Launched in 2007 by ETR Associates, a Scotts Valley-based nonprofit focused on health, education and social service issues, Watsonville TEC (also known as ITEST project Animando a Estudiantes con Technologia) has grown from a small program serving middle school girls (known as the ITEST Girl Game Company) to include video game programming classes for middle school boys, separate computer skills tutorials for fifth graders and for parents, and
STELAR hosted the NSF Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) Principal Investigator & Evaluator Convening on Tuesday, August 19, and Wednesday, August 20, 2014, at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC. The convening was for active ITEST PIs and evaluators and was an opportunity to share successes, challenges, and lessons learned from the ITEST program. The event preceded the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) Principal Investigator Meeting at the Marriott Wardman Park.
Presenters: Chris Dede, PI, Studying Technology-based Strategies for Enhancing Student Interest in STEM Careers through Algebra Curricula in Grades 5-9; Beth McGrath, PI, BISU; Carolyn Staudt, PI, ITSI-SU; Brad Barker, PI, National Robotics in 4-H: Workforce Skills for the 21st Century
In addition to an NSF cross-program panel and keynote addresses, this Summit featured numerous breakout sessions hosted by ITEST project PIs and evaluators in 4 strands: Shaping educational pathways to STEM careers, Embedding research and assessment into project work, Evaluation, and Topics of general interest.
Embedding Research and Assessment into Project Work
This Summit's focus was on Using Evaluation-Research Methodology to Inform Workforce Development Strategies and Project Scale-Up. Several of the summit presentations and panels were archived.
See link to Summit highlights.
The Technology Self-Assessment Tool (TSAT) has been designed for:teachers, to determine their own levels of technology proficiency and to identify personal technology professional development needs;schools/districts, to assess their professional development needs and to plan professional development activities that will help all teachers become proficient in technology;and, the State, to gather and report data on technology competencies and technology professional development.The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education adapted the Technology Self-Assessment Tool