Digitizing the K-8 portion of the Positive Action program for web-delivery.

This project, titled “Digitizing the K-8 Portion of the Positive Action Program for Web-Based Delivery,” is in response to Priority Two (Products) of the U.S. Department of Education Small Business Innovation Research Program, RFP Number: errd080008. The anticipated start date of this six-month grant is June 1st, 2006. The Positive Action (PA) program is a comprehensive approach to school reform that includes all of those features thought essential in an achievement and social/character education program; however, we are finding that our current delivery medium is not conducive to including the identification of academic standards. It isn't feasible to pair academic standards with each lesson within a bound manual, as academic standards are different for each state and would require us to print 49 different manuals for each grade level. In contrast, a digitized curriculum would provide educators a dynamic program they clearly desire and need. For this project we propose to develop the digital infrastructure of the PA program’s 4th Grade Instructor’s Kit, digitize and incorporate materials into the digital infrastructure, test and modify the system’s functionality and, using approximately 100 4th grade teacher participants, perform a small-scale randomized experimental evaluation of the usability of the newly developed digital system. We anticipate that teachers that receive the digital version of the curriculum, versus control-group teachers that continue using the traditional version, will rate the digital version more usable and, consequently, will implement the digital version with more fidelity. If true, possible direct benefits for teachers include an increased understanding and use of the PA program within the classroom. The entire educational system will benefit from improved knowledge regarding curricula and implementation, which results in improved student behavior and performance.