“The greatest scientists are always artists as well.” ~Albert Einstein
The Center for 21st Century Skills @ EDUCATION CONNECTION is proud to announce the establishment of a new 21st-century high school program of study focused on the emerging field of Digital Arts and Sciences. The primary mission of the Digital Arts and Sciences program will be to encourage, engage, facilitate, and support the development of artistic and creative skills in the use of digital media with a focus on applying those skills to the study of science and technology. The program will facilitate the cross-discipline application of academic knowledge, creativity, design, and innovation skills with the integration of the Internet and digital media into the study of cutting-edge topics in science and technology. All courses will feature problem-based learning and comprehensive projects as the primary instructional methodology for all students. The Digital Arts and Sciences program will be a dynamic and exemplary model for 21st-century-focused teaching and learning that will result in increasing the number of students interested in pursuing careers in emerging fields of study such as Bioinformatics, Biotechnology, Digital Design, Digital Media, Nanotechnology, Science Visualization, Virtual Environments, and more.
The time has come for the designation of a new course of study that focuses on the exciting fields of digital arts and new media and their application in the study of science and technology. Current high school academic, career, and technical education programs are bogged down by 100 years of history and practice that prevent the widespread adoption of digital media in existing courses or entirely new courses in emerging topics of science and technology. While students are growing up in a world surrounded by computers, digital media, and the Internet, they are increasingly stifled and stymied in the use of the same in traditional high school courses. As the world relies more and more on science and technology to solve problems and meet human needs, there is an increased demand for workers in related careers and fields of study. Extended effort is exerted to cajole students to enter into the study of science and technology, but most turn away to non-academic fields of study and careers even while increasing their use of digital media and technology for socializing and entertainment. The establishment of the Digital Arts and Sciences program is intended to address these issues and to create a new interdisciplinary program of study for the 21st century that appeals to all high school students in the updated tradition of the Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Over the past three years, our staff has developed and piloted a number of courses and programs in Connecticut that focus on the area of Digital Arts and Sciences. Currently, our Digital Arts and Sciences curriculum sequence includes, Biotechnology R&D, Digital Media and Movie Making, E-Commerce and Entrepreneurship, Information Technology R&D, Computer Game Design and Development, Science and Technology Research Seminar, Virtual Worlds Creation and Construction. Over the next year we will be unveiling a series of new courses and working with selected school districts and clients to further develop, implement, and pilot the courses that will make up this new program of study. For more information or to comment on this proposal, contact: Michael Mino via e-mail: mino at Education Connection dot org.