BOOKER T. WASHINGTON HIGH SCHOOL
Standard 14: STEM Skills and Competencies
STEM K12 14: Students develop STEM skills and cross-cutting competencies that support workforce readiness.
Our Story
At Washington High School our Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education (CTAE) pathways preparing students for their next step after high school. This includes college, beginning a career, registered apprenticeships, or even the military. Georgia CTAE pathway course offerings, and the new Educating Georgia's Future Workforce initiative has helped us leverage partnerships with industry and higher education to ensure students have the skills they need to thrive in the future workforce. An integral part of preparing our students for the 21st Century workforce is providing hands-on opportunities to see and experience the jobs of today. Embedding cross cutting competencies with content standards, allows students to gain all of the basic knowledge and skills. It also supports the development of applied skills such as collaboration, innovation, leadership, diversity, written communication and problem-solving.
At Washington High school all of our career tech courses also involve the integration of soft skills. Teachers incorporate the elements of this standard into lesson plans during the course. The topics listed for each element of the standard may be addressed in differentiated instruction matching the content of each course. See example below:
We also had a Work-based learning program that collaboratively engaged employers with our students in providing structured learning experiences. These experiences focus on assisting students develop broad, transferable skills for postsecondary education and the workplace. Through this we were able to make school-based learning more relevant by providing students with the opportunity to apply knowledge and skills learned in the classroom to real world situations. Our students school-based learning focused on academic and career and technical preparation via classroom curriculum while work site learning occurs, away from school, in some type of business or community organization.
Opportunities for Growth
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Recognizing our school only offers a small number of pathways in comparison to the wide variety of STEM careers or professions we want to increase the number of students that are able to attend the Atlanta College& Career Academy as well as participate in the work-based learning program. We also aim to increase the number of students that are dual certified in the pathways we offer both on campus and off campus. Atlanta College and Career academy offers pathways in:
Initiatives/Actions
CTAE Certifications
The Department of Education industry certifies only those programs that have successfully undergone rigorous reviews by leaders from business and industry. Our school is one that is recognized with this distinction as we have received this "stamp of excellence", which represents the apex of program quality. All of our career technical programs (Health Science, Culinary Arts, and Business and Computer Science Education) have been industry certified by the Georgia Department of Education.
Industry Certified Programs at Washington HS
Career Planning Assessments
Career Planning Assessments- a tool used by counselors to help students focus on their strengths based on their values, interests, personality, and skills. Students participate in these career planning sessions to assess their interests and plan a future career paths. Students also participate in STEM surveys which allows teachers and students to address individual strengths and weaknesses.
PSAT/SAT/ACT Data
PSAT/SAT/ACT Data- Since the implementation of our STEM initiative at Washington High, the data indicates that students have had an improvement in composite scores. These assessments shows a student’s knowledge of math, science, and English language skills. Improvements in these college admission exams scores can be attributed to more interactive STEM courses, real-world projects, and more overall more engaged students.
YouScience Assessment
YouScience Assessment- YouScience Discovery brain games match students with what they are good at (aptitudes) and what you like to do (interests) with in-demand careers for which they could have a competitive advantage. It also offers students industry-recognized certifications to enable students to validate the skills and knowledge they’re learning in class to present themselves as capable and qualified candidates for college and career opportunities.
Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB)
The purpose of the ASVAB is to determine if you are qualified to enlist in the military and to assign you to an appropriate job in the military. Many students who certify in our (JROTC) Program take this exam at a Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS). The ASVAB tests are designed to measure aptitudes in four domains: Verbal, Math, Science and Technical, and Spatial.
Everfi Certifications
Raising Expectations
Career Technical & Agricultural Education (CTAE) Dept.
Our CTAE department continues to show great gains and supports STEM education via real world practical application and student certifications by holding End of Pathway Assessment pass rates in the following areas: Culinary Arts - 2019 - 100% pass rate, Sports Medicine -2019 - 96% pass rate, Entrepreneurship - 2019 - 87% pass rate. Through the integration of problem and project based learning instructional models we were also able to see gains in the core areas in the Winter 2019 administration of Milestones (see below).
Career Technical & Agricultural Education (CTAE) Dept.
College & Career Fair
In order to ensure we yield students who attain College and Career Ready status, Washington High School provides all of its students with the opportunity to explore a variety of post-secondary options through its annual College and Career Fair. At this event, both college admission representatives and industry professionals are readily available to talk with students and answer any questions they may have. This event also provides students with the opportunity to envision educational and career paths that are STEM-specific. College representatives are able to share specific courses in STEM-related subjects that they offer while also offering advice on what students can do to improve their chances of finding success as STEM student.
Achieve Atlanta
On Staff College Advisors via Achieve Atlanta- these staff members deliver hands-on help to our students as they chart their paths to college. They provide strategic, operational, and financial support that serves all juniors and seniors at our school. They also award scholarships to students in the amount of $5,000 per year (renewable for up to four years of school). Also for students eligible for the 2-year college or technical program scholarship, the award is $1,500 per year (renewable for up to two years of school).
College Success Course
College Success Course- this course was created to help students learn the skills and techniques that support academic achievement. This class was designed to help students prepare for the ACT/SAT as well as give them a comprehensive analysis of different types of motivation, study habits, and learning styles. This class encourages students to take control of their learning by exploring varying strategies for success.
Rubric-Self-Assessment Evaluation
