Technology & Learning - October 2007 - (Page 25)

Additional alarming figures come from the National Center for Educational Statistics, which places the national higher-education attrition rate in science and engineering fields at 50 percent. In response to the broader STEM movement, and due to a personal frustration over a lack of qualified engineers for his New York–based industrial manufacturing company, Richard Liebich spearheaded Project Lead the Way in 1997. PLTW is a learning initiative designed to engage middle and high school students in the real-world challenges of civil, architectural, biotechnical, aerospace, and other fields of engineering, and to improve their chances for academic and career success. PTLW’s impact is already significant; more than 200,000 students are expected to complete coursework in the 2007-’08 school year. Results can also be seen in increased college attendance rates and a reduced minority achievement gap. (See graphic, opposite page.) and a range of digital applications such as architectural design, CAD technology, robotics, and digital electronics on which kids might choose to focus. According to Kane, such schools are great not just for learning applied skills, but also for exposing students to a variety of career options. One particular category of the new academies that have sprung up is the digital media academy. Based on a two-year, post–high school model, these schools offer students professional-level training in areas, including animation and sound and video production, that allow them to fill job slots in the entertainment world and, increasingly, the business world. Jill Duffy, editor in chief of GameCareerGuide.com, a spinoff of Game Developer Magazine, reports there are nearly 500 schools and programs devoted to video game production registered on their Web site alone. Technology Academy, a STEM school for grades 6–12 slated to aid in the region’s economic development by increasing the number of skilled workers. And in Washington, D.C., McKinley Technology High School principal Dan Gohl took a 100 percent minority, failing, inner city school and turned it into a model of career- and collegeprep programs with three innovative graduation tracks: biomedical, broadcasting, and game development (for details, see “Game Plan,” in the October 2005 issue of T&L). International Trends On the international front, national education organizations are partnering with companies like Certiport, Sun Microsystems, Cisco Systems, and Autodesk (see “Certification Academies, page 28) that offer certification programs in IT and specific software applications. Adobe is one such company, and its research in the UK, Australia, Canada, and other countries shows that Web site development, animation, and video creation and editing are key job skills on the immediate landscape. Findings also show that certification in applications such as Adobe’s Photoshop and Flash give applicants a definite leg up in the hiring process. According to Colin Maxwell, of the Institute for Computing in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, education programs there have formed strong partnerships at the national level to align IT training with the country’s goals and to be sure students possess “employability” skills in line with business expectations. Indeed, the area of certification is exploding globally for numerous U.S.-based companies. They are finding especially high interest from overseas clients from countries where technology standards and a narrower The Power of “Real” The power of applied skills and a real-world focus to engage traditionally disenfranchised students—and often to give a lift to the larger community—is something savvy education leaders are beginning to recognize. At the Hudson County Schools of Technology, in North Bergen, New Jersey, Douglas MacAulay, who teaches video production and history, says the motion-picture-techniques course he originally designed to “calm difficult students” in the school’s alternative program has blossomed into “an up-to-date, career-minded, technology-based workshop that integrates a variety of project-based learning skills.” In Jefferson, Louisiana, principal Kristy Philippi designed and opened the Patrick F. Taylor Science and The Rise of “Multiflavored” Academies In addition to Vocational Training Centers and initiatives such as PLTW, a new generation of academies in a variety of “flavors” is on the rise. Emblematic of these new academies is a “hybrid” approach of enrolling both college prep and non–college prep students. These academies also focus on teaching applied and 21stcentury skills in both standard core curriculum and new-media instruction. An example is Stamford, Connecticut’s Academy of Information Technology and Engineering. The AITE curriculum requires students complete four years of foreign-language instruction and integrates international collaboration, virtual learning, Technology & Learning October 2007 | 25

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Technology & Learning - October 2007 Editor’s Desk News & Trends Product Guide Reviews How Fast Is Fast Enough? Cover Story: Career Education in the Digital Age Getting It Wrong Higher Ed Point of View How To Bottom Line What’s New Emerging Tech

Technology & Learning - October 2007

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