to the teachers time while rigorously introducing the BYOD

concept to them.

Plan of Operations

This professional development opportunity will award participants 5 professional

learning units (PLUs) for 50 hours of training over the course of five meetings during the

summer of 2017 where teachers receive input in the BYOD field as well as one follow-up

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meeting in October 2017, one at the conclusion of the 2017 fall semester, and a final review

session in March 2018. Over the course of these sessions, participating teachers will learn

about the various modes of technology that are accessible by their students, how to handle

such technology, the resources available pertinent to their specific social studies content and

grade level, as well as effective classroom management strategies.

Learning will take place over the course of five sessions of eight hours apiece in the

summer of 2017 to introduce and familiarize teachers with the Bring Your Own Device

(BYOD) pedagogy. Each workshop will focus on a particular piece of technology or emphasis.

The first workshop will be an introductory phase which covers the principles and goals of the

program as well as effective classroom management strategies to incorporate with a BYOD

pedagogy. The second workshop will focus primarily on cell phones. During this time,

teachers will learn about new programs and resources than can be utilized be students on

their cell phones as well as what can be done when a student does not have access to a cell

phone. Teachers will have an opportunity to experiment and play with each resource that is

shared to gain firsthand knowledge of their benefits. At the end of the workshop, a list of

resources that were shared and found will be created as part of an instructional technology

resource data base accessible by all teachers in the county. This same process will be

followed for workshops three and four, with three focusing on iPad/tablet and session four

emphasizing laptops. The fifth and final workshop will focus on developing a unit plan based

upon a BYOD philosophy. Teachers will work together with team members from their grade

level to develop ideas and plans that align to the Georgia Performance Standards and the

county curriculum maps. The schedule of each day can be found in Table 3.

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Table 3-Summer Professional Development Workshop Schedule

Time Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5

8:00 Welcome and Welcome and Welcome and Welcome and Welcome and

AM Introduction Technology Technology Technology Unit Plan

Introduction Introduction Introduction Introduction

Cell Phones Laptops Tablets

9:00 Content/Grad Content/Grad Content/Grad Content/Grad Content/Grade

AM e Level e Level e Level e Level Level Meeting

Meeting Meeting Meeting Meeting

10:30 Breakout Breakout Breakout Breakout Breakout

AM sessions with sessions with sessions with sessions with sessions with

Newton Tech Newton Tech Newton Tech Newton Tech Newton Tech

Team-What is Team-How Team-What Team-Are Team-How do

BYOD? can we utilize can we use tablets worth I manage it

cellphones? laptops for? the risk? all?

12:00 Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch
1:00 Breakout Breakout Breakout Breakout Breakout

session with session with session with session with session with

Newton Tech Newton Tech Newton Tech Newton Tech Newton Tech

Team-How do Team-What Team-What Team-What Team-Final

I manage resources are resources are resources are questions

BYOD? available? available? available?

2:30 Partner with Partner with Partner with Partner with Partner with

someone from someone from someone from someone from someone from

another school another school another school another school another school

to develop a to engage to engage to engage to research

classroom demonstrated demonstrated demonstrated unit plans

management resources resources resources using BYOD

plan firsthand and firsthand and firsthand and and begin

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 to research to research to research drafting ideas

additional additional additional

available available available

content content content

resources for resources for resources for

cell phones laptops tablets

4:00 Large group- Large group- Large group- Large group- Large group-

compile compile a compile a compile a create a

management master list of master list of master list of sample unit

ideas to resources to resources to resources to plan together

formulate a share with the share with the share with the to

group county. Hands county. Hands county. Hands demonstrate

management on time to on time to on time to an

plan experiment experiment experiment understanding

of how to use

BYOD
5:00 Dismissal Dismissal Dismissal Dismissal Dismissal

Day 1: The first day of the professional development will be focused on familiarizing

participants with the BYOD pedagogy and getting them comfortable in a student-centered

classroom which heavily relies on technology, which can be a tough transition for many

teachers. A general welcome and introduction to the workshop will be followed by a content

and grade level meeting to sort out any preconceived notions that teachers may have about

the topic. Afterwards, teachers will move to small group breakout sessions with members of

the Newton County Tech Team to discuss BYOD and how to effectively use it. After returning

from lunch, participants will go to a new breakout session, this time focusing on the

management of a classroom that uses BYOD. Once the breakout sessions are complete for

the day, teachers will be paired with someone from the same content and grade level from

