Darren Kessner, Ph.D. — The Marlborough School, Los Angeles

The open source movement in software has inspired similar movements that promote open educational resources and open public data.  In our Computer Science program at Marlborough we rely exclusively on open software and textbooks. I will share with you some of my favorite open resources, including open access textbooks, publicly available datasets, and open source software.  Note: This is not limited to computer science!  Open textbooks are available in all subject areas, and there are many public domain works and public data sets that are useful for humanities and social science classes.

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Resources: https://dkessner.github.io/TeacherResources/

Round Table discussion with with Allison Arth, Mehreen Butt, Brandon Smith from RePublic Charter Schools — a charter school focusing on computer science. 

If successful implementation and student learning depended solely on curriculum, there would be no need for innovative teacher training. Teaching computer science through a non-expert dependent model with teachers who do not have a background in computer science requires relevant professional development, targeted support, and long- term skill development. Helping teachers develop strong foundational and technical knowledge allows them to lead to student success. With quality training, teachers can foster computational thinking, problem-solving habits, and coding abilities in their classrooms.

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Resources: mbutt@republiccharterschools.org, aarth@republiccharterschools.org, http://bit.ly/RePublicCSResources, http://bit.ly/CS_RePublicResouces

DALE McCREEDY, Ph.D. Vice President of Audience & Community Engagement & Lead for the Tennessee Girls’ Collaborative, Discovery Center Murfreesboro, Tenn.

For educators, broadening participation in STEM means knowing & showing what is possible, helping students see themselves in who does STEM, and appreciating the assets each child/community offers. Whether in the classroom or out, this session will share research and free resources applicable in multiple settings that promote STEM learning for girls, and ultimately, for all students.

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Stephanie Zeiger, Ph.D. and Amy Emerson — Harpeth Hall School

There is great value in allowing our students to see how STEM impacts and is impacted by diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice issues. Come learn about available resources for STEM teachers, share your own curriculum, projects and ideas while hearing from others, and be inspired as we work together to bring these essential conversations into the STEM classroom.

Kelsea Best, Ph.D. candidate — Vanderbilt University

The need to improve diversity and inclusion should be at the forefront of the mind of anyone working in STEM. The geosciences, in particular, are among the least diverse of the sciences in terms of racial diversity, and studies show that little progress has been made in the past four decades. In this session, we will discuss approaches to improving justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) in STEM through an example of recent efforts within Vanderbilt’s Earth and Environmental Sciences department.

Becky Smith — Ensworth School

We’ve adjusted, altered, hit pause, shifted gears, and scoured the internet for ideas. We started 2020 barely having heard of Zoom and yet, we persevered - and we actually taught our students things, and they even learned things, too. So, when our teaching lives return to normal what do we want to bring back from this crazy world? In Part I, I will show you strategies for keeping your students and you digitally organized in ways that are necessary now but will be helpful moving forward, too. These tips will utilize the Google platform and are applicable for teachers of any discipline.

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Resources: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1oGpbZe7ZmtIGU7yG_UIGT9LQKFhFRW6vXkxF4oIWebE/edit?usp=sharing

Becky Smith — Ensworth School

As a continuation of ideas worth keeping after we return to consistent in-person learning, this session will focus on two exciting yet simple techniques for virtual, synchronous small-group activities. From virtual versions of hands-on activities to true/false races, you can experience the activities first and then we’ll talk about why they work and how they can be modified for any activity and any discipline. Take my templates and use them in class on Monday - it’s that simple! While this session is a continuation of Keepers Part I, it is also fine to attend it on its own.

Pooja Dutt, software engineer, and Elsa Davids — Harpeth Hall

We’re here to demystify computational thinking at the middle school level! Learning these complex logical thinking skills can be difficult when first introduced, but by using methods like “embodied learning”, younger students can build a foundational understanding of the practical skills needed for STEM careers. We offer suggestions and ideas from both the classroom and the software engineering field.

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Lee Hamill, Ph.D. — The Marlborough School

In a physically distant environment, Engineering courses can maintain collaborative and hands-on building experiences. Come learn about successful project ideas and online tools that make these experiences possible.

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Andrew Witman — The Marlborough School

Learn how Marlborough's FIRST Tech Challenge Robotics Team's used CAD and a modular approach to adapt to the remote learning environment. Each robot subsystem was designed collaboratively online in small groups using Onshape and other online learning tools. Team members at school then built their sections independently at physically distanced, individualized workstations.