College credit sought for STEM courses

 

 

 

 

SPOKANE, Wash. – The main purpose of the recent special legislative session in Washington was to ease the state’s fiscal woes. But before adjourning, legislators took action on an issue near and dear to Sylvia Oliver and Joan Kingrey at Washington State University Spokane.

 

Lawmakers approved a bill (Senate Bill 5974) that encourages colleges and universities to grant credit to students who complete high school engineering and biomedical courses that use a curriculum developed by Project Lead The Way (PLTW). Lessons created by the nonprofit organization are used by more than 4,200 schools in 50 states.

 

Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire requested the legislation and is expected to sign it into law.

 

“PLTW biomedical and engineering courses meet the rigor demanded for STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) preparation,” said Kingrey, a clinical associate professor in the College of Education. “College credit will be a value-added component for high school students enrolling in PLTW.”

 

The bill sponsors’ primary intent was to strengthen the state’s aerospace industry by increasing the number of people trained to design and assemble airplanes. But the legislation also aims to lure more young people to careers in science and medicine.

 

That’s where Oliver’s interest lies. WSU Spokane is a PLTW biomedical affiliate; Oliver is the university’s affiliate director.

 

She agreed that high school students interested in science careers may be more attracted to PLTW’s biomedical and engineering classes if they can receive college credit. That, in turn, will make the students who take the courses more attractive to colleges and universities, including WSU, she said.

 

“We want these students,” said Oliver. “They learn strong content. They learn critical thinking skills and how to work in teams. And once they come to college, they’re more likely to move through and graduate than those who don’t have that training.” 

 

PLTW’s engineering program is 14 years old. More than 70 high schools and 44 middle schools in Washington offer its engineering courses, Oliver said.

 

PLTW’s newer biomedical curriculum is catching on fast. During the 2010-11 school year, only a handful of Washington high schools offered it. Now 19 do, including 14 in the Spokane area.

 

Most of those offer only the first-year curriculum. But Cleveland High School in Seattle also offers the second-year classes, as do Mt. Spokane and Mead in Spokane. The classes are popular in the two Spokane schools, with 324 students taking the biomedical elective classes.

 

They learn about human body systems and disease as they work to solve medical mysteries.

 

The curriculum has become more popular partly because of the work WSU has done to market the program. Last summer, 40 teachers from around the country met at WSU Spokane to learn how to teach the PLTW biomedical curriculum.

 

WSU, as an affiliate site, plans to double the training next summer to 80 teachers. Gradually, the university hopes to expand the program so that school districts can offer students the full four years of PLTW biomedical training.

Kingrey is working with WSU and Community Colleges of Spokane to determine what kinds of academic credit those institutions will give to high school biomedical students. She’s also working with a consortium of rural schools in northeastern Washington to figure out how smaller districts can afford the biomedical curriculum.

The university is trying to work out how it can help teachers who already teach everything add a specialized biomedical course to their workload, said Kingrey.

 

The rural project is funded by a $15,000 grant from Spokane’s Empire Health Foundation.

 

 

http://spokane.wsu.edu/aboutWSUSpokane/News_Events/News/Bulletins/2011/sept21.html#PLTW

 

 

Barker High School, Central Valley School District, Spokane Valley

Bethel High School, Bethel S.D., Spanaway
Central Valley High School, Central Valley S.D., Spokane Valley
Cleveland High School, Seatlle S.D.
East Valley High School, East Valley S.D., Spokane
Ferris High School, Spokane S.D.
Franklin Pierce High School, Franklin Pierce S.D., Tacoma
Lewis and Clark High School, Spokane S.D.
Mead High School, Mead S.D., Spokane
Mt. Spokane High School, Mead S.D., Spokane
Newport High School, Newport S.D.
Riverside High School, Riverside S.D., Chattaroy
Rogers High School, Spokane S.D.
Shadle Park High School, Spokane S.D.
Spokane Valley High School, West Valley S.D., Spokane
Toppenish High School, Toppenish S.D.
University High School, Central Valley S.D., Spokane Valley
Washington High School, Franklin Pierce S.D., Tacoma
West Valley High School, West Valley S.D., Spokane