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another school in order to begin developing ideas for a classroom management plan. In the

final session of the day, the group will reassemble as a whole to collectively discuss

management plans and create a general plan that teachers can use a model in the

upcoming school year.

Day 2: The second day of the professional development will be focused on familiarizing

participants with the BYOD resources pertaining to cell phones. A broad introduction of the

cell phone topic will start the day, with open dialogue among the group as to what

preconceived notions they may have regarding the use of cell phones in the classroom.

Afterwards, teachers will move to small group breakout sessions with members of the

Newton County Tech Team to discuss effective methods for using cell phones in class. After

returning from lunch, participants will go to a new breakout session, this time focusing on

possible resources and apps that can be used by teachers and students. Once the breakout

sessions are complete for the day, teachers will be paired with someone from the same

content and grade level from another school in order to begin engaging with the

demonstrated resources firsthand and experiment with each other as to how they could

effectively implement the resource in their classrooms. Once they have engaged the

demonstrated resources, they will begin researching and developing ideas for using cell

phones in the classroom. In the final session of the day, the group will reassemble as a

whole to collectively discuss cell phone use in the classroom and compile a list of resources

that have been found and vetted during the course of the workshop.

Day 3: The third day of the professional development will be focused on familiarizing

participants with the BYOD resources pertaining to laptops. A broad introduction of the

laptop topic will start the day, with open dialogue among the group as to what preconceived

notions they may have regarding the use of personal laptops in the classroom. Afterwards,

teachers will move to small group breakout sessions with members of the Newton County

Tech Team to discuss effective methods for using laptops in class. After returning from

13
lunch, participants will go to a new breakout session, this time focusing on possible

resources and apps that can be used by teachers and students. Once the breakout sessions

are complete for the day, teachers will be paired with someone from the same content and

grade level from another school in order to begin engaging with the demonstrated resources

firsthand and experiment with each other as to how they could effectively implement the

resource in their classrooms. In the final session of the day, the group will reassemble as a

whole to collectively discuss cell phone use in the classroom and compile a list of resources

that have been found and vetted during the course of the workshop.

Day 4: The fourth day of the professional development will be focused on familiarizing

participants with the BYOD resources pertaining to tablets. A broad introduction of the tablet

topic will start the day, with open dialogue among the group as to what preconceived

notions they may have regarding the use of tablets in the classroom. Afterwards, teachers

will move to small group breakout sessions with members of the Newton County Tech Team

to discuss effective methods for using tablets in class. After returning from lunch,

participants will go to a new breakout session, this time focusing on possible resources and

apps that can be used by teachers and students. Once the breakout sessions are complete

for the day, teachers will be paired with someone from the same content and grade level

from another school in order to begin engaging with the demonstrated resources firsthand

and experiment with each other as to how they could effectively implement the resource in

their classrooms. In the final session of the day, the group will reassemble as a whole to

collectively discuss tablets use in the classroom and compile a list of resources that have

been found and vetted during the course of the workshop.

Day 5: The final day of the summer workshop sessions will focus on developing unit plans

centered in BYOD. The welcome will allow for teachers to have open dialogue and

conversation about how to implement the new ideas they have learned into their

classrooms. Breakout session with the Newton Tech team will provide teachers with a

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template to use in order to begin constructing a new unit plan. After lunch, the tech team

will be available for teachers to ask any final questions before the session comes to a close.

Teachers will also partner up with someone from a different school but same grade level in

order to develop unit plans for the upcoming school year. As the session comes to a close,

the teachers will reconvene in large group to develop a broad unit plan together.

