Digital Literacy

For many middle school teachers, taking part in a one-to-one initiative, where every student has a digital device for learning, has led to an existential search. In a technology-driven, student-centered learning environment, what does it mean to be a teacher?

Arrow Electronics recently hosted the second annual Diversity Meets Innovation Competition. Student teams, with a diverse set of majors and backgrounds, from four local universities applied their knowledge and skills to propose a tangible impact that could affect the next generation of technology entrepreneurs.

GenYES trains students in grades 4 to 12 to provide technology support in their classrooms, helping to move their schools into the 21st century while gaining exposure to IT and STEM careers. Support from the Cisco Foundation enabled GenYES to expand to 30 schools in Yuma, Arizona, which received more than 1500 hours of tech support from students and saved $75K in IT service expenses.

Paro, the young daydreamer at the center of a new short film by the same name, can’t help but see stories all around her. She’s constantly writing and drawing — during class and under the covers in bed at night. Her creative passion draws her attention away from schoolwork, leading to a confrontation with her parents and her teacher, who confiscates Paro’s beloved journal.

From an early age, Houda Najjari has been passionate about education. She saw a real need based on the poor quality of public education that her daughter and other children in her area were receiving. She decided to launch the "Center of Excellence" in order to provide additional support to these children and raise their achievement levels.

Around the world, hundreds of millions of people lack access to quality learning opportunities, including 264 million children living in communities where basic educational resources are unavailable. To address this inequity, HP is working with other companies, nonprofit organizations, and governments to create technology solutions that can connect individuals to educational opportunities wherever they live.

At university campuses across the U.S., tech innovation is outrunning the classroom. With no existing curriculum to guide them, students and faculty are experimenting with a slew of new 3D printing, virtual reality and augmented reality technologies. As they tinker away in design studios and labs, they aren’t just figuring out new uses for these 21st century tools — they’re also defining how students learn.

HP has long believed that what’s good for society and the earth is good for business. But Porter and Kramer’s work gave corporate purpose a label, Shared Value. It became a rallying cry for sustainability professionals to garner support from their C-suite and internal business teams to help shift perspectives on what corporate social responsibility (CSR) means.

Last week, during an Ignite My Future In School Computational Thinking in the Classroom webisode, educators convened virtually to share best practices for engaging students in computational thinking.