Frequently Asked Questions

Preparing Students for the Global Economy California PLTW Statewide Meeting February 20-21, 2014 Frequently Asked Questions • A-G • Credentialling • Quality and Certification • The iPortal • Rostering • Assessment • How can we help? ? ? ? ?

All PLTW Engineering Courses are “A-G” Approved • Approved as “g” electives: • Intro to Engr. Design (interdisciplinary) • Digital Electronics (math) • Principles of Engineering (interdisciplinary) • Aerospace Engineering (interdisciplinary) • Civil Engr. & Architecture (interdisciplinary) • Computer Integrated Manufacturing (other) • Biotech Engineering (science-biological) • Engineering Design and Dev. (interdisc.)

All PLTW Engineering Courses are A-G Approved • Approved as “f”, Visual & Performing Art: • Introduction to DesignOptional approval for modified version of IED. Supplemental material found @ PLTWCa.org. District (not UC or PLTW) usually requires an art credential. • Approved as “d”, Lab Science: • Engineering Design and DevelopmentListed as Engineering Research & Development (ERD) District (not UC or PLTW) usually requires a science credential.

PLTW Biomedical Science Courses areUC Approved as D Lab Science • Principals of Biomedical Science (PBS-1st course) • Human Body Systems (HBS-2nd course) • Medical Interventions (MI-3rd course) • All 3 courses approved as D lab science.Your district will likely require a science credential to offer this for graduation science credit but UC has no • such requirement. • Biomedical Innovations (BI-4th course) • Has been approved as a G elective

How to Submit PLTW Courses for A-G Approval • All PTLW courses are considered “previously approved” even though your school has not yet offered them at your school site. • All PLTW courses have program status and have already been reviewed by a faculty committee for approval. • Most applications will be automatically approved within a few days of submission • All Project Lead the Way course titles are followed by (PTLW).

How to Submit PLTW Courses for A-G Approval • On the 1st page of the “New Course” submission application, the update site prompts are for information about the teacher. • On the 2nd page of the “New Course” submission application, select “yes” when asked if the course is previously approved. • The next page will ask if the course is modeled after a school outside of the district, leave the default to “no”. • The following page will ask if the course is being reinstated, leave the default to “no”. • On the next page entitled, “Cover Page – Program Status”, change the default to “yes”. • The radio button will become accessible so that you may select “Project Lead the Way” from the Program Status list. • On the next page, type in the first three letters of the course title as it appeared on their UC-approved course list. Do not press “Enter”. A drop down menu will appear where you may select the ROP from a list. • On the next page, type in the first three letters of the course title as it appeared on their UC-approved course list. Do not press “Enter”. A drop down menu will appear where you may select the course from a list. Please note that the exact course title must be used on the submission. • Fill in the rest of the required fields in the “New Course” submission application. • Review the course submission on the “Course Summary” page and when the information is correct, click “next”. • On the “Course Submission” page, enter a contact e-mail where the submission confirmation e-mail should be sent and click “Submit”. • Verify that your new course submission has been submitted by checking for a confirmation e-mail sent to the contact e-mail and that the submission appears in the “Recent Work – Submitted” box at the bottom of the “Start Here” page.

How to Submit PLTW Courses for A-G ApprovalThe Important Gotcha's • Note that lab science-based courses must have the appropriate required prerequisite in order to be approved for your school. For Principles of Biomedical Science, your application must show biology as a prerequisite. However, the teacher may wave any prerequisite for students that have demonstrated the required ability and knowledge some other way. • You must fill in the name of a textbook, but any textbook will do. We suggest “PLTW’s Electronic Classroom Resources including the PLTW electronic textbook for (fill in course name here)”. • You may need to answer one or two questions such as: • the background of the course. • how it fits in your course of study • You may fill these in with any answer that makes sense for your school.

Credentialing for PLTW Courses The CTC has published a document that gives guidance but doesn't specify a required credential. Here's the link: http://www.ctc.ca.gov/STEM-CTE/files/STEM-CTE-individuals.pdf The pertinent paragraph reads: NOTE: For the subject areas of engineering and technology, there is teacher assignment flexibility depending on the specific content of the course. For example, a high school engineering course may be more focused on drafting and design or it may be more physics based. A technology course may focus on computer technology or on mathematics-based computer programming. The education agency responsible for hiring will determine when a Single Subject Credential is appropriate or if a Designated Subjects Career Technical Education Credential is a better fit.

Credentialing for PLTW Courses • The CTC clearly states that the hiring agency (your school district) has the obligation and power to review the material being taught and decide for yourselves what the most relevant credential is. • Unfortunately, the COE may come in with preconceived ideas and make up their own requirements. We believe this is completely unjustified. • We hear of completely opposite decisions for the same course, depending on which COE does the review.