Workshop-October 2017: The participants in the professional development will meet back

at the county board office during the second Saturday in October to discuss the success of

their implementation of BYOD in their classrooms. All of the members of the staff who

presented at the summer workshops will be on hand to help teachers sort through any

issues that teachers may be having. The session will be recorded, archived, and distributed

to participating teachers for reference as well as providing teachers who could not make it

with a method of reviewing what they missed.

Workshop-December 2017: The participants in the professional development will

reconvene at the county board office on the last Saturday of the first semester to discuss

implementation and how effective BYOD has been in their classrooms. Members from the

Newton County Tech Team will be present for discussion and to address any concerns the

participants may have. Teachers will have recorded themselves implementing a BYOD lesson

and that footage will be reviewed during this time period. Additionally, lesson and unit plans

will be reviewed for improvement during the course of the meeting. The session will be

recorded, archived, and distributed to participating teachers for reference as well as

providing teachers who could not make it with a method of reviewing what they missed.

Workshop-March 2018: The teachers who were a part of the professional development

will reconvene at the board office on the second Saturday of March to analyze the use of

BYOD in Clarke County middle school social studies classes and gauge the effectiveness in

increasing engagement and achievement in the classroom. Test scores will be analyzed and

charted for comparison and lesson and unit plans will be critiqued. Surveys will also be

15
distributed to the teachers to gauge the effectiveness of the training. The session will be

recorded, archived, and distributed to participating teachers for reference as well as

providing teachers who could not make it with a method of reviewing what they missed.

Members of the Newton County tech team will be on hand for all of the sessions.

However, to avoid scheduling conflicts and other system requirements of their time, only

half of the tech team will be present in the October workshop and the other half present

during the December workshop. All members of the tech team will be present in the final

meeting in March. The reason behind this dividing of the tech team is due to other

obligations that they have around Newton County and the state as they represent the

district in conferences and other professional development opportunities.

Once a timeline and plan has been developed as to how the professional

development for BYOD in Clarke County middle school social studies classrooms have been

developed, it is important to decide how to evaluate the data that will be gathered as a

result of the professional development and how the data will be interpreted. In order to

effectively gauge how well teachers understand BYOD and its many uses, student and

teacher achievement and engagement will be measured through different outlets such as

surveys and classroom observations.

Evaluation Plan

External Evaluator

Evaluation of this professional development opportunity will be handled by Dr. Allison

Jordan of the Newton County School System. Dr. Jordan currently serves as the testing

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coordinator and statistical evaluator for Newton County Schools. She earned her PhD in

testing and evaluation from the University of Georgia and has been serving in a testing and

evaluation role for over a decade. In her current position with Newton County Schools, Dr.

Jordan is responsible for the assessing of all students within the county and developing

statistical data which can be analyzed for deeper meaning and understanding in order to

benefit the education being delivered inside the classroom. Dr. Jordan has a wealth of

experience collecting and analyzing data as the lead testing coordinator for the Newton

County School System. Dr. Jordan will be responsible for the collection of data from the

surveys of teachers, test scores, and qualitative data collected from in-class observations of

middle school social studies teachers in Clarke County.

Data Collection and Schedule

Success of the project will be determined based upon the engagement of the

teachers in the workshops and their implementation of BYOD in their classroom. It is

important for teachers to understand that simply using technology in the classroom does

not lead to increased engagement or proficiency, but it must be done in transformative

ways. Long-term success of the project will be measured against the goals and SMART

objectives that have been set forth for the project. While increased student engagement and

achievement are obvious goals to BYOD professional development, teacher familiarity and

effective implementation of the policy will also be markers of success. Data will be collected

to gauge the effectiveness of this opportunity throughout the course of the program. At the

end of the five day summer workshop, teachers will participate in a survey to gauge how

effective the workshop was and how it helped them with developing a BYOD pedagogy.

