TECHNOLOGY MINI-GRANT PROPOSAL

Name of Applicant: Mr. Krofton Montgomery

Administrator’s Name: Mr. Scott Justus

District/School: West Hall High School/ Hall County Schools

District/School Address: 5500 McEver Road Oakwood, GA 30566

Applicant’s E-mail: Krofton.montgomery@hallco.org

Date: 4/16/2018 Total Cost of Project: $1430.00

Title of Project: Title I Purchase of Near Pod Virtual Reality Goggles

I. Why is this project important (describe the need)?

The vision for West Hall High School is as follows:

…Developing lifelong learners for a global society. From this mission statement we are
also a diverse learning environment where students are supported.
Students will be intentional and authentic in their approach to learning.

West Hall High School is currently a Title I school, which means we have a significant
percentage of students who are economically disadvantaged. Research shows that this
demographic of students have issues with equitable access to technology. My classes
presently are very diverse and include many different students from many socioeconomic
backgrounds. I have ELL students in my World History class. One large need for these
students is technology that enhances and encourages participation. My classroom is
equipped with Nearpod as a technology tool that the district has purchased for every educator
in Hall County. With all the technology that is available for student usage there is a need for
further enhancement of technology to engage and make work authentic. This grant is written
to propose the purchase of Nearpod virtual reality goggles. The Learning commons at the
school currently has 3 pairs of these goggles for students. When I take my class to the
learning commons or in my own room we don’t have enough VR rigs for students to all be
engaged at the same time. With the purchase of more of these goggles it will bring more
virtual reality characteristics from already used materials into a visual and grab the student’s
attention. These goggles are compatible with pre-existing Nearpod software and any google
virtual reality fieldtrips as well. The ability of these technology tools to be multidimensional
is important in the need for their usage.

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 Virtual Reality goggles has been shown through research to increase student’s attentiveness
and motivation for learning. “Virtual reality will allow us to create any environment for
simulated interactions” ( Heick, 2018). This statement defines what education is striving to
be, which hands on application is the goal.

II. What would you like to accomplish (describe the unit or lesson and list instructional
objectives)?
The accomplishment would be to allow students to have the technology necessary for in class
assignments to go above and beyond the normal classroom. Currently students have
technology, but are lacking the proper tools to fully immerse themselves into their
assignments fully. To meet the full extent of ISTE standards and the PSC standards listed
students need to be fully immersed into the content and apply it. As students get older they
find it hard to ask questions in classroom settings ( Molin-Yron). This shows the need for
what can be accomplished with these tools. The technology integration complex shows the
need for adaption and infusion. Low performing students have the ability to become engaged
and in control of their education.

III. How will you complete the work?

A. Describe how the instructional objectives will be met.

If awarded, West Hall will apply the funding towards Nearpod Virtual Reality Goggles. Being able to
meet diversity needs, socioeconomic gaps, equitable access, and ISTE standards are important. The
virtual reality goggles allow for students to be able to visit anywhere at any moment. For example
Nearpod allows teachers to implement formative assessments into their daily notes and get instant
feedback. On top of this they can also enrich, enhance, and engage students by allowing them to use the
tools to visit anywhere at any time. The virtual reality rigs will be utilized to allow students to have
access to have technology tools available to them. Being able to meet the TIM technology integration
matrix aspects of infusion and adaptation are instructional objectives that align with the schools SIP and
the takes us to steps 4 and 5 on the LoTi framework (LoTi, 2018).

B. Describe the time involved (project length including amount of time each day/week).

This technology tool will be used daily each day of the week for multiple hours during
the day. My classes average 21 students per class. Classes will use the Nearpod goggles

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 to enhance and enrich lessons from Nearpod and other aspects of education. The paln is
for the tool to reach 250 students through the first six months of their inception. This
includes lower socioeconomic and female students. Students’ data will be tracked when
using these tools by checking out the tool with google doc sign out. By years end we are
looking at 500 uses, and after two years around 1000 uses.

C. Describe the people involved (grade level/subject & # of students, teachers and/or staff).

Primarily 9-12 grade students in the areas of social studies and other content areas will
use this technology. The technology will serve all my students and different ELL students
daily. The Spartan News Network school news will announce their availability as well as
the principals newsletter called Spartan side notes.

D. Describe the materials needed for the project.

The only materials requested for this particular project are 10 Nearpod Virtual Reality
goggles. With the rig any smart phone can be used to administer the virtual aspects with the
preexisting program.

IV. What is the timeline for assessing accomplishments and objectives (describe program evaluation
procedure)?

Accomplishments attributed to this technology grant request will start to be assessed

within the first month of receiving the requested hardware. Teachers need time to
implement their units and add in the higher level thinking skills associated with the
devices. Assessment will continue throughout the school year. After one year of using the
VR rigs data can be analyzed to see the usage and engagement from students. Some of
the assessment will come from the teachers themselves, and students input and feedback.

V. How will the students be assessed (Include how student progress will be assessed and reported to
students, parents, teachers, and others)?

Examples of assessment types will be student work samples, journals, visuals, and
technology related projects, rubrics, and portfolios. There is a huge benefit to engage
students with authentic learning. The benefits of integrating technology components into
school plans, and this will be assessed by measuring the change in student engagement
and motivation. Participation will be tracked through the learning commons on usage by
classrooms and students. Analyzing this data will allow the original goal to be reached.

VI. What is the proposed budget? Include information on the following:

A. Materials/supplies
Virtual Reality goggles (Nearpod)

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 B. Equipment
10- NearPod Reality Goggles
C. Total Cost of Proposed Project
$1,430
D. Additional Funding Sources
None

References
Heick, Terry Retrieved 6 May, 2018 from
https://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/what-is-virtual-reality/
Why Virtual Reality Is So Important For Education

LoTi Framework. Retrieved 6 May 2018 from

https://loticonnection.cachefly.net/global_documents/LoTi_Framework_Sniff_Test.pdf

Morlin, Yron, Sophie Retrieved 6 May, 2018

https://www.cnn.com/2017/09/18/health/virtual-reality-schools/index.html

Technology Integration Matrix. Retrieved 6 May 2018 from https://fcit.usf.edu/matrix/matrix/

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