UNIVERSITY PARK — America has seen remarkable disruption in education this year, and yet remarkable innovations in teaching and learning are happening right here in Central Pennsylvania.
On Oct. 13, educators from 16 regions across the United States, including ENGINE of Central PA, Empowering Next Generation of Innovators and Entrepreneurs, will launch a year-long campaign and unveil plans for the upcoming Remake Learning Days Across America, a celebration of learning innovation now in its fifth year. They also will share details about the Learning Forerunners Across America report.
This report details system-wide, impactful and scalable learning innovations from these 16 cities, regions and states.
Last summer, the international organization HundrED partnered with Remake Learning and The Grable Foundation to create this new report that focuses on one system-level best practice from each region that can foster innovation at scale.
The Penn State Center for Science and the Schools (CSATS) in the Penn State College of Education has been selected as an innovation in education that is a model for bridging relevant STEM research and scientific issues with K-12 education.
“This is an opportunity to showcase Penn State and CSATS' ability to integrate scientific research, and science and engineering practices into K-12," said Amanda Smith, STEM outreach liaison with CSATS and the executive director of ENGINE of Central PA. "Our model of collaboration with scientists and engineers, and the focus on the practices, can be replicated across the globe. We are thrilled to showcase our approach to build teachers’ capacity to integrate scientific research with their students.”
The unveiling on Oct. 13 will include information about each innovation and a preview of upcoming Remake Learning Days Across America events, for which Penn State and its community partners will be able to host events for educators, youth and families. Attendees also will see performances by Funky Fly Project, a live maker activity, and many special guests, including choreographer Maria Torres; 9th U.S. youth observer to the United Nations Dustin Liu; and Emily Dawn Calandrelli, host of “Emily’s Wonder Lab” on Netflix.
ENGINE of Central PA will appear along with national partners PBS KIDS and Digital Promise, to share information about why family-engaged learning is critical.
Dorie Taylor, producer of Remake Learning Days Across America, said she hopes parents, caregivers and educators across all communities will be inspired by the learning kids are doing alongside their caring adults and think about what they hope to see in their own communities.
Gregg Behr, is excited about what the program means in Pennsylvania and beyond. “There may not be another moment in our lifetimes when educators are thinking as boldly about what education and learning might be than right now. We should embrace these innovations as signals about what’s possible,” he said.
“And if we introduce these possibilities to parents, and we genuinely involve families as learning allies alongside our students and teachers, then we just might actually remake learning for years to come. That’s what is so electrifying about what’s happening right here in Pittsburgh and throughout the 16 Remake Learning Days regions.”
Behr said the work being highlighted on Oct. 13 reminds us that for all of our advances and technological marvels, it’s relationships that nurture children’s wonder.
“And perhaps most importantly for the world’s learners, each innovation points the way toward large-scale change — toward a better future that’s within our collective grasp,” Behr said.
Chris Petrie, head of research at HundrED, hopes that the innovations featured in the report not only invigorate but galvanize action. “Perhaps even to adopt and adapt some innovations to your context. We envision that learning in this way will help further our mission at HundrED to help every child flourish in life, no matter what happens,” Petrie said.
Families and educators can register for the kickoff event, happening from 7 to 8 p.m. Oct. 13, by clicking here. The event will be recorded, and will be available on YouTube once the event ends.
Remake Learning Days Across America is funded by The Grable Foundation, Schmidt Futures, Carnegie Corporation of New York, William-Flora Hewlett Foundation and the Ford Foundation.
Regional Remake Learning Days Across America festival events are:
— Central Pennsylvania: May 6-16, 2021
- Regional Lead Organization: ENGINE of Central PA
- HundrED Learning Across America innovation: Connecting STEM research and practices to K-12 environments with Penn State Center for Science and the Schools
— Southeastern Pennsylvania: May 6-16, 2021
- Regional Lead Organization: PA SEED Ecosystem
- HundrED Learning Across America innovation: Building environmental literacy through nature-based STEM learning
— Southwestern Pennsylvania: May 6-16, 2021
- Regional Lead Organization: Remake Learning
- HundrED Learning Across America innovation: The Fred Method
ENGINE of Central PA is a collaborative network elevating and cultivating cross-sector partnerships. The network, a project of fiscal sponsor The Foundation for Enhancing Communities, builds a community of lifelong learners that promotes equitable access to meaningful, transdisciplinary experiences. Its goal is to empower youth living and working in the region to be innovative problem-solvers, ready to succeed in careers of tomorrow.
Remake Learning Days began in Pittsburgh as a project of Remake Learning, a grassroots initiative that activates entire communities to serve as a child’s “learning playground.” Remake Learning has earned international recognition for its work fostering collaboration that ignites engaging, relevant learning practices, while helping parents connect with their children’s learning and bringing these opportunities to a broader socioeconomic audience.
A Finland-based nonprofit, HundrED discovers, researches and shares inspiring innovations in K12 education. Its goal is to help improve education and foster a movement through encouraging impactful and scalable innovations to spread, mindful of context, across the world. HundrED Spotlights create unique opportunities for both educational professionals and independent organizers of the Spotlight to gain a thorough insight into the education innovations taking place in either a specific area of education, like literacy or sustainability, or within a certain geographic location, for example, India or London.
The Grable Foundation believes in possibilities: that a child will experience something new that will change his or her life; that a teacher will have the resources to nurture students; that kids will play and learn and grow on their own time, in their own way, guided by a community of people and places keen to make these possibilities a reality. The foundation awards support to organizations that improve the lives of children and youth across the Pittsburgh region from early childhood through the formative years, inside the classroom and out.