Throughout the course of the school year, classroom observations will be made by members

of the Newton tech team at random to see how the implementation is going in the

classroom as well as a surveying of teachers lesson plans to see how BYOD is implemented

on a daily and weekly basis.

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 Table 4-Data Collection Schedule

Goal Objectives Data and Data Timeline

Collection Tool
Teachers will learn Objective 1: By the A survey will be The survey will be

about BYOD and be end of July 2017 and issued to teachers to distributed to

able to demonstrate the summer gauge their teachers on the final

their understanding professional familiarity, comfort day of the five day

by the end of the development level, and summer workshop.

professional opportunities, understanding of Results will be

development. teachers will be able BYOD pedagogy. calculated, analyzed,

to define BYOD and Data will be and examined over

explain its collected from free the course of the

pedagogy. response and rating next month, prior to

Objective 2: By the questions. the beginning of the

end of the first school year.

semester 2017,

teachers will have

developed the skill

to utilize personal

electronic devices

that may be used in

the classroom.

Teachers will identify Objective 1: By the Classroom Each teacher will

and learn about end of July 2017 and observations will be receive two

BYOD pedagogy in the summer made to survey the observations at

the social studies professional use of BYOD in the random throughout

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content area. development social studies the course of the

opportunities, classrooms and its semester. The

teachers will be able effectiveness in results of the

to access online engaging students. observations for

social studies each teacher will be

resources analyzed and

Objective 2: By the compiled for the

end of the first winter meeting

semester, teachers

will be able to

implement digital

social studies

resources into their

classrooms.

Process Evaluation

Qualitative and quantitative data will be collected in order to help determine the

success of the program and judge how effective it has been in developing teachers to

engage students and increase achievement rates in Clarke County middle school social

studies classes. Two sets of quantitative data will be collected throughout the program. The

first set will exam the rate at which teachers implement BYOD in their classrooms. Teachers

will be distributed a survey at the end of the first semester that asks them a variety of

questions including the frequency in which they implemented BYOD, what types of BYOD

resources they used, and the level of comfort they experienced in implementing BYOD. The

second set of quantitative data will focus on student achievement during the implementation

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of BYOD. Student performance on county benchmarks and formative assessments as well as

Georgia Milestones will be used to gauge the effectiveness of BYOD in students education. A

comparison will be done to the previous three years reports to see if there was any increase

in achievement on the assessments.

Outcomes Evaluation

Qualitative data will also be very important to the study. It will be necessary to

gather data on student engagement and the interaction with technology in the learning

environment. In class observations will be done to see how teachers implement BYOD and

the response the students have in class to lessons which incorporate BYOD and lessons that

do not. Each teacher participating in the professional development will receive two

classroom observations over the course of the first semester. One will be scheduled while

another will be an unscheduled visit. Student engagement in the two types of lessons will be

observed and compared with the quantitative data from the assessment scores. Teachers

will be interviewed after each observation through a predetermined list of questions that

have been developed and are available to view in Appendix D. Additionally, teacher behavior

and interaction with the technology will be observed as well to see if their familiarity and

comfort level impacts student engagement. As Greg et al. (2013) found in their research,

teacher comfort level using personal technology in the classroom had an impact on student

performance as teachers who were uneasy incorporating the technology found their

students to struggle with engagement as opposed to educators who were more familiar with

the devices and saw their students engagement and achievement rise once personal

electronic devices were implemented.

Being able to assess the effectiveness of the professional development and evaluate

its use inside the classroom is critical in understanding how to better reach the middle

school social studies students of Clarke County. The partnership of the Clarke County School

District and the Newton County School System is vital to helping teachers develop into more

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effective and engaging educators. As Newton County has been evaluated many times

regarding its instructional technology use, the system has worked hard to develop strategies

that work in a very similar academic and socioeconomic setting to Clarke County. This

makes the partnership between the two systems all the more important.

