Community & Career Connected Learning Resources
Kristi Leonard-Webber, Community & Career Connected Learning Coordinator
As the school year began, BB2C staff were busy meeting with educators and administrators in Washington County schools to help them identify and plan out their community and career connected learning goals. They were also invited to present at the Professional Development Day on September 23, put on for all districts in Washington and Noble County. Our staff offered two sessions.
The first session introduced our brand new STEM-2-Go Labs. STEM-2-Go Labs were an idea developed by Makerspace Director, Jared Wittekind, and other staff in response to a request for proposal sent out by an Ohio University grant writing class. BB2C was ultimately awarded the grant and spent the summer finalizing the program. The STEM-2-Go Labs being offered to educators and classrooms by the BB2C Makerspace provide activities for various grade levels that focus on engineering; technology; success skills such as reasoning, collaboration, critical thinking, and communication; and general science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
The second session showcased BB2C’s Real World Problem Scenario (RWPS) program and how it engages students, educators, and business representatives in community and career connected learning. Chance Friede (Goolie), an Ohio University graduate intern, described RWPS in her own words. “The Real World Problem Scenario engages students by allowing them to solve real problems using content area skills. I like that it is open ended and allows students to harness their strengths. There are many right answers, so it is more about the process and critical thinking that it takes to solve the problem. I have found that with RWPS, students who don't necessarily love traditional school get to use their strengths.”
The RWPS program is a professional development opportunity for educators. Educators are paired up with a local business partner who matches their curriculum and education focus. Together, the pair designs their own Real World Problem Scenario. The business partner will visit the classroom to introduce the problem to the students. Students will then be tasked with solving this real world problem using what they’ve learned in the class, as well as success skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and communication. They then present their solutions back to the business partner. In this way, community and career connections are brought into the classroom and matched with the curriculum. RWPS is an impactful, engaging, and relevant exercise for the students and a great community and career connected learning resource.
Educators interested in bringing Real World Problem Scenario to their classrooms are invited to join us on November 15th from 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. One graduate credit can be earned through Rio Grande. Email Kristi Leonard-Webber, Community & Career Connected Learning Coordinator, at klwebber@bb2careers.org to sign-up.