Credentialing for PLTW Courses Three things that may help get approval for the credential you want are: Develop a good personal relationship with the COE credential reviewer. Write up your course description to emphasize the aspects of the course most relevant to the credential of the person you select to teach the course, e.g., If you have a physicist teaching POE, emphasize all the physics being taught. If you have a CTE teacher, emphasize tool safety and drafting. Be prepared to show them the CTC document and explain that, based on your review of the material being taught, your curriculum experts determined that a XXXXXXX credential was most appropriate, as required by the CTC. They can argue your decision, but the CTC has clearly stated it's YOUR decision.

Credentialing for PLTW Courses • Concerning the phrase “highly qualified” within NCLB, this usually does not apply to PLTW courses since they are not core classes like math and english. • The only completely firm requirement concerning credentials for PLTW courses is that your teacher MUST have a CTE credential if you use Perkins money to fund the course. • Strangely, your students will get UC “D” credit for the BMS courses, UC “F” credit for ID, and “G” elective credit for the engineering courses, even if the teacher has a music credential. However, if you offer science credit toward graduation, your district and collective bargaining organization will almost certainly require a science credential. This is NOT a PLTW or UC requirement.

What is “Program Quality” Why “Certification” How does Certification work today What changes are being discussed for PLTW Certification in the near future - and why CERTIFICATION AND PROGRAM QUALITY AT THE SCHOOL LEVEL 12

Imaginative and independent thinking Work in small teams Creative problem solving Hands-on curriculum structures teach skills useful in careers and college Highly trained and motivated teachers Actively participative partnerships with industry, the community, government Recruits kids into STEM career tracks Motivational to college Improved test results PROGRAM QUALITY What characterizes PLTW Programs? 13

PLTW courses taught by qualified, engaged, and inspiring teachers PLTW program adequately supported in fact by school administration and district Each course has sufficient equipment, software, and space so each student can participate as intended by the course designers Class size permits effective teaching, team formation, and individual student participation Each course is being conducted substantially in accordance with the intent of the designers PROGRAM QUALITY Some measures of Program Quality: 14

PLTW classes as conducted prepare students for careers - real jobs in the real world PLTW students and parents have a vision for their overall program and how the PLTW curricula fit in School administration and counseling staff have a vision for the program as a whole - future plans, sustainability PLTW program is integrated / coordinated with main stream academic programs, extra-curricular programs, community activities Partnership team is in place, is familiar with the PLTW courses and provides support PROGRAM QUALITY Some measures of Program Quality: 15

Process through which PLTW and the school confirm that the PTLW program is in substantial conformity with the District Agreement and Program Requirements assess the quality of the program in absolute and relative terms What is School Certification

Determine if program has has been implemented as intended Identify corrective measures, provide feedback to school and to PLTW national Collect feedback about curriculum effectiveness for PLTW curriculum designers Collect feedback about program administrative and operational performance Identify outstanding performance elements which can be used elsewhere Provide an objective measure of program outcomes - impact on students, impact on production of students undertaking STEM college and career tracks Why School Certification? the PLTW perspective

Required by the District Agreement Recognition as a school that has achieved excellence - for students, teachers, parents, community, partnership team, district, State Provides opportunities for students to receive college credit for PLTW courses Provides opportunities for teachers to become PLTW Master Teachers National Listing of Certified Schools Certified schools are examples to schools considering PLTW Assists in fund raising and recruitment of students and industry and community partners Why School Certification? the School Perspective

Available after a PLTW school has established an operating PLTW program and is offering the required curriculum elements Provisional or Full Certifications Two stage process Self-assessment On-site review School Certification- the process

PLTW Certification Team School Team - site leader, administration (principal), counseling staff, teachers, partnership team, parents, students Agenda for the day class room visitations meeting with principal meetings with counselors, teachers, students, parents, partnership team members Observations of class equipment, class room demeanor, notebooks, portfolios, software files, assessment reports Process outlined on PLTW web site School Certification- the process

Tentative evaluation on the day of the site visit Feedback to School Team Report to National Office Full or Provisional recommendation National sends results to school, with certification and banner School added to national roster 5 year renewal School Certification- the process

Is the process currently meeting its mission of ensuring program quality, providing recognition to stakeholders, providing means for continuous improvement for participating schools? Can the process be made more streamlined and automated? Does the process offer real “value” to the kids and the schools Can the process be adjusted to reflect variability between schools and districts and to reflect changing conditions What changes to Certification are being considered and why

Potential New Levels of “Certification” On-track: Years 1-3 for new programs Fully compliant: meets all minimum program requirements, expected by end of year 4 Banner Certification: Standout schools Exemplary or Model Schools Provisional What changes to Certification are being considered and why

Make the process simplified and more automated Quality measures automatically collected from reports filed electronically by schools Rosters Assessment test results V irtual site visits “Live” site visit may not be required Quality team may be asked to visit for to provide assistance What changes to Certification are being considered and why

Nothing has changed yet We would like your input on how the process can be improved What value would you place on a revised certification process What Changes to Certification are Being Considered and Why

Frequently Asked Questions