The project RDE-FRI: The Effectiveness of Texas Instruments Navigator Technology on the Algebra I Achievement and Attitudes of High School Students with Learning Disabilities or Who are "At Risk" is a 36-month, $299,924 dollar award funded by the Research in Disabilities Education (RDE) program's Focused Research Initiatives (FRI) track. The primary goal of this project is to determine the effectiveness of using Texas Instruments Navigator (TIN) technology with students who have learning disabilities, or who are at risk for academic failure, in high school algebra coursework. The experienced team, which is from the University of Mississippi and which is lead by one expert in math education and another professional with expertise in special education, is conducting a quasi-experimental study of the impact of the TIN technology on student math achievement and attitudes toward the use of technology in high school math. This investigation involves approximately 1,000 high school students taking Algebra I classes at ten (10) public schools in northern Mississippi, including approximately 100 students who have learning disabilities. Forty (40) algebra classes are randomly assigned to an intervention group, where students use calculators and TIN technology, or to a control group where students only use calculators. The TIN technology includes hubs for the calculators and a computer with a projector allowing teachers to monitor students' calculator work and to display student work for the entire class. The team's industry collaboration with Texas Instruments provides students with access to math technology and offers professional development training for high school math teachers to ensure successful instructional use of the TIN technology.
The project addresses two (2) of the FRI track goals: To investigate effective instructional methods and practices for people with disabilities in STEM; and to add value to the education of persons with disabilities in STEM by implementing the use of technologies in educational environments. The project includes a formative and summative project evaluation which is being conducted by an experienced external evaluator, Paul Brandon, from the University of Hawaii. There is also a dissemination plan which includes providing video and audio podcasts for professionals, presenting information at the annual meeting of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), publishing in peer-reviewed math and special education journals, and sharing results with the professional leadership of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education and NCTM.
