jpaul88.weebly.comjpaul88.weebly.com/uploads/5/6/7/1/56718829/j_paul_cap… · Web viewImpact of Authenticity and Technology on Completion, Engagement, and Growth. Joseph Paul

IMPACT OF AUTHENTICITY & TECHNOLOGY ON COMPLETION, EGAGEMENT, & GROWTH 1

Impact of Authenticity and Technology on Completion, Engagement, and Growth

Joseph Paul

Kennesaw State University

April 2016

Dr. Anissa Vega

Fall 2015


Capstone Project Proposal

The setting for this capstone project is Mill Creek High School in Hoschton, Georgia.

Mill Creek High School opened in 2004 to relieve the swelling populations of North Gwinnett

High School and Dacula High School. The school sits just off of Interstate 85 in northern

Gwinnett County in an affluent suburban area, pulling many students from the prominent

Hamilton Mill community. Mill Creek opened with a student population of 2,500, and has been

around 4,000 students for the last few years. The most recent state supported data from the 2014-

2015 school year reports that Mill Creek’s current student population is 4,000 students. The

ethnic make-up is 58% white, 18% black, 12% Hispanic, 8% Asian, and 4% multi-racial. Other

important statistics include 2% of the student population being classified as Limited English

Proficient, 24% Eligible for Free/Reduced Meals, and 9.8% Students with Disability. In the

2014-15 school year, Mill Creek had an 88.7% graduation rate (gaawards.gosa.ga.gov). Finally

in 2015, students at Mill Creek scored higher than the state average on every Georgia Milestone.

Students scored higher than the district average, as well, on all tests except Algebra I

(schooldigger.com). Mr. Jason Lane is the second principal in the history of the school. He is

aided by 13 assistant principals. There is a department head for each department, and individual

content areas are broken into course teams for every subject with their own course team leaders.

Mill Creek has transitioned to eClass, which is a version of D2L, as the default learning

management system for the school. A learning management system is an all-encompassing

instructional tool that allows teachers to deliver content, facilitate discussion, administer

assessments, and record grades, and allows students to interact with their instructor and each

other, turn in assignments, and keep up with grades. Mill Creek is also a Google School, and

many teachers use Google Classroom in conjunction with eClass. Last year, the district adopted a


bring-your-own-device initiative to increase technology use in the classroom. As a result of

BYOD and eClass, a major focus has been placed on using technology to increase student

engagement. Administrator’s hope that using eClass as a platform for Web 2.0 tools and

authentic learning opportunities will lead to increased student engagement and achievement.

EClass aids to this end by allowing students to complete some authentic tasks such as discussios

within the system itself, and also allows students to share their products and opinions with their

classmates. It is the vision of the school to provide more contextual learning opportunities.

Teachers are encouraged to use eClass as both the starting and ending point for assignments

because it allows students to share any Web 2.0 product they might create using a direct link or

embed code.

While technology is a focus at the school, most teachers are not using the tools available

to the fullest extent. Authenticity in instruction and assignments is lacking in the social studies

classroom. For the purpose of this project, authentic learning is defined as any learning

opportunity where either the content or the product has a real world application. Students are

able to see the relevance of their learning to their daily lives or futures either in the content itself,

the skills they are developing through the learning task, or both. This project will focus on the

co-taught World History setting with 10th grade students. These students have a hard time doing

assigned work when the relevance of the work is unclear, and this is reflected in the grades of

many students in the classroom. A relationship between classwork and homework completion

and overall grades is apparent, as many of the students who do not do their work also struggle on

assessments. By using technology to offer students the opportunity to complete authentic and

engaging assignments in and out of the classroom, researchers hope to increase engagement and


completion, and predict this will lead to a fuller understanding of the content and higher overall

grades.

Statement of Problem, Need and Rationale

This intervention was prompted by the need to engage students both in and out of the co-

taught social studies classroom, especially on classwork assignments. There are 182 students

currently enrolled in the co-taught college prep setting. Only 31% of these students have an A

classwork/homework average, B or better summative average, and B or better overall average. In

contrast to these successful students, about 30% of the 182 students have a C or worse

classwork/homework average and a failing summative assessment average, and these same

students are failing the class. A simple comparison suggests a relationship between high

classwork grade averages and higher summative assessment averages at Mill Creek High School.

The 30% of failing students are the target group for this project, though all students should

benefit from the integration of authentic learning opportunities in the co-taught college prep

World History classroom.

