Section III - 1. Project objectives:

Goal 1:To enable students to achieve high academic standards by integration of the arts and technology in all core subject areas.

Objective 1.1

80% of students in classes using the modules will show evidence of improved academic achievement as indicated by: a) decline in absenteeism, b) increased student self-concept as indicated by student attitude surveys and focus groups, c) students performing at higher levels as determined by each school's assessment of student progress and electronic portfolios.

 

Activities / Timeline

Conduct selected classroom studies. Examine selected student attitudes. Conduct selected annual focus groups for students. Collect information on student performance (electronic portfolios). Have students create an electronic portfolio/multimedia presentations. Conduct case studies of selected students and teachers. Collect samples of student work created during unit involvement. Provide students access to technology resources that support learning. Structure learning to empower students to make connections. Use the arts to build holistic teaching-learning experiences. Promote critical thinking & problem solving through discussion,debate, cooperative learning, and interdisciplinary teaching strategies.

1999-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000 1996-2000

Evaluation Plan and Performance Indicators

Conduct selected classroom studies.	1998-2000
Examine selected student attitudes.	1998-2000
Examine focus group feedback.	1996-2000
Collect examples of student constructivist curriculum projects.	1996-2000
Review student work from integrated constructivist curriculum.	1998-2000
Examine case study information (by teacher volunteer classes).	1998-2000
Document evidence of student behaviors of engaged learning.	1996-2000
Evidence of more analytical thinking (student products).	1996-2000
Evidence of creative work (student products).	1996-2000

 

 

Status (Accomplishments, Outcomes, Challenges)

The Community Discovered Project is well underway for the next year of formal activities, and participating teachers continue to develop and initiate appropriate planning and delivery of curricular units. Each of the participating teachers continues to build on the training received over the previous summer, which provided extensive experiences in technology, discipline based art, constructivism, interdisciplinary planning and teaching, and general integration strategies (see the appendix for examples).

Professional development activities for the project are also continuing throughout the academic year. Teachers are also periodically reviewing student performance and submitting an "end of the school year" report to the evaluation team. In addition, during this next academic year, selected teachers have been identified as "case study" teachers to help facilitate a more in-depth look at a group of teachers and their students.

Teachers are also continuing to work on their curriculum modules/units using a standard format which has been refined over time based on participant input. These modules are available over the project web page. Each unit is being linked to the National Standards for all disciplines, the State Frameworks, specific district outcomes for the participating districts, individual teacher-learner outcomes identified by the participating teachers, selected student-learner outcomes identified by the participating teachers as related to their specific curricula, and the goals of The Community Discovered. Using the projectís centralized web page, these unit plans can be accessed easily by project teachers or other interested educators from around the world. These units reflect the shared vision for what students will be able to do within the project, which has been established in past meetings with the projectís advisory boards.

Partner Statements of Shared Vision: Students Will:

• feel successful in executing a higher level of thinking skills
• will have the ability to construct knowledge
• more actively engage in and be more responsible for learning
• use appropriate language and vocabulary to communicate about their learning

Example Outcome Indicators/Evaluation Measures:

• reflections/journals
• focus groups
• artifacts (student work)
• standardized test scores
• attendance data
• discipline referrals
• rubrics of engaged student learning

Student development continues to be a very strong part of the project, and students are involved in a large variety of innovative and creative projects. Some students have developed electronic products such as virtual hypermedia tours of their school or community, electronic portfolios, HyperStudio report stacks, panoramic and object virtual reality representations of sculptures, or other lesson-based electronic products utilizing a variety of educational technology resources and software.

The electronic student products and multimedia projects are also helping to represent the project within The Community Discovered web site, as evidence of student accomplishments. They also help reflect student achievement. A sample of visuals from various periods of the project represents the very high quality of these student projects throughout the project timeline. They also suggest the depth of thinking in which students are routinely engaged within project activities blending technology, art, interdisciplinary teaching, and constructivism. The sample visuals which follow are representative of such projects and are included in the following narrative.

 

 

Student Project Examples:

 

The two visuals above represent a mask making activity (including computer graphics) which was very motivating for teachers and students. The students had to design a mask to represent their personal culture, beliefs, and community (Native American students).

