Tech department ramps up program at Weston High School

Tech department ramps up program at Weston High School

Written by Terry Castellano
Friday, 03 July 2009 00:00

Utilizing a school improvement initiative entitled Project Lead the Way, Weston High School will move toward its goal of encouraging students to consider careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics through its technology education program.

At the June 23 school board meeting, John Drummond, math and science curriculum and instructional leader, and Tom Scarice, assistant superintendent, described a four-year technology education program that will be put into place in the upcoming school year.

The program, Project Lead the Way, was launched in 1997 by an engineer in upstate New York, who created it to address a shortage of engineers in the United States.

Relevant

But, according to Mr. Drummond, the rigor and relevancy of the program, coupled with activity- and problem-based instruction, was found to be an effective means of education improvement across the entire spectrum of science, technology and mathematics curricula.

Weston High School will offer a first year technology education course titled “An Introduction to Engineering Design.” After satisfactory completion of this full-year course, students may move on to “Principals of Engineering Design” and then “Digital Electronics.”

The fourth-year curriculum may offer a variety of choices, including aerospace engineering, Mr. Drummond said.

The Tri-State Consortium, which recently reviewed the district’s science program, recommended the school district continue to address differentiation of instruction, inquiry-based instruction and encouragement of students to consider science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers.

According to Mr. Drummond, Project Lead the Way is a good way to address the issues raised by the consortium while encouraging and challenging high school students in the areas of the sciences, technology and mathematics.

“This is a hands-on, action-oriented program,” Mr. Drummond said.

Since its inception 12 years ago, he said, there are now more than 3,000 schools involved in Project Lead the Way, including New Canaan.

According to their Web site, Project Lead the Way also has a biomedical component.

Recruited

A teacher specializing in technology education has already been recruited and hired by the Weston school district and will be specifically trained for this program.

Board member Dick Bochinski asked if there was any corporate sponsorship in terms of cost sharing.

Mr. Drummond said corporations are interested in working with the students, but, at the moment, there is no outside funding.

“We are looking toward that connection,” Mr. Drummond responded.

“I like this; it’s a truly relevant program,” board member Joe Fitzpatrick said. “I’m glad you’re ramping this up.”

“This is very exciting,” board member Dana Levin, added.

Phil Schaefer, board vice-chairman, asked if the high school had all the technological hardware and software needed to assist the program in a successful launching.

Mr. Drummond said the high school already has the technology needed. “It is all up to date

CT Achievement Gap Larger than Southern States

Racial Gap in Testing Sees Shift by Region

By SAM DILLON

WASHINGTON — Historically, the achievement gap between America’s black and white students was widest in Southern states, where the legacies of slavery and segregation were reflected in extremely low math and reading scores among poor African-American children.

But black students have made important gains in several Southern states over two decades, while in some Northern states, black achievement has improved more slowly than white achievement, or has even declined, according to a study of the black-white achievement gap released Tuesday by the Department of Education.

As a result, the nation’s widest black-white gaps are no longer seen in Southern states like Alabama or Mississippi, but rather in Northern and Midwestern states like Connecticut, Illinois, Nebraska and Wisconsin, according to the federal data.

In interviews, top education officials in several states expressed disappointment at the magnitude of those gaps.

“This won’t be a total surprise,” said Roger D. Breed, Nebraska’s education commissioner, “but it’ll be a shock to Nebraskans that the gap here is as big as it is.”

Officials of the National Center for Education Statistics, which produced the report, told reporters in a conference call that the report offered no hypotheses to explain the evolution in black-white achievement, only statistical comparisons that could spur further research.

Experts said it was impossible to gauge from the report whether the federal No Child Left Behind Law, one of the main goals of which was to reduce the achievement gap, had had an impact.

The study plotted the evolution of average scores of black and white students on the series of federal tests known as the National Assessment of Educational Progress that were administered every two to four years in both math and reading from 1992 to 2007. Nationwide, the average math score in 1992 for white fourth graders was 227 on a 500-point scale, compared with an average score of 192 for black fourth graders that year, resulting in a black-white gap of 35 points.

By 2007, the most recent year included in the new study, the average math scores for white fourth graders had risen to 248, but the average scores for black students had risen to 222, thus narrowing the black-white gap to 26 points, about the equivalent of two and a half years of schooling.

By 2007, the state with the widest black-white gap in the nation on the fourth-grade math test (not counting the District of Columbia) was not in the deep South, but in the Midwest — Wisconsin. White students there scored 250, slightly above the national average, but blacks scored 212, producing a 38-point achievement gap. That average score for black students in Wisconsin was lower than for blacks in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi or any other Southern state, and 10 points below the national average for black students, the study indicated.

