Claiborne Pell Elementary School, in partnership with the East Bay Educational Collaborative (EBEC), announced this week that Captain James R. McIver, commander of Naval Station Newport, RI, is beginning the professional development of the school’s teachers. Primary Skin who volunteered to pilot the first year of Reach the stars, a $ 500,000 STEAM K-4 program funded by DoDEA.
Captain McIver will speak with Pell’s teachers at 8:30 a.m. on Aug. 23 at EBEC’s professional development facilities located at 317 Market Street in Warren, RI.
According to an EBEC press release, Reach the stars it has three main objectives. 1) Increase the percentage of military-connected elementary school students who get science scores by 5% each year. 2) Improve the healthy eating and balance habits between school and school life of military-related primary school students by 5% each year. 3) Increase the percentage of military-connected primary school students participating in STEAM events by 10% each year. All Pell students will have access to resources and programs funded by grants, so all students will benefit.
“It is critical to our national security that our students take an interest in critical and fast-growing careers in STEM and that our PreK-12 education system is ready to increase and maintain students’ commitment to STEM, ”Committee on STEM Education of the National Science and Technology Council in a statement.
“Guided professional development and a broad toolbox for teachers will deepen students’ understanding of science and math, while developing healthy literacy and external connections, ”said Kimberly Behan, deputy superintendent of Newport Public Schools at a statement.
According to EBEC, Reach the stars combines Pell’s pre-existing science program (Full Option Science System, FOSS) and outdoor spaces with engaging technology and three-dimensional learning through the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). During the first week of professional development, teachers will learn and practice instructional strategies to deepen their understanding and application of the three dimensions NGSS; Science and engineering practices (SEP), transversal concepts (CCC) and disciplinary basic ideas (DCI). SEPs include discussions about student sensation, through which a teacher facilitates students ’interpretation of activities and data. CCCs, such as patterns and cause and effect, provide an organizational schema for interrelating knowledge from various fields of science to a coherent, science-based worldview. Teachers will learn to instruct children outside using outdoor FOSS connections with gardening and an external magnetic wall provided by grants to collect data and represent graphs.
During the second week of professional development at EBEC, teachers will learn how to code and pilot drones and access augmented reality / virtual reality (AR / VR) systems from zSpace. The training includes instructions on using block coding in Python and linking technology to NGSS. The 60 AR / VR systems provided by zSpace allow children to kinesthetically explore, rotate, and experiment with abstract objects and concepts that are too small, too distant, or too complex for them to understand otherwise. Through this system, elementary school children can practically dive into a volcano, dissect a cactus, and explore the solar system. zSpace is creating SEL activities, FOSS connections, and outdoor-related activities that teachers can use to attract students. Aquidneck Community Table, which manages Pell’s orchards, will contribute to gardening connections. During the second week of training, presentations by SEL experts will be incorporated that will share methods to include socio-emotional learning, support students connected to the military, and encourage Pell children to make healthy decisions.
According to grant writer Kathryn Jessen-Eller of EBEC, “we expect teachers and their students to use AR / VR technology to create garden projects that promote healthy eating and foster interest in the natural world. A similar model was successfully used at M. Agnes Jones Elementary in Atlanta, Georgia. The long-term goal is to expose young students to a variety of technologies, experiments and engineering design challenges in a variety of settings, so that they are considered scientists and engineers with clear pathways to STEM careers. ”
Reach the stars it begins with the professional development of the faculty held through Captain McIver’s keynote speech.
The program runs for four and a half years until June 2025.