Our goal is to continually bring knowledge to our students, but students learn in a variety of ways. Personally, I cannot simply sit still inside of a classroom and absorb any real information. If I can get hands-on to immediately apply this knowledge, I’m far more likely to learn and want to learn. Engagement doesn’t mean immediate success or mastery, but rather continuous failure and error. That is where true learning takes place.
If this is true for me, it might just be true for many students like me. We can sometimes forget that all of this can just as easily apply to teachers. Occasionally, we need a reminder that in the technical/vocational/STEM world, knowledge doesn’t come automatically. We all can use a refresher from time to time or take a step back to remember that with turnover and new hires, the inherent knowledge starts to fade.
I am singling out this issue as far too often, we get so caught up in getting the right tools in classrooms and labs that we look at instructor training as a secondary objective. As Kerry Ozmelek, Career Readiness Supervisor and Education Services Liaison at Adelphoi Village, explains below, her school’s pain point is exactly that.
Regardless of the individual instructor’s baseline level of topic knowledge, we can focus our efforts on leveling up. The road to get there can vary. It can be through on-site training, remote demonstration and technical support, direct certified training at our partner facilities, or even by immersing instructors in a collaborative professional development environment.
When planning our projects, I will continue to emphasize with all of you the need for the right level of training, support, and ongoing professional development. Let’s learn together now, so we can succeed for your students.
I wish everyone the greatest time with your loved ones over the holiday break!
Highlight from Our Region
Kerry Ozmelek, Career Readiness Supervisor and Education Services Liaison at Adelphoi Village in Latrobe and all over Western Pennsylvania, kindly took the time to answer some questions. Adelphoi has, over the last 50 years, been a leading provider of services to at-risk youth in our community. Thank you, Kerry.
Since your time at Adelphoi, what decision(s) are you most proud of that have had the largest positive impact on your students?
I have been at Adelphoi for 11 years. I think being a positive role model for my students is one of the biggest impacts I have had on them. Most of my students lack direction in their home lives, and I hope that I have given them at least some hope and care so they can believe in themselves and their futures.
In spite of the last 2 schoolyears, can you explain the importance of getting hands-on with training equipment in order to have students fully engage in career exploration for in-demand technical skills?
The students at Adelphoi, like most students, love to learn by doing. Hands-on training allows us to reach students who otherwise have some difficulty with didactic classroom instruction. They really come alive and ask questions, try to figure things out on their own, and work with peers to problem solve.
Moving forward, what do you feel would be the greatest step for your program and your students?
Getting more of our teachers trained to teach the hands-on equipment at our Adelphoi Education locations (8 throughout Western PA), would be very beneficial to our career readiness program.
In my efforts to work with you and be a resource continually into the future, what are some ways I can best support you and Adelphoi going forward?
You have been very available to answer any questions that arise during quoting, purchasing, and the training phases of getting our program set up. Continuous teacher training is one thing we need to focus on as new teachers are added to our staff.
Focused Solutions
National Coalition of Certification Centers (NC3) Train the Trainer Events
NC3 is a network of education professionals and corporations that aim to produce a sustainable, highly-skilled workforce. To this end, they offer industry-recognized, portable certifications.
Instructors learn how to teach the NC3 stackable credentials including hands-on labs, use of equipment, and industry-sponsored curriculum. The students then take these certifications with them for the rest of their lives.
They offer dozens of events, both virtual and in-person, throughout the year. You can learn more here.
Bionics4Education
Available in Q1 2022, Festo has developed a series of Bionics kits inspired by nature to, in turn, inspire your students and excite them about STEM. Find out more here.
Events
PETE&C
The Pennsylvania Educational Technology Expo & Conference is returning to Hershey, PA next year in a hybrid format. The majority of sessions will be face to face but four virtual sessions will be running per time slot!
Early bird registration for PETE&C 2022 ends on December 31, 2021. Lock in the early bird pricing for you and/or your colleagues here.
PACTA’s 31ST Annual Symposium 2022 Pathways to Career Readiness: An Education and Workforce Development Symposium
The 31st annual Symposium will begin at 12:30 p.m. on February 10 and will conclude at Noon on February 11. Approximately 300 participants attended the Symposium in previous years and we are expecting a similar attendance this year. The registration deadline is January 24, 2022.
Grants
Many annual grants have deadlines coming up. From YouthBuild offering up to $90,000,000 in 2022 to $75,000,000 being offered for research intensive learning environments and up to $15,000 for renewable energy and STEM projects to $500 for high school chemistry teachers, there’s a lot of money out there.
Let’s bring it home to Western PA and help your students succeed.