Friday, October 7, 2011
Welcome
As we make this transition to a STEM focused school, we understand that there might be many questions, comments, and ideas. This blog is a place for you to ask questions, share STEM ideas, or contact us. The main responder will be the STEM Specialist. If you have a specific question for a classroom teacher or specialist, please add that to your post and I will pass it on to that person. We will try to respond to all posts in a timely manner.
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It's my impression that Benton is adopting the EiE curriculum in an effort to improve the school's performance on aptitude tests. What aspects of the new curriculum are they hoping will make a difference? Also, what's the projected timeline for full integration of the new curriculum and the STEM focus? -Jennifer
ReplyDeletePart of our mission at Benton STEM Elementary is to "set high expectations and use effective instructional strategies to meet the needs of all learners." The implementation of the Engineering is Elementary Curriculum as well as greater use of technology tools, use of the 5E Model in Quality Science Teaching (QuEST), and inquiry and project-based learning are all aimed at heping our students be more successful. Aptitude tests are one way to measure academic achievement, and while we hope to see gains in this area, they are not the only unit of measuring our success as a STEM school. The greatest aspect of EiE which we have found so far is the inclusion of the engineering thought process or engineering cycle in all areas of instruction. That is, "Ask, Imagine, Plan, Create, Improve." This way of thinking is helping our students become better problem solvers today and in the future. As for implementation and integration of STEM, we will continue to build upon STEM this school year and plan for full integration by the end of 2012-2013 pending grant funding we are currently pursuing. Thank you so much for your questions and please consider visiting Benton STEM Elementary to tour our campus. - Troy Hogg (Principal)
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