Focusing on the content of:1999

Technology: Multimedia, Wordprocessing (they wrote about masks also)

Art:Mask Making (& Theater ó Mask of the Red Death ó by Edgar Allen Poe)

Disciplines:Art, Literature, Social Studies

The student work above combines art, poetry, and technology within a project where students studied artists and then described their favorite place in words and art.

Focusing on the content of:1999

Technology: Wordprocessing, Computer Graphics, Digital Camera

Art:Painting

Disciplines:Literature, Social Studies, Poetry, History

The two visuals above represent an extensive multimedia project (over 500 MB) completed by students in the Westside School district who were involved with sharing information about themselves, their schools, and their community, with students in Winnebago, using virtual reality panoramas, text, sound, and images/Imagery, in an extensive multimedia development process.

Focusing on the content of:1998

Technology: Virtual Reality, Digital Camera, Hypermedia,

Art:Paintings, Story Telling

Disciplines:Social Studies, Writing, Art, History

Many projects conducted are collaborative in nature, such as this mural completed by elementary students who worked with artist Ms. Julia Noyes.

Focusing on the content of:1998

 

Technology: Digital Camera, Drawing Package

Art:Murals, Painting

Disciplines:Art, Social Studies, History

Other student projects focusing on sculpture, murals, and other artwork have also been done.

Focusing on the content of:1997-1999

 

Technology: Word-processing, Digital Camera, Hypermedia

Art:Sculpture, Paintings

Disciplines:Art, Social Studies, Writing

 

Focusing on the content of:1997-1998

 

Technology: Word-processing, Digital Camera, Paint and Drawing Programs

Art:Murals, Paintings

Disciplines:Art, Social Studies, English

 

Focusing on the content of: 1996-1999

 

Technology: Virtual RealityTechnology: Hypermedia

Art:SculptureArt: Sculpture

Disciplines:Math, ArtDisciplines: Art, Writing, Literature

 

 

 

Focusing on the content of:1998

 

Technology: Drawing Package, Internet

Art:Paintings

Disciplines:Math, Art

Focusing on the content of:1998

Technology: Digital Pictures, Internet

Art:Sculpture

Disciplines:Art, History, Social Studies, Writing

 

Many of the participating Community Discovered schools are also sharing such student products and project related resources on school based web pages, such as this 1999 web page example from Sandoz Elementary in Lexington:

In addition to the visual products, student written products have also been impressive in all periods of the project and are represented by the following selected writings.

Student Poetry: (1998)_

New Perspective: A Tribute to Idu the Storyteller, From Jamie (8^th Grade)

 

He looked at them with wonder

Anticipation at us all

Wondering who we were

Teaching us new lessons

Maturity

Confidence

Sharing

Lessons to carry on

To future generations

Helping to build a better world

One day, one smile, one hug at a time

Offering solutions

To simple problems we face

Offering revelations

Helping you look inside yourself

Looking inside myself

Learning new lessons

Changing perspective

Just when I thought I was lost

And couldnít find myself

Someone changed my mind

And gave me a new perspective

 

Focusing on the content of:1998

Technology: Word-processing

Art:Peforming Arts, Storytelling

Disciplines:Poetry, English, Social Studies

Student Poetry: (1997)

 

I love a parade

Big funny moving floats

Cool dancing cartoon characters

Chariotts pulled by black horses

Red, white, and blue flags

And bands with loud music

I Love a parade

 

3rd Grade Student

Focusing on the content of:1997

 

Technology: Word-processing

Art:Murals, Paintings

Disciplines:Art, Social Studies

 

Student Journal: (1997)

 

The most unusual thing at the Joslyn was the statue of Madame

Antoinette. As you stood looking at the bronze made statue, it

seemed that the statue was looking down you. It glared at you like

you were a fool and she was the greatest. The artist also made her

hands arched back, like she was going to jump out at you. It was

this that made it so unusual.

 

The best thing about the Joslyn was the paintings of William H.

Johnson. I like his kid style and it was enjoyable to look at his

paintings. What was tempting was not running my fingers at the

obvious rough paintings.

 

What I will always remember about the Joslyn is the paintings in

the Modern Art area. I thought some of them were weird, but I really

liked one that made you look and think about them.

