- Combination of Digital Content and Sustained Professional Development to Drive District’s STEAM Initiative-
Silver Spring, MD. (January 31, 2018) – California’s Orcutt Union School District (OUSD) announced today the selection of Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, as their new partner in creating dynamic STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) teaching and learning environments districtwide. This new collaboration provides OUSD educators the dynamic digital content and job-embedded professional development they need to deliver a powerful, purposeful, and systemic approach to transdisciplinary STEAM instruction to all students across the school system.
OUSD’s new six-year collaboration with Discovery Education directly supports the school system’s Strategic Plan. Seeking to foster high levels of student success through multiple pathways of learning, OUSD’s Strategic Plan commits to providing all students engaging high-quality instruction that promotes active learning and maximizes student achievement through an innovative 21 Century curriculum. In addition, OUSD’s new partnership with Discovery Education supports the district’s ongoing effort to continuously support its teachers’ professional development as they create flexible learning environments, implement new delivery models, and expand students’ opportunities for learning.
The integration of the award-winning Discovery Education Streaming Plus into teaching and learning across OUSD will help create the modern, engaging learning environments called for by the district’s Strategic Plan. A comprehensive digital service supplementing instruction across all K-12 curricular areas, Discovery Education Streaming Plus helps build students’ mastery in interpreting, understanding, and evaluating information. Students can access a variety of digital assets including images, primary source documents, podcasts, oral interviews, books on tape, articles, videos, and more, and are empowered to become content creators with a suite of content creation tools that help teachers and students safely and easily collaborate in real-time on virtual projects. Teacher resources include lesson plans, instructional strategies, and content collections organized around themes, as well as a collection of new STEM/STEAM resources designed to fuel a cultural shift in teaching and learning.
Discovery Education’s professional development services will also support OUSD’s Strategic Plan. Through OUSD’s STEAM Leader Academy, which is powered by Discovery Education’s STEM Leader Corp capacity building model, district administrators and teachers will learn new strategies and best practices for building and sustaining a culture of STEAM in their schools and guide them as they master new STEAM instructional approaches. With a focus on developing high-quality STEAM instruction, creating interdisciplinary lessons and units, and vertically aligning STEAM education school-wide, this initiative provides the robust professional development, job-embedded coaching, and administrative leadership support necessary to create centers of STEAM excellence. In addition OUSD’s STEAM Leader Academy will also help district educators integrate Discovery Education’s Streaming Plus digital content service deeper into classroom instruction.
“At Orcutt Union School District, we have been working diligently over the last several years to provide students the learning experience and skills they need to successfully compete in a global society,” said Dr. Deborah Blow, Orcutt Union School District Superintendent. “We believe our collaboration with Discovery Education will help us create a powerful transdisciplinary STEAM program that will help prepare all our students for a successful future beyond our district’s classrooms.”
In addition to receiving access to Discovery Education’s dynamic digital content and robust STEAM professional development, the Discovery Education Community will support OUSD’s educators’ efforts to transform students’ learning experiences with dynamic digital media. A global community of education professionals, the Discovery Education Community connects members across school systems and around the world through social media, virtual conferences, and in-person events, fostering valuable networking, idea sharing and inspiration.
“Discovery Education is honored to be part of OUSD’s effort to build STEAM teaching and learning environments,” said Andrew Bradigan, Regional Vice President, Discovery Education. “We are eager to work with Dr. Blow and her dedicated team of educators as we expand Orcutt students’ learning opportunities through this exciting initiative.”
For more information about Discovery Education’s professional development resources, digital streaming services, and more, visit www.discoveryeducation.com, and stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through Facebook, follow us on Twitter at @DiscoveryEd, or find us on Instagram and Pinterest.
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About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12, transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content, professional development, and the largest professional learning community of its kind. Serving 4.5 million educators and over 50 million students, Discovery Education’s services are in half of U.S. classrooms, 50 percent of all primary schools in the UK, and more than 50 countries. Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers, and transform classrooms with customized solutions that increase academic achievement. Discovery Education is powered by Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one nonfiction media company in the world. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.
