As an engineering teacher, finding ways for my middle school students to effectively use technology, to make important scientific connections as outlined in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and to take ownership of their own learning, is what it’s all about.

Creating a classroom environment that emphasizes hands-on learning not only encourages students to be active participants during the learning process, but it helps instill a passion for science education within them that hopefully lasts well beyond their time in my class. 

Children need to explore and to discover. This is how you innovate; you fail your way to your answer. “Scientists fail all the time; we just brand it differently. We call it ‘data’, said Ainissa Ramirez.

Students at every age should be encouraged to think deeply so that they have the chance to become the innovators, educators, and leaders who can solve the most pressing challenges facing our future. STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Math) inspires students to think more broadly and to solve problems with a hands-on approach.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s standing on teacher pay keeps improving compared to other states. The National Education Association released on Tuesday its annual teacher salary rankings. The data show North Carolina ranked 34th in average teacher pay during the 2017-18 school year at more than $51,200, compared to 38th the year before.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Gov. John Bel Edwards’ push to give Louisiana public schoolteachers a pay raise and school districts their first spending increase in years won support Tuesday from the state’s top school board. Members of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education backed the K-12 public school financing formula proposed by the Democratic governor for the 2019-20 school year. A final vote will come Wednesday. Then, the formula will move to state lawmakers for consideration.

MONROE, La. (AP) — A new coalition is providing athletic shoes for 40 children at one Louisiana elementary school. Members learned that children were coming to the office at Barkdull Faulk Elementary School in Monroe, crying because their shoes were too small and hurt their feet, or were falling apart, LSU AgCenter nutrition agent Markaye Russell said in a news release Friday. Those problems made it hard for the children to participate in physical education classes or run and play at recess, she said. Physical activity lowers the risk of obesity, which is a big problem in Louisiana.