Funding from a teachers union, a foundation and a utility will provide $400,000 to help train teachers in science, technology, engineering and math, Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia announced Tuesday.
The National Education Association is providing $200,000, with $150,000 coming from the Morgridge Family Foundation and $50,000 from Xcel Energy. The money will go to the New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning for expansion of its STEM training programs into Colorado.
The NEA hopes to raise $1.5 million for expansion of the program to other states. Colorado is the first state to participate in the program.
The announcement was made at Northglenn High School, which is transitioning into a STEM school.
Help choose the book
The One Book 4 Colorado campaign has launched its selection process for the children’s book that will be a focus of efforts to increase student reading this year.
Members of the public are invited to visit the campaign’s website and vote for a book. The choices are: “Duck on a Bike” by David Shannon, “Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale” by Mo Willems and “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom” by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault.
The website also has videos of Colorado celebrities, including Gov. John Hickenlooper and Olympic medalist Missy Franklin, reading excerpts in English and Spanish.
The public can vote on the books through Jan. 31. The winning title will be announced May 6 after the group’s steering committee weighs public comment and recommendations from educators and participating groups.
More than 70,000 copies of the 2013 book will be distributed to children across Colorado at local library events, during Reach Out and Read clinics and at doctors’ offices, and through participating preschools. The book will be available in English and Spanish and will be accessible to children with special needs.
Legacy Foundation calls for entries
The Colorado Legacy Foundation has launched its Ignite Innovation Challenge, a contest that invites Colorado educators to submit video entries that answer the question, “How are you dramatically personalizing learning?”
Entries may be submitted over the next 32 days, and there will be cash prizes for the three top winners as decided by a panel of judges. Go here to learn more and submit your entry.
STEM Grant: New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning:
I have a hard time comprehending how anyone can look at this and believe it is helping further STEM education. This is by no stretch of the imagination a Science and Math training program. Where is the Technology and Engineering part? I see that the NJCTL indicates that interactive white boards and laptops make up the “Technology” part. Here is the issue I and many Technology Engineering teachers and proponents have. There is Ed Tech, which is made up of support items such as, white boards and laptops, and then there is Tech Ed. which is the study of the human made world. This is identified by the ITEEA (International Technology Education and Engineering Association) as the areas of Construction, Communication, Manufacturing, Transportation, Bio-Technology, and Power and Energy. Technology Education and Engineering education classes give students hands-on project based learning activities that have real world connections. In these classes students use math principles and science theory, putting them to use; while designing, building testing and evaluating projects. Students utilize 21st century skills such as, problem solving, critical and creative thinking, and collaboration among many others. If the T & E of STEM are left out of the big picture we are fooling our public in funding a true STEM program. Even worse we are doing an injustice to our students!
We really need to open up the conversation when it comes to STEM. It appears too often that people/groups want to corner the market on STEM and not let anyone else play in their sandbox. We need to ask the experts, those in the trenches day in and day out to all work together. This means that here in Colorado we need to bring together the groups that represent these four areas of STEM; the Colorado Technology Education Association (which represents Tech Ed and Engineering teachers) the Colorado Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the Colorado Association of Science Teachers. These should be the leaders called upon by the Colorado Department of Education and the legislature to help ensure that STEM becomes a well rounded focus in our state.
Marc A. Finer
Technology Education and Engineering Teacher