I-READY… ARE YOU?

Tara SchiedermayerITEC 7445Dr. BaconEmerging Technology

I-READY What is i-Ready?

I-Ready uses the Common Core standards to give students (K-8) an online diagnostic assessment and personalized online instruction at the students reading and math levels.

Online instruction is down to the sub-skill level for each subject.

Teachers can easily use reports, progress monitoring, and downloadable print resources to differentiate and give students individual and small group instruction.

Watch the following video to learn more: http://

content.bitsontherun.com/previews/NpxoDsEq-OH37pNhS

HOW DOES I-READY SUPPORT THE TECHNOLOGY VISION OF FULTON COUNTY? The Fulton County Technology plan states, “The 2012-2015 Technology Plan focuses on students using

technology for learning. Our vision is that every student will use classroom technology to:

Safely access age-appropriate information Practice safe and responsible internet use Access online curriculum resources Communicate with teachers Utilize computers, video and audio recording tools and a variety

of software to produce assignments Access assignments and work products anytime, anywhere, and Immediate instructional and technical support will be available

as needed.”

FCS Technology Plan 2012-2015

HOW DOES I-READY SUPPORT THE TECHNOLOGY VISION OF FULTON COUNTY?i-Ready supports this plan

because:It is using technology for learning for

all elementary studentsStudents will be able to access

online resources at anytime if they choose

Find age appropriate lessons for the K-5 range of students

The program is safe and monitored closely

Increase student achievement through personalized, explicit online lessons that focus on their areas of need

Baseline data and progress monitoring can be collected and utilized on each student

Teachers can pinpoint specific areas of need for students and create flexible small groups to maximize their instruction in reading and math

OBJECTIVES

KEY BENEFITS Students are re-learning and practicing skills

that they may not have mastered the first time in a fun, online learning environment

Lessons are based on sub-skill needs for Common Core standards

Accelerated lessons will be given to those students who have mastered the standards

Teachers can print out reports for RTI, parent conferences, student conferences, or to help prepare their lessons

TARGET POPULATION I-ready has diagnostic tests designed for students

kindergarten through twelfth grade and instruction lessons for kindergarten through eighth grade

All general education students and special education students participating in Interrelated Resource (IRR) and inclusion classes would participate for grades kindergarten through fifth at Campbell Elementary

Campbell Elementary has one computer lab with 30 computers, two mobile labs with 16 computers each, and two i-Pad mobile labs with 30 i-Pads for teachers to sign up for to administer the diagnostic assessment

TARGET POPULATION CONT’D Teachers could continue to sign up for

computer labs if they would like all students to be working on i-Ready at the same time

Since the lessons are individualized to the student, classroom desktop computers (at least 3 per class) could be used during center time for i-Ready use

Teachers could monitor data and progress monitoring from their county appointed laptop

Students with home internet access could also continue to work on lessons at home

EQUIPMENT AND SOFTWARE Internet access or wireless access for each

computer that a student could work on Students will receive personal logins and

passwords to sign in to their account Adobe Flash Player, Adobe Acrobat Reader, and

Javascript must be installed and updated on computers

Headphones for each student who is using the program at a certain time to not disturb other students

A configuration check can be done on computers using: http://www.i‐ready.com/support/systemcheck

TECHNICAL SUPPORT For teachers:

i-Ready offers professional development and training through on site sessions or through customized webinars for a fee Possible sessions are as follows: Getting Started,

Understanding Data and Instructional Decision Making, Leadership Best Practices

Sample lessons, reports, and teacher led instruction are available on www.i-ready.com

For students: Teachers would initially need to assist with login,

passwords, and getting started i-ready walks students through their learning using

written text and speech after taking the diagnostic test

LIMITATIONSAll participating students would

need parental permission to use the internet

Students who would like to participate at home would need internet access

COST OF THE TECHNOLOGY I-Ready can be used on computers that are

already in Campbell Elementary If professional development for teachers is

purchased it ranges from $550 to $5,750 Each account costs $29.99 per student per

subject ($59.98 per student for both reading and math)

For the 800 students at Campbell Elementary in grades K-5 the total cost would be $47,984

POTENTIAL FUNDING SOURCES Campbell Elementary received the Striving

Readers Grant (good for 3 years) where it must use the money to improve student achievement using programs such as i-Ready

Title 1 funds could be allocated for the purchase of the program

Teachers could write reading, math, or technology grant proposals to purchase the program

HOW CAN I-READY BE USED BY TEACHERS? After students complete the diagnostic assessment,

teachers can use the automatic reports to create small groups around specific skills that students need

Possible lessons are given to support teachers instructionally

Download and use print resources for individual, small group, or whole group instruction

