Mici's+Proposal

Executive Summary: In Riverside Unified School District we are proposing inquiry based learning labs in all of our high school science classrooms that meet requirements for entrance into the UC system. However, due to the budget constraints faced by Californians at this time, we are anticipating a reduction in funds for science lab equipment over the next five to ten years. In order to still meet the needs of students going to four year colleges, we must still offer labs which have significant costs to the district. By implementing mobile computer labs for each high school, we can provide a one time cost and provide alternatives to certain labs. One such lab that is at high expense to the district is dissections. The district is currently paying roughly 16,000 each year on specimens (80,000 over 5 years). By offering free on-line virtual dissections, the school district will not only save on the recurring costs of specimens, but will also eliminate the need for toxic waste pick ups and staff to handle the disposal products; estimated costs of hazardous materials pick up is roughly 5,000-10,000 per school year for all science courses (including dissections). There is an additional public relations and environmental bonus that RUSD is contributing to the city’s designation as the “Greenest City in California.” An honor bestowed upon by Arnold Schwarzenegger this year. There are many substantial benefits of using virtual labs; however these must not solely replace the use of real labs in the classroom. We are suggesting a 25/75 split where 25% of wet labs are using lab equipment and 75% will be virtual labs. By creating specific lesson plans and training we can meet our district goals in science while also saving money on more costly lab equipment. The benefits of moving to mobile laptop labs in the classroom will allow our children not only to continue the benefit of labs in the classroom, but will also provide them with much needed skills in the 21st century. Students will learn to type reports and can research lab components simultaneously while completing assignments. The unlimited nature of the web will also give students access to a much larger variety of labs as many can be viewed directly off of university and research websites. The success of this program will be monitored by department chairs from each of the high schools along with the Instructional Manager of Science. Item: HP T4200 Laptop Computers Cost: 210,000 Quantity: 210 Rationale: Each science department will receive a class set of 42 laptops to be used in the department to allow for proposed increases to class size. Item: Cisco 1100 Series Wireless LAN Cost: 4,000 Quantity: 10 Rationale: Each school site will have two wireless access points, one attached to each mobile laptop cart. Itnem: Laptop Carts Cost: 20,000 Quantity: 10 Rationale: Storage and security for laptops will be provided for mobile laptop labs. Item: HP EliteBook 2730p Notebook Cost: 17,000 Quantity: 10 Rationale: Along with each laptop cart will be a teacher tablet PC to provide demonstrations and monitor student computer useage. Item: Synchoneyes Cost: 25,000 Quantity: 5 (One site license for each high school) Rationale: Synchroneyes is a district approved program which allows teachers to monitor individual computers as well as control the spaces that they visit. This will ensure that students are using the internet properly. Item: Promethean Boards Cost: 500,000 Quantity: 50 Rationale: In order to interact with students, teachers will have interactive whiteboards along with a projector and set of ActivVotes. Item: Microsoft Office Professional Edition Cost: 12000 Quantity: 220 licenses Rationale: In order to effectively use laptops, students and teachers will need access to Microsoft Office products. Item: Various Science Lab Software Cost: 112,000 Quantity: 220 licenses for each computer Rationale: Students and teachers will need access to software in order to access certain labs Professional Development: Cost: 100,000 Quantity: 4,000 hours Rationale: Extensive training and follow up support will be provided for 10 teachers at each high school site.
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