Teaching & Learning 21
January 2024
News & Updates from PDE
PA State Board of Education Approves New Standards Package
On January 11, 2024, the PA State Board of Education unanimously approved Chapter 4 amendments that included updates to Career Education & Work, Economics, and Family & Consumer Sciences Standards, as well as adding new Personal Finance Standards. This approval sets forth a regulatory process related to further legal and code review. Based on the pacing of this process, it is anticipated that updates to Chapter 4 can officially occur as soon as June 2024 with intended implementation of updated and new standards for the 2026-2027 school year.
State Board of Education Initiatives/Regulations (includes links to updated/new standards)
You've Got a Friend in Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) unveiled You’ve Got a Friend in Pennsylvania—an automated phone number that individuals of all ages can call to hear pep talks, jokes, and words of encouragement from Pennsylvania students.
Curriculum Resources
Celebrate Black History Month with the Commonwealth
The 2024 national theme for Black History Month is African Americans and the Arts, which celebrates how African Americans have used visual and performing arts, literature, fashion, folklore, language, film, music, architecture, culinary art, and many other forms of cultural expression to share lived experiences and influence culture.
In observance of this year’s theme, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Multi-Agency Black History Month Committee is hosting a Contest among middle school and high school students to emphasize African Americans and the Arts. Three winners will be selected. Each winner will receive a prize and have their work showcased at the virtual Black History Month Program.
Black History Month Contest
This year’s contest is meant to spread a message of education and encouragement, designed to stimulate discussion and bridge cultures in furtherance of the national theme.
Disclaimer: All submissions will become property of the Commonwealth’s Multi-Agency Black History Month Planning Committee and will not be returned. All submissions will be held in accordance with the record retention schedule for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Eligibility: The contest is open to current middle school students in grades 6-8 and high school students in grades 9-12 who reside in and attend school in Pennsylvania.
Forms of Submission:
- Poem
- Dance Video
- Musical Selection
Poem Rules: The poem must have two parts: 1) Title page, 2) Poem. The poem must be listed on a separate page and not reference the applicant's name or information.
- Title Page Contents:
- Poem title
- Applicant’s name, grade, address, phone number & email
- Applicant’s school name & address
- Principal’s name, address, phone & email address
- Poem Contents:
- Poem can be written in any poetic style
Dance Video Rules:
- Title Page Contents:
- Dance title
- Applicant(s) name(s), grade(s), address(es), phone number(s) & email(s)
- Applicant(s) school name & address
- Principal’s name, address, phone number & email address
- Video Contents:
- Video recording not to exceed three (3) minutes in length
- By submitting a video for the event, you and participants grant consent for all or part of the video to be used by the Multi-Agency Black History Month Committee, and authorizes its rebroadcast on multiple platforms utilized by the Committee.
Musical Selection Rules: Students may select to sing, rap, or play a musical instrument.
- Title Page Contents:
- Song title (if performing a cover song include the original artist’s name)
- Applicant(s) name(s), grade(s), address(es), phone number(s) & email(s)
- Applicant(s) school name & address
- Principal’s name, address, phone number & email address
- Video Contents:
- Video recording not to exceed three (3) minutes in length
- By submitting a video for the event, you and participants grant consent for all or part of the video to be used by the Multi-Agency Black History Month Committee, and authorizes its rebroadcast on multiple platforms utilized by the Committee.
Submission Deadline: All submissions must be made by the School Principal. Submissions must be submitted no later than Friday, January 19, 2024, to blackhistorycommittee@pa.gov.
Pennsylvania Council on Financial Literacy: Dream-Learn-Pitch Contest
We have a fun Entrepreneurship contest called Dream-Learn-Pitch where students develop & upload a 5-minute video of their Business Pitch! There are big prizes available for the winners.
The deadline to upload videos & enter is March 13th.
Courses are NOT required to enter a business idea into the contest. Just simply have the students upload their video pitch & they are entered!
Students may also submit Business ideas from other contests.
If you have any questions please reach out to Eric Attinger (eattinger@penncfl.org) or Carolyn Shirk (cshirk@penncfl.org)
College & Career Preparation
News from the College Board
AP
As you begin planning your course offerings for the 2024-2025 school year, here are some resources we hope you find helpful. As always, feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions about how to bring a new AP course to your school.
- Building Your AP Program
- Support Early Access to AP
- AP Meets Project Based Learning
- Career Connections to AP
- AP Courses That Go Together
- Most Popular AP Courses
- Spotlight on Success
BigFuture
BigFuture Live is a series of free virtual community events where career experts and college reps answer questions about planning for life after high school. Students and their families are invited to attend these events.
Three events will be held in December, including Paying for College 101, Find Your Dream Job, and What You Need to Know about the New FAFSA. Register today at https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/communities-events/bigfuture-live.
Students are also invited to join us for BigFuture Scholarships Week from December 4-8 – a week of live, free events where students can get questions answered about planning for life after high school and how to qualify for $500 and $40,000 BigFuture scholarships. Register at https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/bigfuture-scholarships.
eLearn21 at Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit 21 NOW offering Dual Enrollment
In partnership with the statewide CAOLA Consortium, eLearn21 is Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit 21's Virtual Learning Program. With successful programs to serve needs of full-time online learners, credit recovery, course acceleration, or even fulfill teacher shortage needs, the latest addition to our catalog include dual enrollment courses with our partners at Edison Learning. These dual enrollment courses are offered through a variety of colleges and universities such as Cedar Crest College, Moravian University, Gywnedd Mercy University, Pennsylvania College of Art & Design, and many more!
Want to learn more or get students enrolled? Reach out to Eric Lech (leche@cliu.org) or Melissa Volcskai (voclskaim@cliu.org) to learn more.
Professional Learning Opportunities
Educational Technology Spotlight
ParentSquare
About
ParentSquare is the premier fully unified product that engages every family with school communications and communications-based services—all the way from the district office to the classroom teacher, and all in one place.
CLIU 21Consortium
- Discounted per-student pricing for the suite of ParentSquare products (Engage, Engage Premium, Secure Document Delivery, etc.).
- Purchase is made directly with ParentSquare. CLIU can verify pricing upon receipt of quote.
Resources
AI Toolkit
Are you having difficulty navigating Artificial Intelligence within your school community? Are you curious how you can help your staff navigate the complicated concepts revolving around AI? The AI Guidance for Schools Toolkit is designed to help school communities navigate the ever-evolving world of AI. This toolkit is full of helpful resources and information to assist your school, staff, and community along the AI journey.
CLIU 21 Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Please download the attached document below to see our team and their primary initiatives. You are always welcome to reach out to any member of our team for services or support.
Eric Lech, Director (leche@cliu.org)
Michael Heater, Coordinator (heaterm@cliu.org)