A major percentage of all students’ grades are made up of classwork and homework

assignments. At Mill Creek, classwork and homework constitutes 35% of a student’s overall

class average in the World History subject area, and at least half of the assignments in this

category are homework assignments. As shown by Fan, Maltese, and Tai (2012) students who

spend 61-120 minutes studying and doing work outside of class have higher grades than students

who do not complete any homework at all. While the study was centered on math and science

classes, the results perpetuate the notion that students who spend time on homework and study

outside of school tend to do better in school. The time constraints of Mill Creek’s schedule

necessitate that students complete some work outside of class, but getting students to complete


this work is a constant struggle in the co-taught class. The teachers involved in this project hope

that an increase in authenticity facilitated by technology will help to fix the problem of work

completion.

Discussions with other teachers, administrators, students, and parents have made it

apparent that the curriculum in world history as a whole is lacking in relevance and authenticity,

most often citing a lack of connections across continents and time periods in the standards. The

burden of these connections falls entirely upon the teacher. Many stakeholders also point out that

social studies classes are notorious for long lectures and little else. While this perception is not

the reality of all World History classes at Mill Creek, it does impact student attitudes going into

the class. The resources are available to all teachers to be successful in this endeavor, but full

implementation has yet to be achieved. These resources include laptop carts and computer labs,

eClass, the students’ own devices, helpful and encouraging administrators and technology

professionals, and a host of Web 2.0 tools. The commentary of stakeholders is indicative of the

perception and attitudes regarding engagement and authenticity in social studies, but the

concerns of teachers involved in this project extend to student achievement, as well. Chang,

Hwang, and Sung (2015) found that students who learned using technology to complete

contextual tasks had a mean post-test score that was five points higher than students doing

conventional learning tasks. In their mixed methods research study, researchers used a three-

stage experimental model, in which both groups completed a pre-test and pre-questionnaire, were

introduced to the tools and learning tasks and conducted web-quest activities, and completed

post-tests and a post-questionnaire (Sung, Hwang, & Chang, 2015, p. 302). The results of their

study support the notion that authentic learning opportunities increase student engagement and

achievement. This capstone project makes use of a similar model to measure student engagement


as well as work completion, and the teachers involved hope to show the impact of authentic

learning with technology.

Many of the skills associated with the social studies classroom are shared with the

language arts curriculum, and the standards-based assessments administered by outside forces

tend to be focused on minute details rather than broad themes and concepts. Because of this,

teachers are often caught up in the names, dates, and events of history and do not focus on the

impact and relevance of history. Admittedly, it can be difficult and sometimes seem forced to

connect some aspects of history to the present day in a way that connects meaningfully to

students’ everyday lives. 21st Century skills have become a focus in some social studies

classrooms, a strategy that will be implemented in this capstone project. Hillis and Calderhead

(2009) sought to show the impact of authentic learning activities on student engagement in

history classes. The topics of the study were related to history of the local area (Scotland), and

multimedia to deliver information and assess student learning. As a result of the study, students

reported increased skills in searching a database, using computers, working alone, using maps,

working in groups, looking for information, writing, and reading (Hillis, Calderhead, 2015). The

inherent authenticity in the effective use of technology can bring relevance to any topic. This

capstone project seeks to build on the studies of Hillis and Calderhead to explore the impact of

authentic, technology-driven learning opportunities on engagement as well as work completion

and student academic growth.

Teachers are always searching for ways to bolster student achievement and determine the

effectiveness of their teaching, and that is no different at Mill Creek. Initiatives throughout the

school have sought to increase student achievement by encouraging student engagement. As

Hillis and Calderhead showed increased engagement using technology to build an authentic


learning environment, Yaghmour (2016) conducted a study on the effectiveness of blended

teaching strategies on student test scores. This study focused on blended teaching strategies

versus traditional teaching methods in elementary math classes. As with other studies, though

this was focused on another subject area, the idea that technology can make learning more

authentic and engaging and lead to increased student success resonates across content areas. This

study followed 97 third grade students divided into two groups; one for traditional teaching

strategies and the other for blended teaching strategies. The effects of the study were measured

using an achievement test built specifically for the study. Yaghmour found that students in the

experimental group showed significantly higher gains than those in the control group. The mean

score of students in the experimental group increased from 10.94 to 16.66 on the achievement

test, while the control group saw a smaller increase from 10.18 to 12.68 (Yaghmour, 2016, p.

70). Yaghmour also noted that traditional teaching methods led to decreased motivation for some

students. Researchers for this capstone project hope to show similar results between pre- and

post-tests.

