Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST)

This effort will design, implement, and assess a Strategies ITEST project to provide professional development (PD) to high school teachers and educational enrichment to their students. The project design adapts features from evidence-based research on project-based learning, robotics and entrepreneurship in K-12 STEM education, social cognitive career theory, and effective PD guidelines embedded in a professional learning community. Planned activities include: a 4-week summer institute with a 2-week guided training and a 2-week robotic design experience; academic year (AY) follow up in schools through an elective course; and a robot product design and business idea competition. Experts in robotics, entrepreneurship, curriculum design, and assessment-with experience in K-12 education and training-have formed an interdisciplinary team to transform students' roles from technology consumers to novel technological product creators. Over the 3-year project duration, 48 teachers and 96 students from 24 high schools will participate in the summer institute with 160 contact hrs. Through the AY elective, teachers will impact 1,200 students during the project funding period and countless others in the future.