Partnerships

Participant Recruitment

The Clarke County School District is the focus of this professional development

opportunity proposal regarding the use of BYOD pedagogy in the classroom. In particular,

middle school social studies teachers are the primary aim as the goal of increasing student

achievement and engagement in that particular school level setting and content are the

main areas of emphasis for the study. While the opportunity is open to all teachers within

the Clarke County School District, aims to improve CCRPI scores are focused primarily on

middle school social studies teachers within the county. In order to recruit participants in the

professional development, Clarke County Schools assistant public relations director, Callen

Moore, will contact prospective candidates and draft a memorandum to all county teachers

making them aware of the opportunity. While technically open to all teachers, middle school

social studies teachers will be targeted first and foremost. The anticipated crowd for the

professional development is 20 people.

Partners

This joint effort between the Clarke County School District and the Newton County

Schools technology team has led to the securing of many of the resources for the

professional development and no to minimal cost. Space for the sessions is provided by the

Clarke County School District Board of Education for free in the main conference rooms and

surrounding offices in the board office, which is capable of handling crowds much larger

than anticipated for this opportunity. The meeting areas are already equipped with

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projectors, connector cables, and sound equipment, meeting all of the needs that the

professional development needs without any additional occurring costs. Along with this

space, the Clarke County Board of Education is making the various technology resources

(such as laptops and iPads) that they have at their disposal across the county available free

of charge for their teachers to use during the course of the professional development. While

a joint venture between Clarke County and Newton County, Newtons instructional

technology coordinator, Melissa Jackson, as well as the county technology coordinator, Adam

Phyall, will provide the lead expertise in the professional development, while additional

support will be provided by the Newton County School technology team which is made up of

teachers from all content areas and grade levels. All of these moving parts have been

coordinated with Griffin RESA, the agency overseeing Newton County, to ensure that the

requirements for PLUs are being met and offering guidance in the building of the programs

components.

The partnership between the two county school systems will be important for the

growth of educators in both counties as well as the development of their students. The

width and depth of this professional development provides many great opportunities

throughout the summer and school year for teachers to engage each other in building an

understanding of BYOD pedagogy. How well the two systems work together will be a

determining factor in the success of the professional development. Its many parts and

components all lead to the same goals and objectives, which ultimately is to help educators

better themselves in the use of technology in order to more effectively engage their

students.

Conclusion

BYOD pedagogy has been one of the latest educational trends that has shown

promise through several research opportunities. As the research indicates, students are

comfortable using technology in many different aspects of their everyday lives (from

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communication to entertainment to education). Learning how to use this personal

technology in the classroom to engage students rather than distract them has become one

of the more difficult challenges that educators face. Through the use of professional

development for Clarke County middle school social studies teachers, there can be a change

for the positive regarding technology use in an effort to increase student engagement and

achievement. Clarke Countys CCRPI scores for middle school social studies classes has

lagged far behind the state average for quite some time now. Utilizing professional

development partnered with the Newton County School System throughout the summer and

school year of the 2017-2018 academic year will provide these struggling teachers with an

avenue to further develop their craft and learn a new pedagogy that they may not be

familiar or comfortable with yet. Newton County Schools, a system with a similar

demographic and socioeconomic background, has been a pioneer in instructional technology

and would make a great deliverer of professional development to Clarke County. Through

the use of surveys and classroom observations to evaluate the program, gains will be

experiences and observed through this professional development opportunity, leading to

increased student engagement and achievement as well as a more innovative and savvy

educator faculty.

Appendix A Budget Summary

See PDF file

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Appendix B Budget Narrative

Personnel and Fringe Benefit $6250 (TQ Funds)

Jon Wilson is the lead in developing the grant proposal, working with members of

the Clark County School District and coordinating with the Newton County School System to

provide resources and instruction in the field of BYOD pedagogy. As the project director, he

will ensure the parameters of the project are clearly defined and followed and that

participants are actively recruited and engaged. Serving as the project director, Mr. Wilson

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will serve five full days over the summer, followed by the subsequent follow-up sessions for

a total of $6250.

