13
Jan

November & December in Review

OCM BOCES: It’s Go Time: Seeing the Future through the New New York State Science Learning Standards 

On Tuesday, November 8th, Director, Carol O’Donnell, provided the key note address for the Onondaga-Cortland-Madison Counties (OCM) Boards of Cooperative Education Services (BOCES) It’s Go Time: Seeing the Future through the New New York State Science Learning Standards (NYSSLS). O’Donnell’s presentation helped conference attendees understand the importance of K-12 science education, which is grounded in the new standards, and share the results of SSEC’s recent large-scale LASER i3 study that illustrates the benefits of a cohesive, practice-focused science program. Participants left the conference with a better understanding of the new standards, a positive sense of excitement for the opportunities they offer, and a vision for the exciting work that lies ahead as these new standards are implemented in the classroom. This was the first Lesson Study Science Education Conference of its kind in the US and that the Smithsonian's curriculum materials were used by the students and teachers who were demonstrating inquiry-centered lessons

Department of Energy’s Pre-College Call: Pipeline, Evaluation, And Educator Professional Development

On November 28th O’Donnell presented on LASER to the Lab Education Directors at the Department of Energy’s Pre-College Call: Pipeline, Evaluation, And Educator Professional Development. This call is a monthly pre-college conference call headed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Colorado. O’Donnell’s presentation on LASER stressed how SSEC “…wants to continue to keep the K-12 lab community aware of the progress PNNL, the Smithsonian, and others have been making with the LASER project that Jeff Estes started many years ago.”

 

Teach to Lead Inclusion, Equity, and Opportunity Teacher Leadership Summit

On December 2nd – 4th, O’Donnell traveled to Chicago, IL to participate in the Teach to Lead Inclusion, Equity, and Opportunity Teacher Leadership Summit. These summits allow attendees to share ideas and best practices and learn from examples of existing teacher leadership efforts; Identify common challenges and create concrete, actionable teacher leadership plans to address them locally; Network and build relationships with other educators and leaders in their region; and Identify promising ideas for follow-up support through future engagement events.

 

STEMxchange 2016 Conference

On December 12 – 14th, O’Donnell traveled to Dallas, TX to participate in the STEMxchange 2016 conference hosted by STEMx. The conference was two days of STEM break out groups and key note speakers from around the country who touched on such topics as the power of connecting STEM learning environments, driving progress on critical STEM education issues, creating national partners, state discussions on ESSA implementation, etc. O’Donnell spoke to the conference on Investing in Innovation Research Findings and Next Steps. Additional information can be found here: http://www.stemx.us/2017/01/laser-model-five-year-validation-study-by-the-smithsonian/

 

 

 

 

All Images by C. O'Donnell

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About the Author

Kate Echevarria
Human Resources Liaison

202-633-2959

EchevarriaK@si.edu

Kate Echevarria is the Human Resources Liaison for the Smithsonian Science Education Center. She is responsible for handling recruitment, internships, performance management, and all aspects of human resources at the Center. She was previously the Executive Office Manager at SSEC for 10 years. Prior to SSEC, Kate was in human resource management having worked for an international hotel chain, the U.S. Government, and a science non-profit.