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MEDFORD SCHOOLS $1.74 million English curriculum includes Chromebooks Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Follow @@teresathomas_MT MailTribune.com Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Follow @@teresathomas_MT Posted May. 4, 2016 @ 12:01 am Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Follow @@teresathomas_MT Posted May. 4, 2016 @ 12:01 am --> By the numbers Costs of the new English Language Arts curriculum in the Medford School District: Curriculum: $724,336 Supplemental phonics curriculum: $31,075 Chromeb... » Read more X By the numbers Costs of the new English Language Arts curriculum in the Medford School District: Curriculum: $724,336 Supplemental phonics curriculum: $31,075 Chromebooks: $816,500 Carts to store, charge the devices: $143,000 Shipping: $25,657 Total: $1,740,568 » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> A new, digital-based English Language Arts curriculum for elementary students in Medford schools will cost the district $1.74 million and include 3,266 Google Chromebooks to implement it. The curriculum, approved last week by the Medford School Board, is about $198,000 more than the district had budgeted for the ELA adoption. The budget committee during Monday’s meeting made changes to the proposed budget before approving it. Changes included transferring $198,000 from a special revenue fund contingency to cover the additional costs of the curriculum. The district adopts new curriculum every seven years and began the process of evaluating the state-approved ELA curriculum about two years ago, said Jeanne Grazioli, the district’s director of elementary student achievement. A team of about 44 elementary teachers, principals and administrators reviewed material, chose their favorites and, finally, piloted lessons before making their curriculum recommendation to the school board at the March 28 meeting. Of the three options presented to board members, the adoption team recommended option 2, which cost about $1.54 million and included about 2,594 Chromebooks — enough for every sixth-grade student and a Chromebook cart with 36 devices to be shared by three classrooms in the lower grades. Nonetheless, the school board unanimously approved the more expensive option 3 with more Chromebooks. Board chairman Jeff Thomas, who made the motion for purchasing option 3, said teachers had made it clear during a work session that “to get the optimum value out of the curriculum, there was going to have to be more of an investment in technology.” The additional Chromebooks, he explained, means a Chromebook cart will have to be shared by only two classrooms instead of three. “If teachers say, ‘We need this technology to optimize learning in the classroom,’ then to me it was a no-brainer,” he said. The district aspires to have enough Chromebooks for every student but, for now, this is what it can afford, he said. Currently, the elementary schools districtwide average about one Chromebook cart for every six classrooms, Grazioli said. The Chromebooks are not for kindergartners and first-graders, who are just learning to type on a keyboard and operate a computer. “We felt developmentally, second-grade and older would be a more appropriate age for the technology,” Grazioli said. The new curriculum — Journeys by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for kindergarten through fifth-grade students and Collections by the same publisher for sixth-grade students — is aligned with Common Core state standards. And print and digital editions will be available for second– through sixth-grade students, Grazioli said. (Collections also is used by seventh- through 12th-grade students.) With the Chromebooks, students in second grade and higher will be able to do writing exercises online, read lessons online, watch videos and access other multimedia enhancements, she said. Besides the digital components, the curriculum features a larger selection of informational, nonfiction text; an engaging selection of stories for kids; and more text-dependent, higher-order comprehension questions, Grazioli said. Cindy Woodard, a fifth-grade teacher at Oak Grove Elementary, was one of the members of the team to pilot the new curriculum. “We narrowed it down to two, and several teachers tested it,” Woodard said. “I originally liked another better, but after testing this one, I changed my mind. “I tell you it was so exciting to see the engagement in my class as they did a reading and writing assignment this way,” she said. “They were so engrossed.” The curriculum, she explained, prepares students for the annual Smarter Balanced assessments by requiring them to find evidence in their reading to prove their written answer. The digital assessments provide immediate feedback to the teachers, making it easier for teachers to individualize instruction accordingly. “Within minutes, I could see trends, and I could go back and teach them that piece,” she said. The teachers will train the students how to handle the devices with care and will even require that they sign a Chromebook contract, saying they’ll carry it with two hands, she said. “In order to have 21st century learners, we need to have 21st century technology in their hands,” she said. The school district will receive technology support from the Southern Oregon Education Service District to get the Chromebooks set up. The approved budget includes money earmarked for Chromebook replacements. Reach education reporter Teresa Thomas at 541-776-4497 or [email protected] . Follow her at www.twitter.com/teresathomas_mt . Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Follow @@teresathomas_MT MailTribune.com Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Follow @@teresathomas_MT Posted May. 4, 2016 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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