State of Hawaii Proposed Marko Rodin Vortex Based Mathematics Pilot Teaching Curriculum Development 5-Year Project Plan
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MARKO RODIN FUTURISTIC STEM PILOT AND DISSEMINATION
PROJECT – CHARTER SCHOOLS PROJECT RATIONALE For the past decade, and with the advent of No Child
Left Behind and subsequent focus on high-stakes testing, American children have
been held in the cages of an old, tired, and inconsequential curriculum
designed for yesterdayís requirements.
The recent publication of Tough Choices or Tough Times, a report of the NCEE (National Center on Education
and the Economy), confirms that American schools are not adequate for the
challenges that lie ahead for todayís children and youth. This is further evidenced by the
absurdly low number of Americaís high school graduates who choose to enter
universities and technical schools to major in engineering, mathematics, science,
or technology. Indeed, this
indicates an urgent challenge to educators who share a passion for the future
of our children and also our country.
Failure to recognize the need to dramatically change the curriculum, the
way schools, teachers, and students are organized and challenged, poses serious
national defense, economic, and security problems for the United States. PROJECT OVERVIEW We propose a dramatically different, futuristic
approach to learning and in particular learning mathematics, science, and
technology for students in two Hawaiian charter schools. The demographics of the children who
attend these schools is quite different.
One, Kua 'o Ka La, on the Big Island works with children of Hawaiian or
Part-Hawaiian ethnicity, and is a Title I school, meaning it serves children
from working families who qualify for free/reduced lunch. Kua 'o
Ka La enrolls youth from grades
6-11. The second school, Voyager
(K-8) is located on Oahu, in the Kaka ëaka district of Honolulu. They educate children of more than
ethnic and racial groups, of which only 6% are Hawaiian and 29% are
part-Hawaiian. Twenty-six percent
of Voyagerís students qualify for free/reduced lunch. We have chosen these two schools because they both
adhere to the multi-age grouping of children, based on skill levels. Further, we believe that the diversity
represented by these two schools will allow us to engage in action research and
demonstrate excellent results in two very different environments and student
populations. This will enhance the
projectís influence and allow more educators, including those from Department
of Education schools, to see the value of ëdoing things differently.í Kua ëo Ka La and Voyager will serve as
model demonstration schools for Hawaii and the rest of the United States. We anticipate that the federal and
state governments and many foundations will look at these schools as beacons of
excellence. It is our intention to
push the national conversation beyond NCLB, realizing that the standards should
be recognized as the floor and not
the ceiling for excellence that will be required of our youth in the
future. Until last year, Hawaii charter schools received no
funding for facilities. The
2006-07 academic year was the first time the HI State Legislature provided for
facilities funding in the charter school law. Even if this funding is made available in the future, it
will not be adequate to construct state-of-the-art STEM facilities. At this time neither school is
operating in adequate facilities, and funding for a STEM facility for Kua ëo Ka
La will be needed immediately.
Meanwhile, Voyager will continue to seek an adequate site which can be
renovated to meet the requirements and become the second model STEM center in
this project. Kua ëo Ka La is located in the Puna district on nearly
600 acres of land next to the hot pond.
The Directorsí vision is to restore the land to a pristine condition and
teach students to honor the traditions and culture of the Hawaiian people as
well as learn the skills theyíll need for a bright future. The Directors vision includes a model
STEM classroom building combined with a dormitory to house visiting teachers
and scholars desiring to study and learn how to re-create a completely
sustainable, futuristic school.
