Recent articles
Computer Science for ALL: Where Does Your State Stand?
10/12/2022
Topics: Computational Thinking, computer science
All jobs of the future will require some computer literacy skills so it’s increasingly important that quality computer science (CS) education is an urgent priority for school systems around the globe.
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4 Strategies for Building a Community STEM Program
12/21/2021
Topics: Makerspaces
ISTE Certified Educator Shares Tips for Informal Learning Organizations
As more informal learning organizations begin to offer programs that engage kids and foster real-world skills, many are…
Students Can Create a Work of Code Art
05/12/2021
Topics: art, coding, computer science
Tim Needles is an advocate for bringing the arts to STEM education. But one of his favorite classroom projects actually brings STEM to the arts.
Needles, an art teacher at Smithtown High School East on…
Equity Literacy for STEM Educators
02/19/2020
Topics: Computational Thinking, digital equity
In the context of STEM education, it is not enough for schools to identify the content and skills needed for K-12 students to become STEM ready. School leaders, STEM educators and educational stakeholders must…
Lessons to Keep Hour of Code Going Year-Round
11/29/2021
Topics: Computational Thinking, computer science
Each December, schools around the world celebrate Hour of Code. Launched by Code.org in 2013, the…
Reflections on coding from an open-minded skeptic
02/05/2019
Topics:
“We’ve come full circle since 1981.” That was my first thought a few years ago, when I began to hear about the necessity of teaching coding in K-12 schools.
Back in the 1980s, programming was the buzzword. Logo, BASIC and Pascal programming were required classes for the…
Profile of a technologically literate graduate
01/07/2019
Topics:
When school leaders set out to create a profile of their ideal graduate, many trip up on defining technological literacy and subsequently struggle to…
Use Coding to Engage Students in Reading, Writing Lessons
02/26/2021
Topics: Coding & robotics, Literacies
It’s easy to think of coding as a skill that applies only to math or science, or to think coding is something not easily taught to the youngest learners. Heidi Williams is busting those myths, proving coding can be applied to reading and writing,…
Why STEM recruitment programs aren't working
12/28/2018
Topics:
Maker faires, science camps, robotics competitions — they’re often the go-to strategies for recruiting students to STEM careers. Kids who are passionate about STEM find them irresistible. But are they effective at winning over students who are on the fence about it?
The…
Embed literacy into STEM projects
05/01/2018
Topics:
STEM is nothing without literacy.
As STEM/STEAM educators, we want to help students think and…