Wisconsin was the only state in which the black-white achievement gap in 2007 was larger than the national average in the tests for fourth and eighth grades in both math and reading, according to the study.

Kati Haycock, president of the Education Trust, a nonprofit group in Washington that works to close achievement gaps, said principals in Wisconsin were “stunned” when shown the results.

“Black kids in Wisconsin do worse than in all these Southern states,” and the reason, Ms. Haycock said, was that Wisconsin educators “haven’t been focusing on doing what’s necessary to close these gaps.”

Patrick Gasper, a spokesman for the Wisconsin Department of Education, said, “We know that we have a pronounced achievement gap and that we have to continue focusing our efforts on eliminating it.”

The public schools in Milwaukee, the city with Wisconsin’s largest African-American population, have missed federal achievement targets for five years straight, Mr. Gasper said. Tony Evers, Wisconsin’s new education superintendent, delivered his inaugural speech on July 6 in Milwaukee instead of the state capital, Madison, to emphasize the urgency of new approaches, Mr. Gasper said.

In Nebraska, black student achievement is lower than anywhere in the old South, the federal report indicates. In eighth grade math, for instance, the average score among Nebraska’s black students in 2007 was 240 on a 500-point scale, compared with the national average for blacks of 259, according to the federal data. The average score for black eighth graders was 246 in Alabama, 251 in Mississippi, 258 in Louisiana, and 261 in Georgia.

The average score for white eighth graders in Nebraska in math was 291, almost exactly the national average, resulting in a black-white gap there of 51 points, far larger than in any other state, according to the report.

Mr. Breed said he and other Nebraska officials had gotten word about the findings several days ago.

“We’d kind of had a heads-up that it would not be good news for Nebraska,” he said. “It’s not great to be in the group that has a large gap, but it is what it is — and it’s not acceptable.”

Connecticut is another Northern state where achievement gaps are larger than in states across the South, the federal study shows. That is partly because white students in Connecticut score above the national average, but also because blacks there score lower, on average, than blacks elsewhere.

Warren T. Smith Sr., vice president of the Washington State Board of Education, expressed skepticism about regional variations in the achievement gap.

“I’ve been an African-American male for 60 years, and lived in nine different states, North, South, East and West,” Mr. Smith said. “Certain things are consistent: inequitable distribution of teachers, inequitable funding of schools, institutional racism. That is consistent across the board, so if you expect to find a different gap in North or South, you’re not going to find that.”

Check Out this Florida District CTE Newsletter

Link Here

Project Lead The Way(R) Receives National Recognition from the Education Commission of the States

Organization Works to Strengthen Math and Science Education DENVER, June 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Education Commission of the States (ECS) is pleased to award Project Lead The Way(R) (PLTW) the 2009 ECS Corporate Award. The tribute honors for-profit corporations or non-profit organizations with sustained commitment to and investment in improving public education. The award will be presented by Minnesota Governor and ECS Chair Tim Pawlenty as part of the 2009 National Forum on Education Policy, July 8-10 in Nashville, Tenn. Collaborating with schools, industry, state government and universities, PLTW works to build future generations of successful engineers and technology savvy graduates. PTLW supports a series of middle and high school courses that are project-centered, problem-based and technology-integrated, preparing students to excel in high-tech fields. With rigorous and relevant context tied to national standards, the program responds to a common student question: "Why do I have to learn this?" "This is a perfect example of a public/private partnership engaging and challenging students to apply their skills and knowledge to real life situations," notes ECS President Roger Sampson. Project Lead The Way leadership believe that when schools apply activities and problem-based learning, they generate an "increase in student motivation, an increase in cooperative learning skills, higher-order thinking and an improvement in student achievement." Research has shown this to be true. According to an evaluation by High Schools That Work, PLTW students scored significantly higher in both mathematics and science high school assessments. The National Center for Education Statistics 2006-07 True Outcomes report explains that students who participate in PLTW are five times more likely to graduate college as science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) majors than those who do not. The organization was started in the 1980s in upstate New York by Richard Blais and Richard Liebich, becoming an independent not-for-profit organization in 1997. Today, the program is expanding across the country with an eye to new and engaging curriculum. "We are extremely honored to receive this award, particularly at a time when our country needs a new generation of innovators to remain economically competitive in the 21st century global economy," said John Lock, CEO of Project Lead The Way. "We remain committed to attracting more students to science, math, engineering and tech fields in the coming years by expanding the reach of PLTW's critical-thinking and project-based curriculum to more schools around the country. By helping students apply what they learn in math and science to innovation and real life problem-solving, we can create America's next "Innovation Generation' and regain our economic competitive advantage." The Education Commission of the States (ECS) is the only nationwide, nonpartisan interstate compact devoted to education. ECS helps governors, legislators, state education officials and others identify, develop and implement public policies to improve student learning at all levels. A nonprofit organization, ECS (www.ecs.org) was formed in 1965 and is located in Denver, Colorado. Project Lead The Way(R) is a national 501c3, not-for-profit educational program that helps give middle and high school students the rigorous ground-level education they need to develop strong backgrounds in science and engineering. For more information, please visit: http://www.pltw.org.

Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Announces Partnership with the

Technology Student Association (TSA) and SkillsUSA

New Engineering Alliance to Leverage Best Practices in STEM Education to Attract More Young Students to Technology and Engineering

Clifton Park, N.Y. June 15, 2009 – Project Lead the Way (PLTW) announced today the launch of the Engineering Alliance, a new partnership between PLTW, the Technology Student Association (TSA) and SkillsUSA that will provide PLTW students with the opportunity to participate in innovative activities in science, technology, engineering and math education – outside of the classroom. The alliance will offer STEM-related co-curricular activities for PLTW students to participate in, including online competitions and leadership development activities designed to support teachers and excite students about technology, innovation and engineering. PLTW’s critical thinking and project-based STEM curriculum is currently being implemented at over 3,000 schools and the program reaches over 300,000 students.

“The PLTW curriculum is proof that given the right tools and learning environment, students do get excited about technology and innovation,” said Richard Grimsley, PLTW’s Vice President of Programs.  “We are always looking for new ideas and innovative strategies to attract more students to engineering, including co-curricular activities and competitions. Given their combined 75 years of experience in the industry, TSA and SkillsUSA are just the right partners to help us identify new and interesting ways to engage students.”

Available this coming fall, Engineering Alliance will offer a series of classroom-level competitions and leadership development activities designed specifically for PLTW affiliated middle and high school pre-engineering instructional programs. Proposed contests include electronic gaming, solving a design problem with STEM applications, CAD design, and building an engineering model. Leadership activities will feature teamwork, communication and time management.

“We feel our partnership with SkillsUSA, also a Career and Technical Student Organization (CTSO), is a natural one,” said Rosanne White, executive director of TSA. “SkillsUSA and PLTW share our goal of preparing students for the high tech workforce. TSA is looking forward to collaborating on Engineering Alliance whereby middle and high school students will be challenged to apply what they learn in class through competitions and co-curricular activities.” 

“The Engineering Alliance is an exciting step for America’s future workforce,” said Tim Lawrence, executive director of SkillsUSA.  “PLTW and TSA are doing a tremendous job of attracting more students to engineering, something our country needs to stay competitive in the global economy. SkillsUSA programs teach student and work force leadership, citizenship and character development – all skills that complement what PLTW students are learning in school.”

Project Lead The Way® (PLTW) is a not-for-profit organization that promotes engineering and biomedical sciences courses for middle and high school students. PLTW forms partnerships with public schools, higher education institutions and the private sector to increase the quantity and quality of scientists, engineers and engineering technologists graduating from our educational system. PLTW's curriculum makes math and science relevant for students. By engaging in hands-on, real-world projects, students understand how the skills they are learning in the classroom can be applied in everyday life.   HYPERLINK "http://www.pltw.org/" http://www.pltw.org/ 

The Technology Student Association (TSA) is a national organization for middle and high school students with a strong interest in technology. TSA fosters personal growth, leadership and opportunities in technology, innovation, design and engineering. Members apply and integrate science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) concepts though co-curricular activities, competitive events and related programs. Members are supported by teachers, parents, and business leaders who promote a technologically educated society. TSA serves more than 150,000 students in 2000 schools in 48 states.   HYPERLINK "http://www.tsaweb.org/" http://www.tsaweb.org/ 

SkillsUSA is a national partnership of students, teachers and industry, working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA chapters help students preparing for careers in technical, skilled and service occupations to excel. SkillsUSA has more than 307,000 members in 50 states, three territories and the District of Columbia. SkillsUSA is an applied method of instruction and it provides quality education experiences for students. Its national SkillsUSA Championships is an industry-driven competition to improve education. Over 1,100 corporations, trade associations, businesses and unions are partners at the national level.  HYPERLINK "http://www.skillsusa.org" www.skillsusa.org 

Future City Design Challenge 2010 Registration Opens

Registration for next year’s Future City Design Challenge is open on the national website: www.futurecity.org/. Please register early and encourage other teachers to as well. 