Already students at Kua ëo Ka La are engaged in integrated projects
related to botany, agriculture, and technology. They are poised to expand the
curriculum and the way students and teachers work together with a more
futuristic approach to science, technology, engineering and math. Robotics is one example and this school
has already begun hydro-farming at an impressive level for both the students
and the local community. The
prospects for pharmaceuticals, healthy foods, and rain forest restoration, and are
definitely possible from the hydro-farming with STEM assistance. Voyager delivers instruction using TQL (Total Quality
Learning based on Dr. Demingís theory process and tools); Reuven Feuersteinís
Instrumental Enrichment (IE); and Quantum Learning (QL) techniques to encourage
critical thinking and continuous improvement in their students. Voyagerís visionary principal has
established a team of teachers dedicated to providing an excellent education
for all students. Unfortunately,
they do not own any land, and they are currently located in a warehouse
converted into a strip mall, but the school occupies an area that has had very
minimal renovations. Thus, the
students are taught largely in a cavernous area mostly without walls. As enrollment expanded additional space
across the parking lot and street had to be leased. Such conditions do not create the best environment for
learning, yet Voyagerís students have always performed well on the HSA tests. Voyagerís leaders know that their students can achieve
excellence in a peaceful setting.
They focus on helping students from diverse populations learn how to
work together to accomplish difficult tasks. Like many of Americaís schools, Voyager realizes the need
for massive curricular change especially in mathematics. It has already become
a beacon for other charter schools interested in learning about and being
coached in TQL and Instrumental Enrichment. One additional benefit of having Voyager involved in the
project is to conduct and publish research about the impact of Voyagerís three
modalities, TQL, IE, and QL (listed in the first sentence of the previous
paragraph) on the futuristic curricula.
We consider this project to be self-sustaining after
five years, although every effort will be made to become self-sustaining in
three years. We plan that the
facilities constructed on the Big Island and also on Oahu will be named for the
funder into perpetuity as a sign of thanksgiving for the funderís vision. To ensure effective and efficient processes and wise
use of money, we will use the ìBaldrige framework education criteriaî for
self-assessment purposes at the end of each year. The Baldrige is an effectiveness model, widely used around
the world and recognized as the gold standard for organizational performance excellence. Formal feedback will be given after a
review of the annual self-assessment and used by the project coordinators,
principals, and school leadership teams to make improvements to the
system. FIRST YEAR OF FUNDING During the first six months
of the project we will focus on facilities planning and construction at Kua ëo
Ka La, Baldrige training, and the development of curricula at both schools to
reflect STEM and futuristic approaches to learning math in particular. A futuristic, age
appropriate math curriculum will be developed by Marko Rodin, and teachers will
receive the necessary training prior to the start of the following school
year. During this year, Voyager
school leaders with the Project Coordinators will seek alternative
facilities. Plans for renovation
will be drawn to create a state-of-the-art STEM center at the new site. The Hawaii Charter Schools
Administrative Office Administrator will be responsible for coordinating
schedules and events, and also recruit and interview teachers to participate in
the summer program. She will also
disseminate information to other charter schools as the project moves forward
to generate enthusiasm for and curiosity about the project. In this way, there will be a desire to
observe and learn more firsthand about the impact on student learning from the
state and federal government, HI department of education, and others around the
country. In addition, this person
will oversee start-up STEM programs at other charter schools through the life
of the project. Regular, systematic action
research will be conducted by the Project Coordinators throughout the life of
the project. Further, Coordinators
will provide quarterly on-site coaching assistance to the Principals and school
leadership team as they make the desired changes. A website will be created
so that information among and between coordinators, principals, teachers,
consultants and the HCSAO administrator can be shared. The website will be password protected
to allow confidential student data and information to be shared (need basis
only) and used for guidance and for continuous improvement of the curricula,
based on a root cause analysis.
