Technology Century V.17 N.1 - ESD

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TECHNOLOGYPROJECTLEADSTHE WAYTO TECHNOLOGYBY JOHN C. DUGGERImagine a middle school where, during the first nineweeks, all students are required to use industrystandard 3D modeling software to create a virtualimage of their designs and produce a portfolioto showcase their creative solutions. In a secondnine-week unit, students then learn about mechanicalsystems, energy transfer, machine automation, andcomputer control systems prior to using a robustrobotics platform to design, build, and program asolution to solve an existing problem. Imagine as wella smorgasbord of specialization opportunities for thesemiddle school students involving nine-week units ontopics including:••Energy and the Environment (EE)••Flight and Space (FS)••Green Architecture (GA)••Magic of Electrons (ME)••Science of Technology (ST)It may be surprising to learn that such a program alreadyexists in the form of Project Lead The Way’s Gateway ToTechnology (GTT) program? GTT features a project-basedcurriculum designed to challenge and engage the naturalcuriosity and imagination of middle school students and isreviewed and updated every four years.PLTW CARVES ENGINEERING PATHProject Lead The Way (PLTW) is the leading provider ofrigorous and innovative science, technology, engineering,and mathematics (STEM) secondary education programsused in middle and high schools acrossthe United States.In addition to the middle schoolPLTW units above, there areeight high school PLTW courses.At that level, the PLTW coursesequence begins with two year-longfoundation courses:INTRODUCTION TOENGINEERING DESIGN (IED)Designed for 9th/10th grade students, themajor focus of IED is the design process and itsapplication. Through hands-on projects and theapplication of engineering standards and documenttools, students use industry-standard 3D modelingsoftware to design solutions to solve problems.PRINCIPLES OF ENGINEERING (POE)Designed for 10th/11th grade students, this surveycourse exposes students to major concepts they’llencounter in a post-secondary engineering courseof study. Topics include mechanisms, energy,statics, materials, and kinematics. Theydevelop problem-solving skills andapply their knowledge of researchand design to createsolutions to variouschallenges.40 | Technology Century | SPRING 2012
the research efforts can be found at: www.pltw.org/sites/default/files/PLTW%20Student%20Outcomes_1.pdf.Currently, the only way a teacher in Michigan canbecome a PLTW teacher is to already be teacher certified,obtain a sponsorship from a school district that hassigned an agreement with the PLTW national nonprofitorganization, and complete a summer in-service trainingsession, which are offered by PLTW affiliate universities.Beginning in FOall 2012, there will be a second wayto become a PLTW teacher. It is designed to allowprospective teachers to gain pre-service training duringundergraduate teacher preparation program.A capstone course and five additional specializedengineering pathway courses are being offered inhigh schools, as well, including:••Aerospace Engineering (AE)••Biotechnical Engineering (BE)••Civil Engineering and Architecture (CEA)••Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM)••Digital Electronics (DE)••Engineering Design and Development (EDD)More information can be found at www.pltw.org.In the 2011–2012 academic year alone, more than400,000 students in more than 4,200 schools in all50 states and the District of Columbia are takingPLTW STEM education courses. In Michigan, morethan 100 schools are offering PLTW EngineeringCareer Path programs.Since 2004, PLTW has used an independentservice to conduct follow-up student testing tomeasure impact. Student assessments are gatheredat the end of each PLTW course, rating studentinterest and engagement. Additional studies havebeen conducted by individual states. Overall,the studies indicate that math and scienceachievement, as well as persistence alongthe STEM career paths, are positivelyinfluenced by PLTW experiences.Career choice is impacted at themiddle school level. A factsheet with a summaryof some ofEASTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY’S ROLEAs Michigan’s only PLTW affiliate university, EMU hastrained over 160 teachers through summer in-services. Inthe fall, the College of Technology at Eastern MichiganUniversity will launch a program allowing undergraduatestudents to obtain PLTW approval while completing theirteacher preparation programs. The program focuses onengineering and technology education and promisesto offer tremendous opportunities for employment toits graduates. In addition to obtaining PLTW approval,participating students will be endorsed to teachsecondary industrial and technology classes.Over the past five years, EMU has been able to obtainmore than $700,000 from private foundations andpublic organizations to support PLTW implementation inMichigan. EMU has also formed an executive leadershipteam in an effort to expand the number of middle andhigh schools offering PLTW coursework and making PLTWofferings available to all Michigan students. The leadershipteam includes members from the Michigan EconomicDevelopment Corporation, the Michigan Department ofEducation, Lawrence Technological University, EasternMichigan University, and Project Lead The Way.For more information about Michigan’s PLTW, pleasevisit www.pltwmichigan.org. To learn more or helpbroaden the impact of PLTW in Michigan, please email Dr.John Dugger at jdugger@emich.edu or Dr. Paul Kuwik atpkuwik@emich.edu.John C. Dugger, PhD, is AffiliateDirector of Project Lead The Way andProfessor of Technology Studies atEastern Michigan University. He hasmore than 40 refereed articles andhas secured more than $1 million inexternal funding.www.esd.org | The Engineering Society of Detroit | 41
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