Computer Science Teachers Association Adds CoderZ’s Professional Development Program to Curated List of Quality Resources

DERRY, N.H. – April 20, 2021 – After a rigorous evaluation, the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) has added CoderZ to its online list of professional learning programs. The list enables K-12 computer science (CS) teachers to find quality professional development opportunities and associated curriculum that fit their needs and goals.

An independent committee of experts evaluated the CoderZ professional development programs using a detailed rubric aligned to quality indicators such as the following:

  • Content Focus
  • Active Learning
  • Collaboration
  • Differentiation
  • Models and Modeling
  • Inclusivity
  • Accessibility
  • Feedback and Reflection
  • Scale and Sustainability
  • Efficacy
  • Ongoing Support
  • Sustained Duration

The CoderZ professional development program introduces instructors to the concepts of teaching computer science and computational thinking using an online tool. Participants learn robotics and coding best practices as well as strategies to successfully leverage a graphic programming interface. In addition, the program hones the skills needed to reinforce student engagement, application, exploration and use of communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity.…Read More

Professional development should remain a pandemic priority

For Diane Lauer, Assistant Superintendent of Priority Programs and Academic Support at St. Vrain Valley Schools in Colorado, COVID couldn’t stop teacher training. In fact, her work became that much more important.

In this conversation with eSchool News, Diane breaks down her strategies for keeping faculty on point with technology and instruction. [Edited for clarity.]

eSN: Before the pandemic struck, would it be fair to say there was a general resistance amongst some teachers, who would be skeptical of various aspects of professional development? How have remote setups changed the way you teach those teachers?…Read More

The College Board Partners with PBLWorks to Train Teachers for New AP Courses Rooted in Project Based Learning

PBLWorks, the leading provider of professional development for Project Based Learning (PBL), has partnered with the College Board to offer a new PBL-based professional development program for Advanced Placement (AP) courses in Environmental Science and U.S Government and Politics. The new courses use a Project Based Learning method of teaching and are based on powerful new breakthrough research just released by the Center for Economic and Social Research at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, that found PBL coupled with high-quality professional development significantly improves student performance when compared to students in non-PBL classrooms.

Specifically, the research demonstrated that high school students in AP classes who engaged in hands-on, inquiry-based projects with real-world applications performed higher than their peers on AP U.S. Government and Politics and AP Environmental Science exams. In year one of a randomized controlled trial in five U.S. cities they scored 8 percentage points higher, and in year two of the study they scored 10 percentage points higher – and they were more likely to earn a qualifying score of 3 or above which could increase their chance of receiving college credit and saving on tuition.

“We’ve seen the impact of PBL firsthand in our work with schools and now this research provides proof of its impact on students who are taking AP classes,” said Bob Lenz, CEO of PBLWorks, “That’s why we’ve partnered with the College Board to support new project-based AP courses that are relevant, authentic, and engaging.”…Read More

Registration is Now Open for the 10th annual PBL World Conference

PBLWorks, the leading provider of professional development for high-quality Project Based Learning (PBL), will host its 10th annual PBL World conference virtually on June 21-24, 2021 with the theme “Racial Equity at the Center.”

The conference, which last year drew more than 1,000 teachers and school and district leaders from 37 states and 26 countries, offers inspiring speakers, engaging workshops, and dedicated time for networking. PBLWorks is presenting the conference online for the second year in a row in order to support teachers and administrators who can’t travel or who prefer to attend virtually due to the pandemic.

This year’s theme “Racial Equity at the Center” highlights the power of Project Based Learning to advance educational equity for all students — especially Black and Brown students. Keynoters will bring their perspectives on how participants can put equity at the center of their work. And during workshops, attendees will consider educational equity in their classrooms and their projects.…Read More

PBLWorks Expands its Online Services for 2021

PBLWorks, the leading provider of professional development for high-quality Project Based Learning (PBL), is expanding its selection of online offerings for teachers seeking to start or accelerate their use of Project Based Learning. Options include immersive 3-day workshops, 8-week courses, and 2-week “pop-up-projects” to do with your students. All are offered online and are easily accessible for teachers who can’t attend in-person because of their location, schedule or restrictions due to the pandemic.

The power of Project Based Learning is its ability to engage and inspire students, and now more than ever due to the pandemic, teachers are challenged to keep their students connected and engaged in their learning. PBLWorks is supporting educators by creating more opportunities to meet their needs for PBL professional development, especially those who are getting started on their own.

“We experienced extremely positive feedback this year for our online workshops and courses, with participants overwhelmingly saying they would recommend them to a colleague,” said Bob Lenz, CEO of PBLWorks. “By offering more online options in 2021, we’ll be able to help even more teachers implement Gold Standard PBL with their students, inside or outside of the classroom.”…Read More

mindSpark Learning Impacts Record Number of Eductors Amid COVID-19 with 207% Rise in Professional Learning Participants

Education has been significantly impacted by COVID-19. Educators have been tasked with pivoting from in-person to remote learning more than once in many districts across the country. mindSpark Learning, a Denver-based national nonprofit dedicated to empowering educators with industry-oriented professional learning experiences, reported today it has seen a dramatic increase in educators seeking professional development (PD) and resources to upskill them in challenging times. Since March 2020, MindSpark has impacted more than 10,000 educators across 1,800 schools and districts around the world. This is a 207% increase in the total number of educators to participate in MindSpark PD offerings.

