Incorporating Technology for Literacy Development in an Afterschool Program

Format

Individual Presentation

Presenters

Sheliah G. Durham, Clemson UniversityFollow

First Presenter's Institution

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First Presenter’s Email Address

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First Presenter's Brief Biography

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Location

Scarbrough 4

Strand #1

Academic Achievement & School Leadership

Strand #1

Head: Academic Achievement & Leadership

Strand #2

Head: Academic Achievement & Leadership

Relevance

Research indicates the use of technology improves standardized test scores, literacy development, as well as critical thinking and inquiry(Alvarez, 2013; Burnett, 2010; Duran, 2002 ;Huang & Dietel, 2011; Yang & Wu, 2012). Therefore, incorporating iPads in afterschool programming is a salient practice impacting academic performance and attendance.

Brief Program Description

School districts around the country have been introducing iPad rollout to K-12 students since before 2012. iPads are slowly taking the place of textbooks, providing teachers and students with more up-to-date information and an interactive experience with the information (Alvarez, 2013). This presentation will provide an overview of implementation in an afterschool program, training, examples of student work and easy to follow lesson plans for digital projects.

Summary

The purpose of this presentation is to highlight the advantages of iPad use in an afterschool program to support academic achievement and increased motivation in literacy. School districts around the country have been introducing iPad rollout to K-12 students since before 2012. iPads are slowly taking the place of textbooks, providing teachers and students with more up-to-date information and an interactive experience with the information (Alvarez, 2013). During the 2014-15 academic school year, Anderson County District 1 implemented a one-to-one iPad program k-12 (Meade, 2014). The GoalPOST afterschool program (a 21^st Century Community Learning Center Program) is offered in four elementary schools in the district. GoalPOST also introduced iPad use in the afterschool program as well as provided support and training to the afterschool staff.

Anecdotal evidence provided by the regular day teachers of the GoalPOST attendees, maintain the use of the iPads in the afterschool program enhanced academic achievement in literacy as well as increased motivation. The GoalPOST After-School program utilized the iPads in after school time in areas such as homework, academic enrichment, art, and other digital media projects.

A recent policy report by National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, & Student Teaching (CRESST) (Huang & Dietel, 2011) noted five overarching components of successful afterschool programs. Frequent use of technology was highlighted within the category of program alignment to the academic day. The growth of student attendees in afterschool programs has increased significantly in the past decade, with 10.2 million students attending afterschool programs (Afterschool Alliance, 2015). Of those, 1.6 million are attending programs funded via the federal program 21^st Century Community Learning Centers (21^st CCLC). With the increasing use of technology and the growth of attendees in afterschool programs, this presentation highlights the advantages of incorporating iPad use in afterschool programming.

The presentation will provide an overview of implementation, training, examples of student work and easy to follow lesson plans for digital projects.

Evidence

Extensive research indicates the effectiveness of technology in increasing academic performance (Alvarez, 2013; Burnett, 2010; Duran, 2002 ;Huang & Dietel, 2011; Yang & Wu, 2012). Furthermore, research in the area of afterschool programming indicates regular attendees have improved scores on standardized tests and higher regular school daily attendance (Huang, Bribbons, Kim, Lee, & Baker, 2000; Huang, Leon, La Torre, & Mostafari; 2008; Munoz, 2002). Therefore, we collected anecdotal evidence from regular day school teachers on the afterschool attendees. The anecdotal evidence suggests the incorporation of iPads and the digital media curriculum in the GoalPOST afterschool program increased students literacy performance as well as increased their motivation and engagement.

Learning Objective 1

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Learning Objective 2

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Learning Objective 3

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Biographical Sketch

Sheliah G. Durham is a doctoral candidate at Clemson University in Curriculum and Instruction. She is the Project Director for GoalPOST 3.

Melanie Lewis is the Project Director for GoalPOST 4. She holds a Masters Degree in Education and has extensive experience with afterschool programming.

Dr. David Fleming is an Associate Professor at Clemson University and is the Graduate Coordinator for the university. Dr. Fleming's research and service has culminated in the primary or co-authorship of over 120 articles and technical reports and over 100 state, national, and international presentations in the areas of teaching/learning processes in physical education/activity, program evaluation, and out-of-school time education programming.

Cindy Coker is a Resource Teacher at West Pelzer Elementary School and the Site Coordinator for the GoalPOST afterschool program. She is National Board Certified and has taught for more than 20 years.

Keyword Descriptors

Afterschool programming; increased academic performance; literacy; motivation; engagment

Presentation Year

2016

Start Date

3-9-2016 9:45 AM

End Date

3-9-2016 11:00 AM

Recommended Citation

Durham, Sheliah G., "Incorporating Technology for Literacy Development in an Afterschool Program" (2016). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 119.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2016/2016/119