Objectives & Deliverables

Based on research and experience, authentic learning experiences facilitated by

technology lead to increased student engagement and achievement. Technology is an important

part of both the Gwinnett County Public Schools and the Mill Creek High School vision, and the

tools to achieve success for this endeavor have been provided to teachers. The focus of this

capstone is increased student engagement, completion of class assignments, and increased

student growth in the social studies classroom using technology to facilitate authentic learning

experiences. The objectives are as follows:


Improve student attitudes toward social studies through the use of technology to

facilitate authentic learning experiences in experimental units as compared to

traditional units without a technology focus.

Increase work completion using technology to facilitate authentic learning

experiences in experimental units as compared to traditional units without a

technology focus.

Increase student growth from pre- to post-assessments through the use of

technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences in experimental units as

compared to traditional units without a technology focus.

The deliverables needed to successfully implement and measure this capstone project are

as follows:

Pre-survey using Google Forms to measure student attitudes toward classwork in

the social studies classroom at the beginning of the year.

Student engagement surveys to measure student attitude after every unit.

Lesson plans including authentic learning experiences facilitated by technology in

the social studies classroom using eClass as the digital learning environment.

Traditional lesson plans including authentic learning experiences not facilitated

by technology.

Pre- and post-assessments to measure student growth.

PSC Standards

The ideas, planning, and implementation of this Capstone project will cover Standard 2

from the Georgia PSC/ISTE Instructional Technology section. As it relates to Standard 2:

Teaching and Learning, this project will require researchers to use technology daily to facilitate


authentic learning opportunities, and to work closely with other teachers in the course team to

create lessons that can be implemented in other classrooms.

The first objective of this capstone, to increase student engagement using technology to

facilitate authentic learning, directly relates to Standards 2.3, 2.4, and 2.8. Standard 2.3:

Authentic Learning serves as the backbone for the entire project, as researchers seek to prove the

effectiveness of using digital tools to engage students in authentic learning opportunities. The

activities in which students will participate will focus on application of knowledge and higher

order thinking; hence Standard 2.4 will be explored in the project, as well. Finally, Standard 2.8:

Data Analysis will be seen through this objective as researchers use student perception surveys to

assess engagement.

The second objective of the project, to increase work completion using technology to

facilitate authentic learning experiences, will exemplify Standards 2.3and 2.8. Standard 2.3 will

be addressed as researchers seek to increase student work completion by giving students

authentic learning tasks. Standard 2.8: Data Analysis will be shown as researchers compare data

between experimental and traditional groups on each unit, seeing which was more likely to

complete and submit their work.

The third objective of this project, to show an increase in student growth on units using

technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences, will demonstrate understanding of

Standards 2.8. Standard 2.8: Data Analysis will be shown through this objective as researchers

analyze student growth in pre- and post-tests and compare results from the experimental group to

those of the traditional group.

Table 1Project Objectives and Standards AlignmentProject Objective Standards Alignment


Improve student attitudes toward social studies through the use of technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences in experimental units as compared to traditional units without a technology focus.

2.3 Authentic Learning Candidates model and facilitate the use of digital tools and resources to engage students in authentic learning experiences. (PSC 2.3/ISTE 2c)2.4 Higher Order Thinking Skills Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of digital tools and resources to support and enhance higher order thinking skills; processes; and mental habits of mind. (PSC 2.4/ISTE 2d)2.8 Data Analysis Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of digital tools and resources to systematically collect and analyze student achievement data, interpret results, communicate findings, and implement appropriate interventions to improve instructional practice and maximize student learning. (PSC 2.8/ISTE 2h)

Increase work completion using technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences in experimental units as compared to traditional units without a technology focus.

2.3 Authentic Learning Candidates model and facilitate the use of digital tools and resources to engage students in authentic learning experiences. (PSC 2.3/ISTE 2c)2.8 Data Analysis Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of digital tools and resources to systematically collect and analyze student achievement data, interpret results, communicate findings, and implement appropriate interventions to improve instructional practice and maximize student learning. (PSC 2.8/ISTE 2h)

Increase student growth from pre- to post-assessments through the use of technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences in experimental units as compared to traditional units without a technology focus.

2.8 Data Analysis Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of digital tools and resources to systematically collect and analyze student achievement data, interpret results, communicate findings, and implement appropriate interventions to improve instructional practice and maximize student learning. (PSC 2.8/ISTE 2h)

Project Description

This capstone project will measure the impact of authentic learning activities facilitated

by technology on student engagement and completion of assignments as compared to


assignments without a technology focus. The project will measure completion, engagement, and

growth. Researchers will use eClass as the digital learning environment for the assignments. This

platform will be used to create assignments that are contextually authentic. Rather than having

experimental and traditional groups of students, the units of the year will be classified as

experimental or traditional. For the purpose of this project, a unit is defined as a chapter or group

of chapters that address certain standards from the Gwinnett County Academic Knowledge and

Skills. The end of a unit is marked by a summative assessment. Each unit of study will have an

experimental and traditional version, and student groups will rotate into the experimental unit.