Support Personnel $12600 (TQ Funds)

Melissa Jackson is responsible for consulting the development and implementation

of the instructional technology professional development. She will be one of the main

leaders of the sessions both over the summer and during the follow-up opportunities, being

present for seven of the eight sessions. For her work, Ms. Jackson will be paid a total of

$2100 from the grant proposal for her work.

Anna Hebert is responsible for consulting the development and implementation of

the social studies content through the professional development opportunity. She will be a

leader in the content breakout sessions during the course of the summer and throughout

the follow-up opportunities in a total of seven of the eight sessions. For her work, Ms.

Hebert will be paid a total of $2100 from the grant proposal for her work.

Adam Phyall is responsible for the consulting of the technology used for the

conference and advising teachers regarding the use of personal technology and how

teachers can use it. He will be a leader in the dissemination of information throughout the

conference and help troubleshoot any technology problems that may occur. Mr. Phyall will be

present through seven sessions and be paid a total of $2100 from the grant proposal for his

work.

Laremy Wells is a member of the Newton County Tech Team and a consultant for

the professional development opportunity. His knowledge of personal technology and other

instructional technology resources in the classroom will provide key insight during the

breakout and follow-up sessions. His presence will be required in seven sessions of the

professional development and he will be paid a total of $2100.

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 Camiel Grant is a member of the Newton County Tech Team and a consultant for

the professional development opportunity. His knowledge of personal technology and other

instructional technology resources in the classroom will provide key insight during the

breakout and follow-up sessions. His presence will be required in seven sessions of the

professional development and he will be paid a total of $2100.

Stacey Wells is a member of the Newton County Tech Team and a consultant for the

professional development opportunity. His knowledge of personal technology and other

instructional technology resources in the classroom will provide key insight during the

breakout and follow-up sessions. Her presence will be required in all seven of the

professional development sessions and she will be paid a total of $2100

Participant Costs $10000 (TQ Funds)

20 middle school social studies teachers from Clarke County have been recruited for

this professional development opportunity. These 20 teachers will participate in five summer

workshop sessions followed by follow-up sessions throughout the school year. Each

participant will receive $500 apiece for their efforts and contributions.

Travel Costs $750 (TQ Funds)

Travel costs consist of the registration fee for five teachers and the project director to

the annual Georgia Council for the Social Studies Conference. The registration for each

individual is $125. Other costs associated with travel and substitute teachers will be covered

by the school.

Additional Costs $1215 (TQ Funds)

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 Additional costs incurred by the project consist of the need to feed the teachers on a

daily basis over the course of the summer. Not only are lunches needed for the participating

teachers, but for those working the professional development as well. All 20 teachers and

seven project members will receive a box lunch all five days over the summer. Each lunch is

purchased at a cost of $9 per day per meal. Only one meal will be provided per day. At a

cost of $9 per meal, a total of $1215 has been allocated for meals.

Evaluation Costs $4000 (TQ Funds)

Evaluation of the project will be done by Dr. Allison Jordan, the testing coordinator

and data analyst for Newton County Schools. She will not be a part of the professional

development sessions and will work independently of the rest of the staff in order to provide

objective qualitative and quantitative data information of the study. For her services, the

proposal has allocated $4000 to Dr. Jordan for her services.

Supplies $0 (TQ Funds)

There is no supply cost to the course as all technology needs for the conference will

be handled by the Clarke County School District. The county will provide access to laptops

and tablets while teachers will provide their own cell phones for the appropriate session.

Appendix C Project Team, Facilities, and Resources

Capacity/Expertise

Newton County Schools Systems has long been a promoted of instructional

technology in the classroom and its integrated use into lesson plans and curriculum plans.

Its mission has been to educate every child in order for each student to have the best

chance to succeed beyond the four walls of the classroom. With the shift in use of

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technology, that has meant a greater emphasis on the use of digital resources in unit plans.

With this emphasis has come an expertise known around the local area that has been

sought out by other school systems. The following is a list of individuals who comprise the

team that will design and implement this professional development opportunity.