 

8th grade student

 

Focusing on the content of:1997

 

Technology: Word-processing

Art:Sculpture, Paintings

Disciplines:Art, Social Studies

Student attitude information has also been collected by the evaluation team and has included student focus groups, interviews, and journal reports from some classrooms. Each of these sources indicates that the project is indeed motivating for students, and student quotes show a real energy and enthusiasm. Representative quotes are included below:

Student Written Reflection: (1998)

 

I learned a lot about art this year. Art has helped me understand other cultures and religions. Iíve discovered new places with art.

3^rd Grade student

Interview: (1998)

 

I like Art. It makes me think. Whenever I do Art it makes me feel good the rest of the day, and I like Math better.

7th grade student

Student E-mail: (1999)

Thanks for coming and teaching us about Edgar Allen Poe. I understand him much more, both as an author, and as a person.

6th Grade student

Focus group: (1998)

The biggest difference between completing my project on the computer and pencil and paper is that paper and pencil is boring. On the computer you have fun and learn.....

4th grade student

 

 

Focusing on the content of:1997-1999

 

Technology: Hypermedia, Word-processing

Art:Paintings, Theater, Poetry

Disciplines:Art, Literature, Math, Social Studies

Many of the student developed projects are routinely shared within the school and community. In 1998 and 1999, this was often in the form of a "Street Fair" where individual school districts showcased student work and project related artifacts.

Focusing on the content of: 1998-1999

Technology: All types of Educational Technology were used

Art:A large variety of Arts were represented at the Street Fairs

Disciplines:Many different disciplines were represented at the Street Fairs

Such street fairs are very popular among the schools and communities, as represented by this quote from a school board member:

School Board Member E-mail Quote: (1999)

I absolutely loved your students "museums" at the Community Discovered Street Fair! I looked extensively at four of them and talked in length to the students ó and they were so knowledgeable, prepared, organized, professional, proud, and excited. I was terribly impressed by how well they presented their projects to me and showed me the HyperStudio, etc. They did a WONDERFUL job and I told them so, but hope you will pass it along again.

School Board Member

Teachers within the project have also routinely commented on the potential for the use of the art and technology to help enhance the teaching of other disciplines such as mathematics. Below are two representative quotes:

Teacher Quote: (1999)

Hi everyone! Nothing has changed my teaching-- and student learning-- like art and technology have in the past 15 years. Because of grants like ATI and Community Discovered, I have had the opportunity to continue to learn and grow personally and professionally. Anyone who has been involved, no matter to what extent, has got to feel a sense of personal growth and pride in what they have accomplished. The very fact that you applied to be a participant shows that you have the desire to learn something new and to "push those fences"! ConferNet99 was just another step we needed to take: to prepare our students for their future.

What a wonderful group to be associated with--the dialogue was so invigorating Friday night-- I wish I could see each and every project that has been developed out there!!! Aren't our Nebraska students lucky! Way to go everyone and let's take on a new year!

4^th Grade Teacher

Teacher Quote: (1998)

Hello! I have used Art in my 7^th grade mathematics classroom often this year. My most successful experience was when I taught my pattern unit and looked at images/Images, music, and dance that included mathematical patterns. The students seemed very motivated by the art, and were more willing to discuss mathematical patterns, and willing to take the risks with their traditional mathematics work to find the patterns.

7^th Grade Mathematics Teacher

In several of the participantsí classrooms, parents are also surveyed for feedback within the project (often in multiple languages). Such feedback is routinely positive, and the quote below is typical of the parent support for the project:

Parent Survey Response: (1997)

 

Scott shared his excitement of the technology and art activities...he was especially enthusiastic about presenting his Hyperstudio stack to others. I feel Scott was learning a lot without knowing it. Problem solving was a big issue while preparing the Hyperstudio stacks. I noticed Scott was more excited about all his school work during this time.

Parent of 9th grade student

For several quantitative measures, the project is examining classroom-based research data being collected by the project teacher participants which targets outcomes directly linked to individual growth plans and classrooms. This classroom-based research data appears positive. As an example, one teacher in 1998 focused on increased reading scores. Data indicated that students within the project had significantly increased in the California Test of Basic Skills (CTBS) reading scores from a pretest average of 21.7 to a posttest average of 62.5. This was then compared to a control group (from a similar class which was not involved in the project) that increased to a posttest score of only 43.6.

