Contact: Paige Watson
Representing Louisville and West Point school districts, 20 teachers are at Mississippi State this month to learn the latest methods for engaging students.
The university's Global Academic Essentials Teaching Institute is organized by the College of Education's instructional systems and workforce development department. Participants this year include public school teachers of history, social studies and foreign languages.
While on campus, they are hearing from a variety of guest speakers that range from MSU faculty and staff members to Mississippi Highway Patrol public safety instructors.
Additionally, they are reviewing state education standards, becoming familiar with new technologies and developing lesson plans. As the institute concludes, they will be encouraged to reflect on their experiences and share the knowledge they received with colleagues in their respective school districts.
As part of the learning experience, the teachers are keeping personal blogs and developing website portfolios that include lesson plans, technology-application strategies and presentation-download links. All are accessible at www.gaeti.iswd.msstate.edu.
"The ultimate goal of GAETI is to spark the desire for innovation while simultaneously motivating teachers to integrate standards, 21st century skills and technology in classrooms across the state of Mississippi," said assistant professor Pamela Scott-Bracey, institute facilitator.
For more information on the department of instructional systems and workforce development, visit www.iswd.msstate.edu.
MSU is Mississippi's flagship research university, available online at www.msstate.edu, facebook.com/msstate, instagram.com/msstate and twitter.com/msstate.