Wk3 Publishing/Leadership Project Post 2 of 3

Screen shot from http://www.astd.org

My Action Research project involved examining the literature to see if High School student’s motivation to learn mathematics is increased through the integration of technology and corporate sponsorship.  In conducting my Action Research project around these aspects, I was able to confirm the validity of the research that stated that a student’s motivation to learn is increased through the integration of technology and corporate sponsorship.  It was also noted that there are benefits for corporations as well.  

I prefer that my message reach as many people as possible who are gathered at a meeting with dedicated time to devote to the topic of their interest. Networking is so valuable in getting the message out that corporations should be contributing to the education of our future workforce.

Within my first think out loud project post, I mentioned  targeting two to three different audiences:  (1) educational institutions (K-12 and undergraduate), (2) corporations, and (3) National Legislation.  Given this, I have identified two possible conferences in which I could present and why.  One of the conferences could lead to possibilities for National Legislation when more data is available so it would be an excellent first step in a the longer journey.

The American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) is an association dedicated to workplace learning and performance professionals.  Members work in many industries and organizations of all sizes with a goal to link learning and performance to individual and organizational results.  They have a voice on critical public policy issues and legislation concerning advancements in workplace education.  Their mission is to empower professionals to develop knowledge and skills to succeed.  They have an annual international meeting that attracts thousands of corporations from many industries. This is a perfect setting to introduce the concept and advantages of corporate sponsorship with local community schools and the benefits to them.  It could be a way to bridge the gap between what corporations need, future skilled workforces, and what students need, state of the art technology and hands on experiences and the opportunity to see what could be out there for them related to future careers.

Screen shot from http://www.iste.org/conference.aspx

The improvements to educational outcome and our future labor force are so closely tied together that it becomes very important to select a venue that targets both key audiences, K-12 and undergraduate institutions as well as corporate sponsors.  The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) strongly believes that corporations are major stakeholders in education and that we need to collaborate with them to successfully transforming education. ISTE has a 30-year history of working with corporations to help achieve their mission of advancing excellence in learning and teaching through innovative and effective uses of technology.  Each year at their international conferences they have nearly 20,000 educational technology professionals and corporate representatives from 60 countries that come together over five days to learn, collaborate, and share information all of which leads to unlocking students’ potential.  I feel this is a perfect opportunity to share my vision and results with the K-12 and undergraduate educators to encourage them to allow corporations to sponsor their classrooms.