Teachers are continuing to examine a wide range of classroom based achievement within graduate study research options, where teachers work directly with the evaluation team in conducting the research. These classroom research activities use careful controls and research designs, and they usually include a variety of quantitative measures such as attendance information and standardized test information. These classroom action research activities, initiated in 1998 and continuing in 1999, have been very useful in examining student achievement. A summary of this classroom research analysis is represented within the summary table on the next page.

 Teacher Classroom Action Research Summary as of 1999

General Results Summary for Project Duration
Poetry (n=42)	Students participating in a Community Discovered Art activity and simultaneously working on a poetry assignment did better than a control group on the analysis of the structure and depth of the poetry (1999).
Reading (n=37)	The art integration appeared to benefit in CAT 6th grade achievement (1998).
Math (n=95)	Art integration 7th grade groups achieved equally with regular groups on a mathematical patterning test. Qualitative analysis noted more pattern based connections in the art integration group (1998).
Literacy (n=40)	An art integration 2nd grade group achieved equally with a control group on a teacher made writing tests (1998).
Attendance (n=132)	Student attendance in several art integration vs. no art integration classes were equivalent (1998).
Art (n=26)	Third grade students integrating art within several other units greatly improved their attitudes toward art as reflected on a teacher survey (1999).
Literature (n=41)	First grade students integrating art within literature and music performed equally with a control group on rubric based literature comprehension (1999).
History (n=41)	Fourth grade students integrating art within history performed better on general retention and comprehension tasks (1999).

 

Within the population being served, subgroups of students who are at-risk for academic failure or who have been verified for special education services are also being involved in many activities. In particular, during 1999, the evaluation team is examining case studies of 10 individual teachers who will also examine the progress of such students closely. In addition, working with other faculty within the University of Nebraska system, the Evaluation Team is directing the work of graduate students who are conducting thesis related research incorporating project activities. For example, a 1998 thesis study involved 95 students in an experimental and control group design for a careful examination of art integration in the mathematics classroom. An abstract of this thesis is included below, and the full thesis is available upon request from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Thesis Abstract:1998

An Investigation of Using the Visual and Performing Arts as a Means to Teach Arithmetic and Geometric Patterns. By Darcee Rothe,. University of Nebraska at Omaha

The purpose of this study was to determine if the integration of the visual and performing arts in a mathematics classroom would increase students understanding of arithmetic and geometric patterns. This four week study involved five classes of seventh grade students. There were two control groups of traditional mathematics instruction, and three experimental groups which were instructed using an integration of the arts to teach mathematical patterns. Three different assessment tools were used to gather information to explore the results. The main instrument, the Cognitive Abilities Test, came from the Riverside Publishing Company. The focus of this instrument was on the quantitative and nonverbal portions of mathematical patterning. For additional analyses, art related content answers were also analyzed for an Experiencing the Arts instrument (researcher developed) involving questions directed at a student comparison of two paintings. A student Data Project activity was also used to examine if there appeared to be any transfer of concepts to a student social studies and mathematical patterns task. The results of the Cognitive Abilities Test suggested that teaching in the traditional fashion and teaching with an integration of the arts had similar effects on the studentsí understanding of mathematical patterns. The qualitative results on the other two instruments suggested that the group who was instructed with art integration tended to make more mathematical connections within the art and pattern related several tasks. The results suggested further study in the instruction of mathematical patterning through the visual and performing arts.

In support of continued dissemination and participation in the professional research literature, the project staff and evaluation team have been VERY aggressive in reporting the efforts and impact of the project within articles and professional papers. This effort has resulted in a variety of formal publications which have been successfully submitted and refereed within the professional literature. A sample listing of such refereed publications is provided on the next page.

Refereed Publications of the Community Discovered Project to Date (1996-1999)

  In addition to the formal publications submitted to the professional literature, the project is also preparing a comprehensive monograph of "lessons learned" within the project as a final professional document for publication. The monograph will be published in Year 5 (2000) through the University of Nebraska Press, and will be available by ISBN number to the professional community.

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