In response to COVID-19, the MindSpark team jumped into action to develop additional resources that address contingency planning, the sudden shift to remote learning, and provide additional networking and support opportunities through its Online Toolkit and reSOLVE series. While the session volume increased due to these new pandemic-related offerings, so did the average number of participants per session, which rose 133%.

mindSpark Learning prides itself on being accessible without creating a cost burden on educators. Thanks to generous support from community and industry partners, educators saved upwards of $396,150 on PD costs by choosing mindSpark Learning. Between March and November, 45% of participants experienced professional learning from MindSpark for the first time, while 55% trusted the organization enough to return for support and PD needs. Additionally, 43% of educators relying on MindSpark thus far come from rural or remote environments.…Read More

Rhode Island Department of Ed Names Curriculum Associates’ i-Ready® an Approved Interim Assessment

The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) recently named Curriculum Associates’ i-Ready Diagnostic as an approved interim assessment for the 2020–2021 school year. Now, local education agencies (LEAs) across the state will have access to the award-winning online program for students in Grades K–12 as well Curriculum Associates’ accompanying professional development to support educators as they work to improve student achievement in both reading and mathematics. Today, the i-Ready program serves more than eight million students and approximately 25 percent of all K–8 students in the United States.

“RIDE naming i-Ready Diagnostic to this list further validates the use of our assessment by our many school partners in the state,” said Rob Waldron, CEO of Curriculum Associates. “And, it allows us to serve even more educators in Rhode Island to meet their assessment needs, as well as provide them with both practical and effective professional learning to support their ongoing instruction.”

In response to the current pandemic requiring flexibility in how learning takes place, RIDE sought to provide LEAs with high-quality, computer-based interim assessments in English language arts and mathematics to support the measurement of student learning progress at certain points throughout the year, as well as to diagnose learning gaps and inform teachers where students need additional supports. After a rigorous review, i-Ready Diagnostic was named one of the chosen assessments for meeting RIDE’s assessment criteria.…Read More

7 Mindsets and K12, Inc. Virtual Schools Expand Partnership

7 Mindsets, the pioneer in delivering social emotional learning (SEL) solutions that include mindsets, equity and multicultural pedagogy, is taking on an expanded role in the SEL delivered by K12, Inc., one of the nation’s leading virtual/online education providers. 7 Mindsets will now provide SEL courses and curriculums, leadership training and teacher professional development throughout the entire K12, Inc., system for the next three years.

7 Mindsets and K12, Inc., alliance began in 2014. At that time, 7 Mindsets provided services for four schools designed to help struggling students that were on the verge of dropping out. Three years later, K12, Inc., added 11 more schools to the 7 Mindsets roster. With the expanded partnership, 7 Mindsets is now serving all of K12 Inc.’s schools and over 120,000 students, up from just 27,000 students in 2019.

“K12, Inc., is the largest virtual school organization in the United States, and we are very pleased to be an integral part of their expanding SEL program,” said 7 Mindsets President, Lupita Knittel. “We know that our age-appropriate, culturally-relevant curriculum is not only engaging but as an adaptable, digital curriculum it’s the perfect resource for a virtual school environment.”…Read More

PresenceLearning Partners with the Council of Administrators of Special Education

PresenceLearning, the leading provider of live online special education related services for K-12 schools, today announced a new partnership with the Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE). Through this partnership, PresenceLearning will support the professional development of CASE members by providing access to its clinical experts and influential partners, as well as offering exclusive webinars, presentations, and other programming throughout the year and at the upcoming 2020 CASE Virtual Fall Conference on November 5-7, 2020.

“We are thrilled to be expanding our partnership with PresenceLearning. As the leaders in delivering special education related services to students via teletherapy and tele-assessment, they are uniquely positioned to help our members navigate this especially challenging school year. We look forward to bringing more of their clinical expertise and content to our members,” said Phyllis Wolfram, CASE Executive Director.

CASE is an international professional education organization of members dedicated to shaping policies and practices which impact the quality of education. It is one of 18 divisions of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) and supports members by providing opportunities to expand professional networks, exchange knowledge, and advance careers. Through this new partnership, CASE members will have opportunities to learn from PresenceLearning’s clinical experts, as well as influential partners such as Dr. Isaiah Pickens, CEO of iOpening Enterprises, who recently developed a trauma-informed, small group therapy program, for PresenceLearning to exclusively deliver remotely, designed to help students struggling with behavioral and mental health challenges.…Read More

PBLWorks and ISTE Partner to Offer New Course for Teachers

PBLWorks, the leading provider of professional development for high-quality Project Based Learning (PBL), has partnered with the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) to create a new self-paced ISTE U course, “Leading Project-Based Learning with Technology” to help teachers build their capacity to implement Gold Standard PBL with technology tools.

The course is for teachers and instructional staff who are familiar with technology and are looking for an entry point into PBL, or those who are interested in learning more about both PBL and technology integration. It challenges participants to respond to the driving question, “How can I maximize the benefits of Project-Based Learning by effectively integrating digital tools?”

“Leading Project-Based Learning with Technology” is a 5-hour, self-paced course. It costs $49 for ISTE members and $65 for non-members.…Read More

Teacher & Principal School Report Findings

Scholastic, with YouGov, surveyed public school Pre-K–12 educators in winter 2020 to gather their thoughts on equity in education, literacy instruction, family engagement, professional development, and funding priorities. This summer (July 23–August 4), amid the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, Scholastic re-contacted 790 of these educators to see how their views shifted and ask new questions about their priorities and feelings heading into a new academic year.

The full summary of the research findings, here on the Scholastic EDU blog:

https://edublog.scholastic.com/post/teachers-and-principals-reflect-covid-19-and-academic-year-ahead…Read More