As teachers ourselves, we understand the challenges of finding funding for teaching resources. We know that budgets vary widely from school to school, and that in many cases teachers don’t have access to funding required to purchase subscriptions to Pivot Interactives. But we’ve also heard from teachers who have been successful in finding funding to use Pivot Interactives. The purpose of this posting is to share these ideas in hopes that they’ll be helpful to other teachers.
First, let’s look at reasons why school administrations should support teachers who want to use Pivot Interactives. When talking to administrators who can help with funding, consider the following ideas:
Try it out! Start with our 30 day free trial and encourage administration to do the same! Don't think they will test a free trial? Share this intro video or send us a message (with the chat in the bottom right corner) to set up a demo.
Check out our Pivotal Bloggers blog posts to get more ideas on how you can use a Pivot your classroom as part of a well-balanced unit plan.
Teachers have been successful in gaining funding by outlining for the administrator what the outcomes would be. Specifically, this teacher wanted to use Pivot Interactives to improve science process skills. The teacher incorporated Pivot Interactives in to a SMART goal, with the aim that 80% of students in an on-level physics class would demonstrate mastery of linearizing a data set and stating the physical meaning of the slope and intercept of the equation. Further, the teacher agreed to share the results with the rest of the department as their curriculum migrates towards NGSS.
Another teacher suggested that her administrators supported her efforts because she already had a history of successfully innovating interactive teaching in her classroom. She presented Pivot Interactives as part of a cohesive approach to interactive teaching, not just a fad or short-term fix.
Pivot Interactives has content for Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Earth Science, and Environmental Science. Not only will students already be familiar with the platform, but they will also be able to connect each of their classes, experiences the same phenomena from the lenses of each class. And it doesn't hurt that per-student prices for Pivot Interactives decrease with high quantity licenses!
Even if administrators agree that Pivot Interactives is worth funding, finding a source of funds may not be straightforward. One of the most consistent suggestions we’ve heard from teachers is to look beyond the teacher’s discretionary budget for lab equipment. Pivot Interactives is a new genre, a new kind of educational tool, and can be funded by technology innovation funds or curriculum funds, not just capital or equipment budgets.
We have a whole blog post about using ESSER Funding for Science with Pivot Interactives. Check it out here.
ESSA, Title IV, Part A, Student Support and Academic Enrichment (SSAE) Program often can be used to support science programs through Pivot Interactives.
"The SSAE program is intended to improve students’ academic achievement by increasing the capacity of State educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), and local communities to provide all students with access to a well-rounded education; improve school conditions for student learning; and improve the use of technology to improve the academic achievement and digital literacy of all students."
Learn more about ESSA Title IV Funds here.
In most districts, ESSER & ESSA funds will be allocated by district-level leadership. If you are a teacher, let’s work together to share why phenomena-based, active learning is important in your classroom. Email us at sales@pivotinteractives.com with your name, district, and position, and let’s chat.
We understand the challenges and want to assist you, our fellow teachers & educators. Need a powerpoint, flyer, case study, or demo presentation? Just ask!
Have you had success in gaining administrative support for using Pivot Interactives? Share with us your secrets to success!
