STEM PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
STEM PD, or STEM Professional Development, is a compilation of professional development and learning opportunities for out-of-school time educators and professionals. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list of opportunities. If there is an opportunity that you would like to suggest, please complete this form.
UPCOMING PD OPPORTUNITIES
The North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs (NC CAP) has partnered with Afterschool Coaching for Reflective Educators in STEM (ACRES) to provide FREE professional development opportunities to out-of-school-time professionals statewide. The ACRES Project supports out-of-school providers in rural settings. Front line staff come together online and in person to share, discuss, and receive coaching from the Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance and the Noyce Foundation.
Each participant is expected to participate in three live sessions for each cohort and is an active member. Stipends are offered to participants that complete pre-and-post surveys. To learn more about stipend eligibility or professional development opportunities, visit the ACRES FAQs or contact the ACRES team.
If you would like to host a private workshop for your team, please complete this form.
Asking Purposeful Questions
Questions are the beginning of a path towards discovery, imagination, and STEM exploration. How can we help youth expand and clarify their thinking and develop their reasoning through the questions we ask them? This module is designed for educators who have some experience facilitating STEM learning and would like to grow in their practice within a supportive group of other educators.
To learn more and register, click here.
Developing STEM Identities and Making Career Connections
How do you help youth recognize their connection to and role in STEM? How do you help youth learn about STEM careers? In this module, participants experience several easy-to-implement strategies, including a photo-elicitation activity, learn about how youth form their STEM identities, and then learn how to conduct related activities with youth.
To learn more and register, click here.
Elevating Youth Voice & Choice
How often do youth in your program get to choose what they’re investigating or designing, the materials they might use and/or how they engage with the work? In this module, participants try out strategies for elevating youth voice and choice and apply the ideas as they redesign a STEM activity to incorporate a greater variety of youth input.
To learn more and register, click here.
Exploring Youth Understanding in STEM
What can we do to find out what youth know about a particular topic without resorting to a quiz or test? What strategies can we use before, during, and following an activity to surface youths’ understanding? In this module, participants will first clarify the purpose of formative assessment and then learn several easy-to-implement strategies for monitoring youths’ understanding.
To learn more and register, click here.
Modeling Engineering Practices
To learn more and register, click here.
Modeling Math Practices
To learn more and register, click here.
Modeling Science Practices
How can we make sure that our ‘ hands-on’ science experiences for youth are also ‘minds on?’ In this module, participants learn how to support youth as engage in the science practices to learn science ideas, including planning and conducting investigations around testable questions. They’ll talk about the similarities and differences of questioning in science versus questioning in engineering contexts.
To learn more and register, click here.
Ready, Set, STEM! Asking Purposeful Questions
Are you ready to bring meaningful STEM learning into your program? This module offers educators who are new to facilitating STEM the opportunity to build supportive relationships with other educators while exploring the principles of STEM learning. This module combines an introduction to STEM facilitation with the skill of Asking Purposeful Questions.
To learn more and register, click here.
Virtualizing Your Programs and Activities
Have you felt like remote learning during COVID-19 has been hectic and stressful? Well, you are not alone with those feelings. Join this cohort and participate in highly interactive coaching sessions. You will reflect on what you have done and what you could do to virtualize your out-of-school STEM offerings. Bring your examples and questions. Tips, tricks, and tools will be shared as small groups come together to practice and hear success stories
To learn more and register, click here.
