Tyler ISD Awarded Funding for TARGET Grant

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), signed into law January 2002, focuses on closing achievement gaps among students by ensuring challenging curriculum, modern equipment, and well-trained teachers in every classroom. In Texas, the No Child Left Behind Act supports the TARGET (Technology Applications Readiness Grants for Empowering Texas) grants by providing funding for proven technology integration programs.

The Tyler Independent School District, in conjunction with Whitehouse ISD, the Stepping Stone School, East Texas Christian Academy, and Bishop T. K. Gorman Middle School along with the Discovery Science Place, Caldwell Zoo, the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife, and the University of Texas at Tyler, has been awarded approximately $900,000 for year one of a 3-year TARGET grant project. The Tyler ISD TARGET grant, the Lab-in-a-Bag project, was written and submitted by the TISD Department of Instructional Technology. This project builds on knowledge, equipment, curriculum, and training gained from Tyler ISD’s teachers.edu project, which was funded with $625,000 under the Technology Integration in Education (TIE) grant program. The TARGET project puts technology – literally -- into teachers’ and learners’ hands with array of hand-held technology devices to facilitate student achievement in math, science and communication skills at the 3rd – 8th grades.

With an emphasis on anywhere, anytime learning, the Lab-in-a-Bag project equips each participating teacher with a portable math, science, and technology/multimedia lab – literally -- in a bag. Special backpacks hold a wireless laptop computer, a digital microscope, scientific probes, calculators, a digital video camera and portable scanner. On campus, participating teachers will be equipped with a data projection device and additional technology equipment designed to help students communicate what they learn. The Lab-in-a-Bag project also provides intensive training for participating educators and gives an opportunity for preservice teachers at the University of Texas at Tyler to participate in the project. In this way, developing teachers work hand-in-hand in an authentic teaching and learning environment with experienced educators.

During the first funded year of the Lab-in-a-Bag project, selected 3rd and 4th grade teachers from participating schools receive technology training in the use of scientific probes, calculators, digital cameras, scanners and wireless laptop computers. Additionally, these teachers and a set of selected preservice teachers from UT Tyler learn to develop curriculum that addresses the state science, math, language arts and technology applications TEKS. Following intensive training, participants develop and deliver a two-week summer school/technology camp for third and fourth grade students that focuses on the study of animals at the Caldwell Zoo in Tyler. Students will collect and analyze data using the hand-held devices and develop multimedia projects to share what they learn. Following their participation in the Lab-in-a-Bag project, participating teachers serve as mentors, sharing new instructional knowledge and technology skills with colleagues at their campuses.

In the second funded year of the Lab-in-a-Bag project, selected 5th and 6th grade educators from the participating schools and preservice teachers, receive a similar set of technology tools and professional development. Following their training, these teachers develop and deliver a two-week summer school/technology camp program for the upper elementary and beginning middle school grades centered around a study of the ecosystem in and around Tyler in coordination with Camp Tyler and the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife. Hand-held probes and microscopes will be used to collect water, soil and plant samples. Digital cameras, scanners, and computers will be used as students analyze data and prepare reports of their findings. Teachers engaged in the second funded year of the project continue as mentors at their campuses, sharing new knowledge, equipment, and instructional skills with fellow educators.

In the third and final funded year of the project, selected 7th and 8th grade faculty members from participating campuses receive equipment and training to develop and deliver a two-week summer school/technology camp program that focuses on physical health among students, educators, and members of the Tyler community.

The particular math, science and communication focus for each year of the three-year project has been carefully designed to leverage current equipment and programs in the schools. In the second year, for example, the Lab-in-a-Bag project helps 5th and 6th grade teachers and learners study the East Texas ecosystem in depth. This supports current work with Camp Tyler and other resources.

Participation in the Lab-in-a-Bag project for the TARGET grant provides improved teaching and learning across the district. Benefits to the Tyler ISD and the community include:

• Highly trained faculty

• Strengthened partnership with Whitehouse ISD, area private schools, and UT Tyler

• Strengthened partnership with the Caldwell Foundation

• Strengthened partnership with the Discovery Science Place

• Strengthened partnership with the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife

• Challenging science, math, language arts curriculum and technology applications that

addresses all areas of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)

• State-of-the-art multimedia computers, scanners, digital cameras, and printers

• Campus-wide sets of hand-held math and science technology equipment

For additional information regarding the No Child Left Behind Act or the TARGET funding opportunity, visit the Texas Education Agency website at: http://www.tea.state.tx.us/technology/target/index.html.