Training and Technical Assistance

CSE is working with the Massachusetts State Science and Engineering Fair to help design and develop a sustainable, scalable model of teacher professional development in inquiry-based learning. The goal of the one-week course is to enable middle and high school teachers to imbue their science curricula with inquiry-based activities that will help students develop science literacy, prepare them for college majors in science and technology, show high achievement on MCAS science tests, and acquire workplace skills such as critical thinking, communication, teamwork, and perseverance.

SmART Schools uses the arts as a core academic subject in the regular school curriculum and strengthens the use of high-quality arts in other academic subjects. This grant allows FSC to expand and enhance the standards-based, whole-school change SmART Schools model in diverse, high-need settings; refine the model’s tools, materials, techniques, and processes so that they are adaptable to various contexts; conduct a rigorous third-party evaluation of the program; and strengthen dissemination efforts so that the model can be replicated throughout the U.S.

Project Reentry expands and supplements services offered through the Department of Justice Affairs to recently released youth offenders. Services include academic, employability, life, and occupational skills training. EDC provides technical assistance to the project that focuses on program design issues. EDC assesses curriculum provided by partnering institutions, researches and reports on best practices of similar projects, and provides recommendations for program modification based upon surveys of participants and community stakeholders.

CAE edited and managed this international peer-reviewed journal, which was an initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Last Acts Task Force on Institutional Innovation. The journal reached more than 8,000 health care providers each month and featured thematic issues that highlighted promising practices and expert commentary.

AIM works with schools across the country to become academically excellent, responsive to the developmental needs of young adolescents, and socially equitable. Every school is different, given its particular student population, faculty, local community, and organizational history. Each school faces a different set of challenges, based on its state and local standards, past performance, and resources. AIM staff help schools analyze their strengths and needs, determine priorities, and develop solutions that fit their situations.

EEC’s YouthLearn Initiative has been awarded this sub-task of designing training materials for the IES-led dot-EDU—DRC—Improving Basic Education for Girls. This work has included revising existing training materials around student-centered learning and contributing to the design of a train-the-trainer professional development strategy.

CC&F/EDC is collaborating with Early Childhood Associates, Inc., and RISE Learning Solutions to develop a four-unit, multimedia training package for Head Start mentor-coaches. The Head Start mentor-coach instructional design will prepare mentor-coaches to guide teachers in adopting research-based practices that foster young children’s language and literacy development. The instructional design’s distributed learning model will include tutored video instruction and Web-based learning.

Working with the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE), EDC supports middle and high schools identified as “in need of corrective action” (i.e., they have not met Adequate Yearly Progress standards for three years). EDC Turnaround Facilitators work on-site in assigned schools two days a week, providing leadership and teacher development aimed at instructional improvement and student achievement. Project staff also give RIDE staff feedback and recommendations to improve services to districts and schools.