Michael Mino, Director of The Center for 21st Century Skills @ EDUCATION CONNECTION, and Dan Cogan-Drew, Assistant Director, traveled to Finland at the invitation of Tapio Varis, professor at the University of Tampere, University of Helsinki, and UNESCO Chair of Global E-Learning, to present at the 2008 International Workshop on Ubiquitous ICT (Information and Communications Technologies) for Sustainable Education and Cultural Literacy. In September, Prof. Varis was C21’s keynote speaker at the CCC Leadership Symposium on International Competitiveness.
Michael and Dan’s presentation invited collaboration on a proposal to the MacArthur Foundation’s Digital Media Literacy grant program. The focus of the proposal is the use of C21’s “island” in Teen Second Life as the location for an international Digital Media Festival. Working in small teams, students from around the world will compose digital media expressions in response to a topic such as beauty, truth, or global warming. Teams will have virtual booths in the main presentation space on the island, complemented by a large digital display where their films will be screened. Students from other teams will be able to tour the exhibits and view the presentations. The proposal seeks to utilize 21st century technologies to further common understanding across international communities. The presentation was well received and generated offers of collaboration from half a dozen nations.
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[Lt. Governor Michael Fedele joined others at the State Capitol to announce Connecticut’s participation in the Challenge. L to R: Greg Kane, State Dept. of Education; Sharon Shepard, Mentor Graphics; Fran Favara, FAA; Lt. Governor Fedele; Ralph Coppola and Michael Campbell, PTC]
Governor M. Jodi Rell has announced that Connecticut will join nine other states in the inaugural launch of the “Real World Design Challenge” sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy in partnership with the State of Connecticut, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Parametric Technology Corporation, Hewlett-Packard Corporation, Mentor Graphics-Mechanical Analysis Division (formerly Flomerics Inc.), and Education Development Center, among others. As part of this partnership, select Connecticut high school students and teachers will receive free access to some of the world’s most powerful design and mechanical engineering software.
“The Real World Design Challenge presents an unprecedented experience for Connecticut high school students. Through the generous provision of valuable engineering software and accompanying training, students and teachers will learn how these state-of-the-art tools can be used to advance innovation and invention right here in Connecticut,” Governor Rell stated.
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Most of the world is looking at the incredible PISA results obtained by Finland. The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) measures 15-year-olds’ performance in reading literacy, mathematics literacy, and science literacy every three years. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) reported that countries, overall, obtained an average score of 500 in science. With 563 score points, Finland was the highest-performing country on the PISA 2006 science scale. The United States scored 489…below average.
Approximately 80 educators and cutting-edge business leaders gathered from around the state on September 12, 2008, to discuss Finland’s success. The Connecticut Career Choices Education Leadership Symposium, co-sponsored by the Regional Center for Next Generation Manufacturing, was held at Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) to generate interest in international competitiveness and lessons we can learn from abroad. The attendees ranged from superintendents, principals, and business leaders to higher-education administrators, K-12 teachers, and members of both the CT State University System and CT State Department of Education.
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