="">Source: NJTEA Update, #24, May 9, 2009

Fingertip Resources for Educational Excellence
F.R.E.E. for the Summer!

As this school year comes to an end, ITEA offers congratulations on a job well done!  We’d like to offer you F.R.E.E. for the Summer! – free resources available to you in a click.  Best wishes for a restful, enjoyable, and productive summer! ITEA offers a wealth of resources at no charge – some are available to ITEA members only, but many are available to everyone.  Here are some of the free resources at your fingertips: 

• Inside TIDE - ITEA's cutting-edge electronic newsletter delivers the latest trends and “inside” information to its subscribers. https://www.iteaconnect.org/Forms/insideTIDEform.htm 
    
• Networking Opportunities - Technology Interest Groups, Learning Communities, Professional Facebook Groups. http://www.iteaconnect.org/Networking/networking.htm 
    
• Tech Ed Websites of Teacher Resources - http://www.iteaconnect.org/Resources/tewebsites.htm
    
• What is Technology Teaching? - http://www.iteaconnect.org/Resources/whatistechteaching.htm
    
• Why Teach Technology? - http://www.iteaconnect.org/Resources/whyteachtechnology.htm
    
• Smithsonian and ITEA - Your source for invention and innovation videos from the Smithsonian's Lemelson Center. By incorporating the stories of famous American inventors the Lemelson Center has created this series of video productions for students that explores the nature and history of invention and innovation. http://www.iteaconnect.org/Publications/LemelsonProducts.pdf
    
• Sample Issues of ITEA journals

The Technology Teacher - ITEA's flagship journal is geared to K-12 technology educators as well as university teacher educators. A free subscription is included with membership but you can access a sample copy here:http://www.iteaconnect.org/Publications/ttt.htm 

Technology and Children - Winner of ASAE's Gold Circle Award for Most Improved Journal and produced four times each school year, Technology and Children is a dynamic, practical journal for anyone interested in technological literacy in Grades K-6. http://www.iteaconnect.org/Publications/t&c.htm ="" style="font-family: 'Arial Narrow'; ">

• Where To Get A Degree – ITEA University members offering Technology Education degree programs.http://www.iteaconnect.org/Resources/institutionalmembers.htm
    
• Corporate Member Product Directory - http://www.iteaconnect.org/Marketplace/onlinedirectory.pdf
    
• ITEA Free Publications (print documents – while supplies last – shipping charges apply) –http://www.iteaconnect.org/Membership/FREEforSummer.pdf

Technology for All Americans: A Rationale and Structure for the Study of Technology
Exploring Technology
Foundations of Technology
Invention and Innovation
Engineering Design
Future Technology Teachers
Road Maps: Perspectives for Excellence in Technology Education Programs
Designing and Learning in the Elementary School
Technology Learning Activities II
Standards for Technological Literacy Summary
Advancing Excellence in Technological Literacy Summary 

• Standards Publications - http://www.iteaconnect.org/TAA/Publications/TAA_Publications.html

Technological Literacy Standards Briefings “Promoting Technological Literacy for All” videos
   
Technological Literacy Standards:
Standards for Technological Literacy: Content for the Study of Technology (STL)
Advancing Excellence in Technological Literacy: Student Assessment,  
Professional Development, and Program Standards (AETL)
   
Addenda to the Standards:
Realizing Excellence: Structuring Technology Programs
Measuring Progress: Assessing Students for Technological Literacy
Planning Learning: Developing Technology Curricula
Developing Professionals: Preparing Technology Teachers 

• ITEA-TfAAP Gallup Polls - Provides valuable, longitudinal data on “What Americans think about technology.” The first Gallup Poll, conducted in 2001, was commissioned by ITEA to find out how Americans view technological literacy. The second ITEA/Gallup Poll survey was conducted in 2004 to validate or question the findings of the first. Funding for the second survey was provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The Gallup Polls were administered through ITEA’s Technology for All Americans Project. http://www.iteaconnect.org/TAA/Publications/TAA_Gallup.html 
    
• ITEA PressRoom - Offering newsletter editors and other interested parties press releases, ads, images, promotional videos, and presentations that relate to ITEA's benefits, publications, and professional development. They are free to use in your publications, on your website or anywhere you think they would be beneficial to teachers. http://www.iteaconnect.org/Resources/PressRoom/pressroom.htm 
    
• Technological Literacy: An Educational Imperative – A brochure outlining why teaching technology literacy is important for today’s students.  http://www.iteaconnect.org/AboutITEA/AdvocacyBro08.pdf