Project Director: Jon Wilson

Mr. Wilson is a high school social studies teacher at Newton High School in

Covington, Georgia. As one of the leaders within the Newton High School social studies

department, Mr. Wilson has been one of the lead designers in student-centered technology

based social studies curriculum at Newton. Having earned a BA in history from the

University of Georgia, an MAT in secondary history education at Piedmont College, and an

EdS in instructional technology from the University of West Georgia, Mr. Wilson has a wealth

of background in the content area as well as instructional technology. Being certified in 6-12

social studies, Mr. Wilson has knowledge and background in education at the middle and

high school levels which offers the opportunity to oversee and direct this project.

Lead Facilitator: Melissa Jackson

Ms. Jackson is the instructional technology coordinator for Newton County Schools

and is responsible for the development of new instructional technology practices for the

county as well as continued learning for the countys teachers. Having been a social studies

teacher at the middle school level prior to earning her EdS in instructional technology

through Kennesaw State, Ms. Jackson is familiar with both the content and the resource and

practices that are being delivered through this professional development opportunity. She is

responsible for the facilitation of information throughout this project and working with Mr.

Wilson in the development of the curriculum for the workshops.

Content Consultant: Anna Hebert

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 Ms. Hebert is the social studies content instructional coach for Newton County

Schools and oversees the development of the county social studies teachers from grades 6-

12. Having been a social studies teacher at both the middle school and high school level,

Ms. Hebert provides a wealth of knowledge regarding the content and can relate to the

classroom environment that many of the teachers in this training face on a daily basis.

Having earned her EdS in social studies education, Ms. Hebert is an expert in her content

area. Additionally, she has worked in partnership with Ms. Jackson for the last two years in

developing social studies lesson plans that are student-centered, technology driven and led

the training of Newton County social studies teachers in the implementation of these plans.

Technology Consultant: Adam Phyall

Mr. Phyall is the technology coordinator for Newton County Schools. His

responsibilities within the county include overseeing the technology needs for all schools in

the county, drafting proposals for further technology integration, and troubleshooting the

many issues that arise as part of a growing school system. Mr. Phayll has five years

experience as a technology coordinator and is well respected throughout the county. In this

professional development opportunity, he will be present to help with any technology

concerns that may arise as well as help educate teachers during the breakout sessions on

new tools, tips, and troubleshooting procedures that they may need.

Facilities Coordinator: Callen Moore

Ms. Moore is the assistant public relations director for Clarke County Schools and is

acting as the liaison between the Newton County team and Clarke County Schools. She is

responsible for securing the necessary space in the board of education building and ensuring

that the necessary facility needs are met. Ms. Moore is well experienced in coordinating

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professional learning events, having spent the past five years in her current role and

orchestrating many events involving Clarke County and other educational outlets. Ms. Moore

graduated with her undergraduate degree in communications from Georgia College and

State University and just recently completed her Masters in communication and

administration through Valdosta State University.

Project Assistants: Newton County Technology Team

The Newton County Technology Team is a group of ten teachers from Newton County

from all school levels and content areas with vast knowledge and expertise in instructional

technology and various resources. Requirements to be on the team include a minimum of

five years in the classroom, a demonstrated knowledge and skill in using instructional

technology, and the passing of a strict application process. All members of the technology

team are required to participate in at least two professional developments per year and

attend one conference per school year.

Project Evaluator: Allison Jordan

Dr. Jordan is the testing coordinator for Newton County Schools. Having served in

this role for the better part of a decade, Dr. Jordan is an expert in gathering and analyzing

data to gauge the effectiveness of an assessment or research. Dr. Jordan earning her PhD in

assessment from the University of Georgia. During this project, she will oversee the

collection of data, both quantitative and qualitative, and its interpretation through analysis.

Her role will be vital to gauging the effectiveness of the professional development and her

expertise will allow for the refining of practices throughout the opportunity.