Webcams will allow for greater communication and problem-solving. This will allow professionals from both
schools to learn from each other and may be used by students for any joint
projects. We anticipate regularly
scheduled video conferences with the project professionals will advance the
capacity of both schools to obtain full deployment of the futuristic approach
and ëfast trackí the project effectiveness. Marko Rodin will provide regular two-way video
conferences to answer questions specifically related to mathematics and to
demonstrate math lessons. This
will leverage the knowledge of the math expert and give teachers more support
and coaching without the expense of having him do a lot of traveling. A technology support person
will be hired at each school to assure the equipment remains in good condition,
handles repairs, and assists teachers and school leaders with any
technology-related questions and problems. This position will be funded jointly by the school and the
project. After three years, the
full responsibility will rest with the schools. SECOND YEAR OF FUNDING Kua
ëo Ka La will begin the school year using the new curricula and approach. Voyager will begin using the aspects of
the new curricula that are feasible in a more traditional setting. Coaching will be provided for the
principals and also teachers. The
project coordinators will spend one week each quarter visiting each school,
conducting action research through observations, interviews, review of
classroom materials, teacher supplemental resources, and student generated
products, as well as hard data gathered from quizzes or tests of skill
development. Voyager will have acquired
a new facility in the second year of this funding cycle, and renovations will
be finished by the end of the first quarter of the 2009-10 school year. Once the renovations are complete, the
expectation is that both schools will be fully engaged in the new approach to
thinking ìoutside the boxî in STEM areas and supporting futuristic curricula. THIRD YEAR OF FUNDING Fifty (50) teachers from
other charter schools will be invited to attend a week-long immersion summer
session to be trained in how to teach using the newly designed mathematics
curriculum while experiencing a new approach to thinking about what has to
happen in futuristic classrooms at Kua ëo Ka La on the Big Island. The teacher participants will use
web-cams and video cameras to document the botany, agriculture, and property
development aspects of Kua ëo Ka La as they would apply to their classrooms.
This material will be compiled to provide a virtual learning experience for
teachers and students from all over the country during the next academic school
year. **Plans are underway to apply for a grant from NEH to
partially fund the summer program for 50 teachers. This will include funding for travel for teams of teachers
and a small honorarium for participation. Teachers from Kua ëo Ka
La, Voyager and the consultants
will be actively involved in the professional development training, resource
seminars, and assisting teacher-trainees to practice the skills needed to
expand the program in their own schools.
This approach will leverage the new approach each year of the funding to
over 150 teachers who will not only integrate their new knowledge in the
classroom, but also inspire their communities to start thinking in futuristic
terms as they understand how to expand the use of STEM and the new curricular
sponsored by this project. Project coordinators and
the HCSAO administrator will continue to visit the schools, review results,
observe and interview students, and coach principals and teachers as part of a
five year longitudinal research study. FOURTH AND FIFTH YEAR OF FUNDING Support services along the lines of coaching will
continue to be provided to the principals and teachers at both pilot
schools. Advanced training for
teachers on STEM curricula will be delivered using state-of-the-art technology
such as video-conferencing and individual web-cams. Program coordinators will continue to review results,
support improvements, and work with the consultant and educators to make
curricula changes if results are not as expected or desired. This will be a continuous improvement
approach that will gain national and international recognition and be
disseminated by the program coordinators at conferences and in educational
publications. PROGRAM EVALUATION Program evaluation will be conducted by a nationally
recognized external evaluator, Telesis, Inc. The president of Telesis, Inc. has
over 30 years experience in evaluation and assessment of grants,
national/state/local and community projects. Final results of the project will
be provided to the funder and also the program coordinators. These results will be published and
disseminated to the HI State Board of Education, the HI State Legislature, the
HI Department of Education, and widely throughout the country for any
international groups desirous of learning. It is expected that students from the pilot schools
will outperform their peers beginning in the second year of the project on
standardized, normed tests given each year in the springtime. They will also demonstrate advanced
learning through teacher supplemental projects; student generated projects and
by the products that they create.
The student generated projects will be assessed by teachers, peers, local educators and community
experts. Student enthusiasm
for learning will be improved, and discipline problems will be tremendously
minimized as students become engaged in the discovery of learning and the
excitement of problem solving with higher order thinking skills. Satisfaction levels among students,
parents, and staff will improve as the project proceeds and will be reflected
in an increase in parental/guardian involvement in their childís learning experiences. PROPOSED FIVE YEAR STEM PROJECT BUDGET
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