Progress monitoring for each student, class, grade, school, and district gives teachers data that can be used for RTI meetings and parent conferences

Printable reports can be dissected to show growth or areas of needed improvement for each teachers class or student

HOW CAN I-READY BE USED TO MEET CONTENT AND TECHNOLOGY STANDARDS? I-Ready is created around the Common Core

standards that Georgia has now adopted Reading and math skills and lessons to

match Common Core standards will be taught and assessed

Data reports per standard can be used to guide teacher/grade level instruction

NETS-S standards are also addressed in the program 4:Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision

Making 6: Technology Operations and Concepts

HOW CAN I-READY BE USED TO PROMOTE SPECIFIC LEARNING GOALS? Authentic Learning: lessons are geared for the specific

student with re-teaching, on level lessons, and accelerated lessons available

Collaborative Learning: teachers use reports and data to plan and implement small group lessons and projects based on student need

Real world problems and situations: student lessons are given around real world scenarios that allow students to apply what they are learning to those scenarios

Higher-order thinking: teacher can plan lessons around specific skills and question students to promote higher-order thinking. Also connecting it to real world scenarios will allow the students to use higher order thinking skills to answer questions on the online lessons

HOW CAN I-READY BE USED TO DIFFERENTIATE INSTRUCTION? Teacher can use data reports and progress

monitoring to pull students who are in critical need of extra practice

Teacher can also use the reports and the instructional materials to pull small groups based on the students specific level

Individual student lessons give explicit online instruction that is based completely on the students skill level

HOW DOES I-READY PROMOTE COMMUNICATION? Reports on individual students can be used to

communicate progress with a parent or at a RTI meeting

Progress monitoring and data reports of class data could strike conversation within the class and allow students to set goals

Grade level data reports can be discussed at grade level meetings to guide future instruction

School wide data reports can be used to show progress of Campbell Elementary

RESEARCH EVALUATION Not only is i-Ready good for individual

schools and districts, the state of Ohio approved the i-Ready Diagnostic in 2012 as an approved assessment to measure student growth for all it’s school districts. “i-Ready Diagnostic has an exemplary standard

of validity and reliability, is built for the Common Core State Standards and the revised Ohio Academic Content Standards, is highly correlated with curricular objectives, and has the ability to measure the growth of both low- and high-achieving students.” (eschoolnews, 2012)

RESEARCH EVALUATION i-Ready is growing in popularity due to it’s

valid and reliable measure and individualized instruction “Built for the Common Core, i-Ready Diagnostic

& Instruction combines a valid and reliable growth measure and individualized instruction in a single online product. To reach one million assessments in less than two years is a testament to the fact that i-Ready delivers a much-needed resource for educators across the country.” (PR Newswire, 2013)

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN In order to implement i-Ready at Campbell

Elementary, teachers would first have to be trained in the program. This could be done through the Professional Development provided through the program using the webinars or on site trainings.

This training would take place during the scheduled Professional Development days before school begins.

Teachers would then administer the reading and math diagnostic assessments in the first two weeks of school to assess where students currently are performing.

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN CONT’D After the diagnostic is complete, teachers

can use i-Ready to pull small groups, plan instruction, and discover students who need individual work

Students can begin completing their individual lessons during center times or computer lab times, based on teacher discretion

Teachers can then use the progress monitoring that is embedded in the program to track students data

REFLECTION Through researching, selecting, and

evaluating this program I realized how much I would love to have this program adopted into my school. I feel that it encompasses many of the things that we do in the classroom already, however, it combines them all into one easy to use program. Students get to learn through an interactive, appealing program that is giving them the lessons they need. Teachers get resources, progress monitoring tools, and data reports to use in their classroom, with their grade level, in the school, and with parents.

REFLECTION This experience improved and strengthened

my professional practice because it allowed me to experience what administrators, curriculum specialists, and those who select programs for schools and districts go through all the time. It made me realize that there is a lot that goes into selecting a program that is incorporated in schools and districts. It gave me an appreciation for what these people do when trying to provide new and innovating technology into the classrooms.

WORKS CITED i-Ready.com Eschool News. (2012). Press release: Ohio

approves ‘i-Ready Diagnostic’ as student growth measure. Retrieved from http://www.eschoolnews.com/2012/05/15/ohio -approves-i-ready-diagnostic-as-student- growth-measure/

Fulton County Schools Technology Plan (2012). Retrieved from http://portal.fultonschools.org/departments/IT/Documents/2012_2015%20Final%20tech%20plan.pdf

PR Newswire. (2013). i-Ready reaches one millionth assessment. Retrieved from http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/i-ready-reaches-one-millionth-assessment- 195253551.html