April 1st Update (End of Class 4):

So far I have completed about one third of my Action Research Project.  I met with the 4^th grade teachers to talk to them about my research project, its purpose, and the expectations.  They were all excited about gathering this data, because they are curious if their time spent on this program in helpful.  I asked that they all make sure their students complete atleast two articles per week.  Some teachers are having their students rotate during independent reading time each day, and some teachers are taking their entire class to the computer lab once a week.

 I have collected all of my data on this year’s 4^th graders:  Last year’s beginning-of-year reading levels, last year’s end-of-year reading levels, last year’s STAAR results, and this year’s beginning-of-year reading levels.  As the year comes to an end, I will be able to finish collecting my data (end-of-year reading levels and new STAAR results).  I have spent some time researching the KidBiz program itself, but I would like to research the progress other schools have experienced.  I would also like to interview a principal from a school familiar with working with this program.  After all of my data is gathered, I would like to create a survey to gather teacher feedback.  Finally, I would like to meet with my principal to talk about my findings and our future plans for using the program.  I would also like to share the findings, results, and decision with our staff at our beginning of year staff development before the first day of school next year (August 2013).