 |
| Mr. Franklin |
Hello Parents of Franklin High School,
My name is Mr. Chapman, and I am a math teacher at Franklin High and a member of our PTA. At some point or another I will probably have your child as a student during their time at Franklin High. I am reaching out to you for help in fundraising to bring much needed technology into our classrooms. I do not expect any monetary donations from you. Your time, perhaps just an hour or two a month, reaching out to local businesses and community sponsors, and asking them for donations is all we need here at Franklin High. As a teacher at Franklin High, where many of our classrooms are still equipped with chalk boards, slide projectors, and over-head projectors, I feel your involvement to update our classrooms for the 21st century student is critical.
 |
| Model of Franklin's House Created by Students |
The technology I am proposing is specifically designed to enhance student learning by making our public high school more interactive. Students will not have free use on computers. Students will learn how to respect technology for educational purposes, and real life applications. Students will be holistically brought into an environment that engages them beyond text books and chalk board lectures. Students will find the practical and inspiring uses of technology for things like going to college, finding employment, and creating presentations. Students, with a technologically enhanced classroom, will be receiving a state of the art education that prepares them for the professional adult environment we are a part of today.
Two fundamental technologies necessary for our 21st century digital media high school math class are: the Smart Board 885ix, and 3D Casio Prizm Graphing Calculators. I propose raising funds to purchase a digital Smart Board, and 35, 3D graphing calculators (one per child to be used by each class period). Follow these two links for more information about both technologies: http://smarttech.com/smartboard (Smart Board 885ix), and http://www.casio.com/news/content/51D7AC67-A2F7-479C-9250-926471B69BF9/ (3D Casio Prizm Graphing Calculator).
 |
| Albert Einstein |
One example of how student learning will be enhanced with the 3D graphing calculators is from a current event assignment. Each student will bring to class a case study or current event that involves a mathematical problem in real life. Each student will utilize his/her calculator to individually model and create a viable solution based on current class learning objectives and personal mathematical ability. Students will understand how they can impact every day life with high school level mathematics, and see the proof in the palm of their hands. A follow-up assignment is to present his/her current event and solution to the class utilizing our interactive Smart Board. Once presented, students will interact together on the Smart Board to devise other mathematical solutions to the problem found in the current event. Both California State Content Standards and NETS will be met (see references and links below).
Our efforts as teachers at Franklin High School, to technologically update our classrooms, will only be a success if you the parents are involved. My hope is to at least open up a discussion with you, and create a viable plan to raise funds to update our classrooms. My motivation to lead the way and update our classrooms with new technology comes from many places, but by far the most important reason for updating our classrooms is for our students success, your child’s future.
Sincerely,
Mr. Taylor Chapman
Math Teacher
Franklin High School
Smart Board In Use Video Links:
References
California State Department of Education. California State Department of Education, (2010). Content standards, common core state standards for mathematics, adopted august 2010 . Retrieved from California State Department of Education website: http://www.scoe.net/castandards/agenda/2010/math_ccs_recommendations.pdf
Casio America, Inc. (1995-2012). Casio unveils next-generation graphing calculator - prizm. Retrieved from http://www.casio.com/news/content/51D7AC67-A2F7-479C-9250-926471B69BF9/
Cognitive Technologies Corporation. (2008). Web based programs. Retrieved from http://www.mathrealm.com/DotCom/index.php
International Society for Technology in Education. (2007). Nets for students (pdf). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS-S_Standards.sflb.ashx
SMART Technologies. (2012). Smart board 885ix interactive whiteboard system. Retrieved from http://smarttech.com/smartboard
***DISCLAIMER***
This blog is an assignment for an educational technology course at
National University. This is not a real fundraising blog.
National University. This is not a real fundraising blog.