Students will be divided by class. Group A will consist of three co-taught World History classes,

and Group B will consist of two co-taught World History classes. As an example, Group A

would participate in the experimental unit for Unit 2, which will be the first unit of comparison,

while Group B would participate in the traditional version of the same unit. On Unit 3 the groups

would switch, with Group A participating in traditional and Group B participating in

experimental.

First Project Activity

The first activity if this project will be the creation and planning of the lessons and

deliverables. This will require collaboration among the world history course team members.

Researchers will need to create a pre-survey to assess student perception of their previous

learning experiences in the social studies classroom. This data will serve as the baseline for this

aspect of the project. Team members will then need to agree upon effective assessment

strategies, specifically the questioning technique of the assessments. Researchers will then need

to design lessons for the experimental group, and be sure that all participating team members are

capable of implementing the lesson. Finally, the team must create unit assessment surveys to


guide creation and implementation of experimental lesson plans throughout the course of the

year.

Second Project Activity

The second part of this project will be the implementation of the lessons and evaluation

of results. At the start of the 2016-2017 school year, students will participate in a perception

survey directly related to social studies. This survey will serve two purposes for researchers.

First, it will give researchers insight into students’ prior experiences in social studies classes.

Researchers will know what types of lessons have resonated with students in the past, and will

have information to guide later activities. The surveys will also serve as a diagnostic of

technology access, interest, and proficiency that will help researchers determine the kinds of

training students will need as a whole, and give some idea as to which students may need extra

support with technology.

Classes will then proceed on the pacing guide set by Gwinnett County Public Schools,

with all participating classes proceeding to an experimental first unit, which will serve as a

training ground for the rest of the year. Students will complete a pre-assessment on the content of

the unit to establish their baseline of knowledge and allow researchers to show student growth at

the end of the unit. Students will then learn through experience, as teachers guide them in how to

use eClass effectively. Teachers will also show students Web 2.0 tools and give them a chance to

experiment with a few activities throughout the unit. To assess the effectiveness of the unit,

students will complete the post-assessment and a post-survey. The assessment will show growth

of students compared to the pre-assessment. The post-survey will give students an opportunity to


comment on their engagement during the unit, and will allow students to share their thoughts on

the structure and activities.

Subsequent experimental units will follow a similar structure to the first unit. For the sake

of comparison, classes will be divided into two groups and will rotate from experimental to

traditional units for the rest of the year. The experimental group in each unit will be focused on

using technology to provide an authentic and transformational learning experience. The goal of

researchers will be to offer students the opportunity to complete classwork that would not be

possible without the technology at hand.

The traditional group will also participate in authentic learning experiences, but theirs

will not involve new and innovative technology. They will have access to online resources and

will likely use basic functions of eClass, such as the dropbox feature, as is the expectation of

Gwinnett County Public Schools. Students in the traditional group in each unit will also

complete pre- and post-assessments to measure growth. These students will also complete the

post-surveys to share their thoughts on engagement during the unit.

Table 2Project Activities AlignmentProject Item/Activity Project Objectives DeliverableCreate pre-survey for student perception and technology access, interest, and proficiency

Increase student engagement on class and homework assignments using technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences.

Pre-survey

Create module surveys to measure student engagement

Increase student engagement on class and homework assignments using

Module survey


technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences.

Create pre- and post-assessments for each unit

Show an increase in student growth using technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences.

Pre- and post-assessment

Create lessons Increase work completion using technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences.

Lessons/Activities

Implement lesson plans Increase student engagement on class and homework assignments using technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences.

Lessons/Activities, pre- and post-assessments, pre-survey, module surveys

Show an increase in student growth using technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences.

Increase work completion using technology to facilitate authentic learning experiences.

Evaluation Plan


The effectiveness of the experimental units will be measured in a variety of ways.

Student attitudes will be measured using student perception surveys. These assessments will also

be implemented in the traditional units. Surveys will be created using Google Forms and

embedded into the eClass learning management system class page to provide easy access, and

students will be given class time to complete the assessment. Researchers will keep record of the

percentage of assignments completed to measure the impact of authenticity on work completion.

This will be recorded using the gradebook, and will be implemented for both groups. Finally,

pre- and post-assessments will be used to measure student growth in both traditional and

experimental groups. The pre-assessment will be created using the eClass assessment tool, and

the post-assessment will be the course team common assessment. Teachers will compare data

from the traditional and experimental units.

