Speakers: Chris Edwards is the director of the Scientech Summer Institute. He has shepherded the Summer Institute through the evolution of funding by the Scientech Foundation, Ball State University and current funding by the Indiana State Legislature.
Chris Edwards will describe the Teacher Industry Experiences in Indiana (TIE-IN). This state funded program is open to all Indiana-licensed PK-12 teachers. He will be joined by Dr. Andrew Melin who is heading the project at the Indiana Department of Education.
This project is a direct offshoot of work done by the Scientech Foundation.
Program: Live and Zoom: Teacher Industry Experiences in Indiana. Bridging the classroom with the dynamic world of industry.
Speakers: Chris Edwards, EdD, teacher, author, education researcher, consultant; and Andrew Melin, PhD, TIE-IN project head, Indiana Department of Education
Sponsored and Introduced By: Jeff Rasley
Attendance: NESC: 74, Zoom: 23
Guest(s): Emily Knuth from the Prindle School of Ethics, DePauw University (with Chris Edwards)
Scribe: Alan Schmidt
Editor: Ruth Schmidt
View a recording of today’s Zoom presentation at:
Today's program 072924
Teacher Industry Experiences in Indiana.
Bridging the classroom with the dynamic world of industry.
Speakers: Dr. Andrew Melin (amelin@ciesc.org) is executive director of the project at the Indiana Department of Education. This project is a direct offshoot of work done by the Scientech Foundation. At Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan his work in radio and TV was relevant to him in his education.
He was introduced by Chris Edwards (Email: scientechsummer@gmail.com); Chris Edwards is the director of the Scientech Summer Institute. He has shepherded the Summer Institute through the evolution of funding by the Scientech Foundation, Ball State University, and current funding by the Indiana State Legislature. Chris wrote All About books on Stephen Hawking, Helen Keller, and others. Chris is a Skeptic magazine contributor.
Chris Edwards described the Teacher Industry Experiences in Indiana (TIE-IN). This state funded program is open to all Indiana-licensed PK-12 teachers. Indiana education is in a moment of intense change with a new diploma track. Teacher programs should tie in so a diploma is a verification of learning. With 75% of the grades an A in school, it is difficult for industry to know the relevance of a grade. Bryan Caplan in The Case Against Education describes grade inflation and bureaucratic bloat.
Through Scientech funding, teachers get paid to learn and develop content to create curriculum at Ball State University. The school for the blind (https://www.in.gov/isbvi/) created curriculum for classroom needs to reform and change the daily curriculum, but the COVID-19 pandemic caused expansion problems. Sanjay Sarma created an open learning education model. MIT has open learning that is open to anyone; MicroMasters have measured expertise needed. MIT offers the open education access concept of taking a test and getting a degree.
Grade inflation does not measure capability. We need to bring back grading integrity and create a program for educators to continue community connection. The Indiana General Assembly is funding a program to bring the teachers along. Teachers out in local businesses, such as Riley Hospital, came back with knowledge as to what was needed in the workforce. Often college knowledge does
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not connect with the workplace. Eli Lilly has two new manufacturing sites that need an educated workforce —teach tie in programs of E-transcripts connect to microcredentials.
Andrew Melin noted learning needs to be more relevant to the students. He suggested working together with community leaders to develop an action plan. Students need to develop a strong work ethic and great character. TIE-IN is a PK-12 educational approach to community connection. In New Haven, Indiana with 400 business partners for community relevance, teachers learned a passion for TIE-IN. Teachers knew educational content, but did not know how it was applied in the real world. TIE-IN is absolutely what is needed for education to be done differently.
CIESC, Central Indiana Educational Services, was formed. CIESC provides academic and operational programs and services supporting students and educators. It is an exclusive initiative designed to bridge the classroom with the dynamic world of business. CIESC is an Indiana career collaborative. Core values need to have every student succeed. Educators need to find the best fit for every single student, which is not necessarily college for every student. Relevance needs to be brought to student learning. Lasting connections must be built with industry leaders. K-12 should be a foundation to create and innovate. Formal course work should reflect industry trends, content, and strategies. There should be one-on-one teacher immersive experiences of a deep dive into specific businesses and industry organizations. Stipends give incentives to educators. At the Indiana Fever in the Gainbridge fieldhouse in ticket sales and behind the scenes, educators heard background stories, ideas, and suggestions to bring back to the classroom. Other tour partners were Fair Oaks Farms, the Indianapolis Zoo, Delara, the State Police, WTHR and Roche Diagnostics.
Andrew Melin, PhD Chris Edwards, EdD
