Notre Dame will be participating in the nationwide Hour of Code event during the week of December 8-14.
Notre Dame school officials announced today that that the school will once again be part of the nationwide "Hour of Code," which this year will be held during the week of December 8-14. Hour of Code is a campaign calling on every K-12 student in America to join in learning about computer coding. The initiative, sponsored by Code.org, a non-profit dedicated to promoting computer science education, asks schools, teachers and parents across the country to help introduce more than 15 million students of all ages to computer programming during Computer Science Education Week.
This initiative is yet another example of how NDPMA is integrating technology into nearly every facet of the school's operations.
Promoting STEM—science, technology, engineering and mathematics—in schools, particularly middle and high schools, is close to the top of the to-do list of just about every school or school system in the world. Or at least it should be. At Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, technology and computer access always have been at the front end of the school's strategic plan. In 2011, NDPMA's administration set forth a bold and aggressive schedule of technology enhancements that culminated this year with all three divisions becoming 1:1 tablet schools. Which means every student—from junior-kindergarten through 12th grade—has access to computer tablets that are connected to a dedicated internal network.
The organization behind the International Baccalaureate program also recognizes the importance of technology access for students and the whole new world of STEM education that is afforded by that access. In IB's most recent edition of its official magazine, "IB World," editors asked a number of IB schools from around the world how they were teaching STEM in new ways that make it more enjoyable and engaging for students. IB also contacted members of staff from the IB Global Centres to discuss how they'd like to see STEM education develop in the future. Two of those discussions follow:
By Neil Hendry, curriculum manager, mathematics IB Global Centre
STEM subjects have the reputation of only being for "geeks." The IB has already done a lot to challenge this stereotype, but there's still plenty more we can do to counter it.
We need teachers who are passionate about teaching STEM subjects, and are able to share this passion with their students. Almost every aspect of modern life has been influenced by the discoveries and achievements of STEM experts. What's not cool about that?! Sharing with students how important, interesting and cutting edge these subjects are will help them to engage more with lessons.
To encourage children to study STEM subjects at university, teachers are often told to emphasize the potentially high salaries people with these qualifications can command. How effective is this in reality? For 15 and 16 year olds, the idea of being wealthy is quite intangible.
Plus, if you promote STEM purely on the salaries university graduates can obtain, there's a danger that STEM graduates will end up working in another high-paying field, such as finance, rather than in a scientific or engineering industry. We have to get students excited about STEM subjects while they're still at school so they will continue that passion into university and beyond.
The IB could help more by relating STEM to the IB learner profile. I think it's easy to see how it applies to arts and humanities, but it's less easy to see how the IB learner profile applies to scientific subjects. A big part of our mission is to encourage students to be internationally minded and to think about the big issues. The world is facing many problems at the moment—climate change, the arms race, poverty—that need STEM experts to tackle them.
Because STEM fields change and evolve so quickly, teachers need to think carefully about what to teach. It's an area that needs support and research to make sure what's being taught is going to be relevant and useful in the future.
I would like to see more well-paid, well-qualified STEM teachers who have access to good facilities, good professional development and support from their schools. That would give students the best possible education.
By Matthew White, IB business development manager, IB Global Centre
Technology is opening up new ways to teach STEM subjects so students can more easily relate them to their everyday lives.
I'm working on a course we call core mathematics, which addresses students' need to learn the more practical side of the subject. We're working with the UK's Department for Education on this project because post-IB mathematics education in the UK is currently very theoretical. Students who consider studying mathematics at this level at the moment have to be really drawn to it—or "geeky," as some might say.
The UK government views the standard level IB Diploma Programme course as a prime example of the type of more practical mathematics program it would like to introduce nationally. Through the initiative, we'll open access to an online mathematics course to six non-IB state schools in the UK, with the help of two IB World Schools.
Online learning can be useful for STEM subjects, but it will never replace the traditional teacher-classroom model entirely. There's a shortage of mathematics teachers in the UK. Although online learning can't solve this problem entirely, it's useful because the teacher can connect with a class from any location.
Online learning could also be beneficial in science, particularly chemistry and physics. Practical science can be expensive and difficult to set up. Running virtual simulations of experiments could be a solution to those problems. Working with simulations allows you to assess how students would handle a hazardous situation, and enable more complex, real-life practical tasks to be carried out.
I'd like to see students using online learning to collaborate with their peers in other countries, so they get used to working across cultures. As well as improving their STEM knowledge, this would give them experience of working in international, multicultural teams, which is important preparation for future life.
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.