Project Timeline

This capstone project will take place during the 2016-2017 academic school year. The

planning phase of the project would begin in July 2016, when researchers would begin planning

the experimental units for units one and two and creating deliverables for the year. In August,

researchers will begin implementation of lessons and deliverables, and will plan ahead to units

three and four. Researchers will analyze student growth data and compare experimental and

traditional groups. Student module surveys will also be assessed at this time to guide later plans.

Units three and four will be implemented in September, at which point researchers will begin

planning units five and six. Researchers will again analyze data from the previous units. This

pattern will continue for the rest of the academic school year, as researchers plan, implement,

and assess unit plans and deliverables, and then compare experimental and traditional unit data

continuously.


Table 1. Project TimelineMonth Project Item/Activity, or Evaluation Item HoursJuly Meet with co-teacher and course team to discuss

vision3

Create perception survey/technology diagnostic 1

Create Units 1 and 2 lesson plans 10

Create Units 1 and 2 pre- and post-assessments and survey

2

August Implement and analyze perception survey/technology diagnostic

6

Implement Unit 1 pre-assessment 2.5

Implement Unit 1 lessons 21

Implement Unit 1 post-assessment and module survey

5

Analyze Unit 1 data 2




5




2

September Implement Unit 3 pre-assessment 2.5



5





5





2

October Implement Unit 5 pre-assessment 2.5



5





5




2

November Implement Unit 7 pre-assessment 2.5



5





5




2

December Implement Unit 9 pre-assessment 2.5



5





2

January Implement Unit 10 pre-assessment 2.5



5





5




2

February Implement Unit 12 pre-assessment 2.5



5





5




2

March Implement Unit 14 pre-assessment 2.5



5





2

April Implement Unit 15 pre-assessment 2.5



5





5


May Implement Unit 17 pre-assessment 2.5



5



Resources

eClass learning management system (Desire 2 Learn)

Google Tools for Education

Google Sites

Windows Movie Maker

Screencast-O-Matic

Audacity

Laptop carts and computer labs

Microsoft Office Suite

Headphones


References

Hillis, P., & Calderhead, D. (2009). Helping to keep History Relevant: Multimedia and Authentic Learning. Journal of Interactive Media in Education JIME, 2009(1), 4.Retrieved March 28,2016, from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.kennesaw.edu

Maltese, A. V., Tai, R. H., & Fan, X. (2012). When is Homework Worth the Time? Evaluatingthe Association Between Homework and Achievement in High School Science and Math.The High School Journal, 96(1), 52-72. Retrieved from https://login.proxy.kennesaw.edu

Oracle Business Intelligence. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2016, from

https://gaawards.gosa.ga.gov/analytics/saw.dll?dashboard

Mill Creek High School. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2016, fromhttp://www.schooldigger.com/go/GA/schools/0255003376/school.aspx

Sung, H. Y., Hwang, G. J., & Chang, H. S. (2015). An Integrated Contextual and Web-baseIssue Quest Approach to Improving Students’ Learning Achievements, Attitudes andCritical Thinking. Educational Technology & Society, 18 (4), 299–311. Retrieved March28, 2016 from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.kennesaw.edu

Yaghmour, K. S. (2016). Effectiveness of Blended Teaching Strategy on the Achievement ofThird Grade Students in Mathematics. Journal of Education and Practice, 7(5), 65-73.Retrieved March 28, 2016, fromhttp://iiste.org/Journals/index.php/JEP/article/view/28765

https://gaawards.gosa.ga.gov/analytics/saw.dll?dashboard

https://login.proxy.kennesaw.edu/


Appendix A




Appendix B



Appendix C


Appendix D

Learning Task: Vocabulary definitions

Traditional Experimental

Students separated into pairs and assigned a

vocabulary term.

Each pair responsible for creating a visual

representation, which would most likely be a

picture, that would fully explain the who, what,

where, when, and why it’s important for each

term.

The products would be stuck on the Word Wall

for students to reference throughout the unit

and to use on their unit study guide.

Students separated into pairs and assigned a

vocabulary term.

Each pair responsible for creating a product

using Web 2.0 that would fully explain the

who, what, where, when, and why it’s

important for each term.

The products would be embedded into an

eClass Discussion with the title of each thread

being the vocabulary term. Students would be

able to reference this information for the rest of

the year to aid in studying for unit tests,

midterm, and the final exam.

Documents

jpaul88.weebly.comjpaul88.weebly.com/uploads/5/6/7/1/56718829/j_paul_cap… · Web viewImpact of Authenticity and Technology on Completion, Engagement, and Growth. Joseph Paul