Facilities and Equipment

The Clarke County School District board of education office will be the location for the

summer workshop meetings as well as the two meetings that occur after the beginning of

the school year. Located in the board of education office is a large conference room which

30
will allow plenty of room for the whole group sessions, complete with projector and audio

capabilities and plenty of electrical receptacles for teachers to charge cell phones, laptops,

and tablets. In addition to the large conference room, several smaller meeting rooms are

available with ample electronic resources for small group breakout sessions.

In regards to technology, all laptops and tablets will be provided by the Clarke

County School District instructional technology department, as the county has plenty

available for the professional development from its supplies purchased through Title I funds.

All of the equipment will have the necessary programs and applications preloaded for use.

Teachers will use their personal cell phones during the workshop focusing on the use of cell

phones in the classroom.

Appendix D Data Collection Instrument

Workshop Participant Survey

1. In your own words, define what BYOD pedagogy means to you.

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2. On a scale of 1-5, with 1 being the least and 5 being the most, rate your comfort level

entering the workshop with allowing students to use personal technology in the classroom.

3. On a scale of 1-5, with 1 being the least and 5 being the most, rate your comfort level

leaving the workshop with allowing students to use personal technology in the classroom.

4. If there was a change in comfort level, what aspect of the workshops led to it? If there

was not a change, please indicate why and what could have been further done to help.

5. What resources did you gather from this experience and how will you incorporate them

into your classroom?

6. How will BYOD impact the way you structure your classroom and educational approach?

7. What could be done to improve this professional development?

Appendix D Data Collection Instrument Continued

Observation Questions

1. Which Georgia Performance Standards were the focus of your lesson?

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2. How did you incorporate technology into the lesson and what was your thought process?

3. How did you set-up the expectations for students in regards to using their own personal

technology in the classroom?

4. How would this lesson have been done in the past without the use of BYOD? Has BYOD

made the lesson more or less engaging and effective?

5. How has the use of BYOD changed the students perception of social studies and the

lesson?

6. Describe your comfort level using BYOD in your classroom. What do you see as its

strengths and what still makes you uneasy about the pedagogy?

7. What do you see as the next step in your classroom to using technology to increase

student engagement?

Reference List

Charles, S. A. (2012). Cell phones: Rule setting, rule-breaking, and relationships in the

classroom. American Secondary Education, 40(3), 4-16

Clarke County School District (2015). CCSD strategic plan. Retrieved from:

http://www.clarke.k12.ga.us/files/filesystem/CCSDStrategicPlan2015-2016.pdf

33
Donovan, L., Green, T., & Hartley, K. (2010). An examination of one-to-one computing in

the middle school: Does increased access bring about increased student

engagement. J. Educational Computing Research 42(4)

Engel, G., & Green, T. (2011). Cell phones in the classroom: Are we dialing up disaster?

TechTrends, 55(2), 39-45

Governors Office of Student Achievement (2015) Georgia school reports. Retrieved from:

https://schoolgrades.georgia.gov/school- search?f[0]=field_district

%3A41&f[1]=field_clusters%3A12

Gregg, S. M., Costley, K., Engleman, K., Gonzalez, D., Knutson, V., & Maroni, K. (2013).

Changing teachers, changing students: Exploring ipads and inquiry-based learning.

Research in the School, 20(2), 59-72

Lee, E. B. (2014). Facebook use and texting among African-American and Hispanic

teenagers: An implication for academic performance. Journal of Black

Studies, 45(2), 83-101

Mayall, H. J. (2008). Differences in gender based technology self-efficacy across academic

levels. J. Instructional Media, 35(4), 145-155

Skophammer, R., & Reed, P. A. (2014). Technological literacy courses in pre-service teacher

education. The Journal of Technology Studies, 68-80

Spires, H. A., Lee, J. K., Turner, K. A., & Johnson, J. (2008). Having our say: Middle grade

student perspective on school, technologies, and academic engagement. Journal of

Research on Technology in Education, 40(4), 497-515

Thomas, K., & Orthober, C. (2011). Using text-messaging in the secondary classroom.

American Secondary Education, 39(2), 55-76

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