AC 2008-665: ENGINEERING OUR FUTURE NJ: PROMOTING ENGINEERING IN K-12 SCHOOLS THROUGH PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, POLICY INITIATIVES, AND PARTNERSHIPS

This paper describes the statewide scale-up phase of an initiative whose goal is to ensure all students in New Jersey experience engineering as an integral component of their K-12 education, not merely as an extracurricular activity or elective course. Building on a pilot effort and supported by several corporate and competitive federal and state grants, the program aims to: reach a critical mass of 2,000 teachers with professional development in exemplary K-12 engineering curricula; influence policy to strengthen educational standards and assessments; and create a statewide network of partner organizations who deliver or host professional development and provide technical support to neighboring schools. This paper describes the professional development and curricular programs they support; the policy landscape and efforts; and the strategies, including catalyst grants, used to engage community colleges, institutions of teacher education, and other organizations, in outreach and programming. In addition to these activities, the EOFNJ initiative has launched an awareness-building effort to disseminate critical messages to various stakeholder groups, including school administrators, and the parent community. A research effort, in its early stages, is underway to understand the impact of EOFNJ activities statewide and in several school districts.