The Cyber Interstate™ developed by the Cyber Innovation Center (CIC) provides K-12 teachers with robust, and proven integrated STEM and Cyber curricula and professional development opportunities. The Cyber Interstate provides a hands-on, context-based approach to professional development and empower teachers to transform their classroom into 21st century learning environments. Research shows that this new generation of learners requires (and demands) a much different learning environment than those before. Further, engaging students the way they want to be engaged (through hands-on and interdisciplinary projects) often results in increased participation in Cyber/STEM related academic pathways and ultimately creating more Cyber/STEM professionals. The CIC has been acknowledged for their work by teachers, schools, school districts, state departments of education, and federal agencies. The CIC is committed to promoting a culture of educational innovation across a network of K-12 faculty around the nation; developing the nation’s cyber workforce through the creation and enhancement of STEM and cyber educational opportunities for teachers and students; creating and nationally disseminating innovative practices in education; and serving as a catalyst for future research in cyber education. The CIC provides access to the entire library of STEM and Cyber Curricula to K-12 educators at no cost. The CIC was awarded a competitive grant by the Department of Homeland Security, receiving the designation as the national model for cyber education. Through this grant, CIC’s team of subject matter experts and master teachers developed 8 courses with over 180 hours of curricula in each course. STEM: Explore, Discover, Apply for Middle School; Cyber Literacy, Cyber Literacy II, Cyber Science, Cyber Society, Physics, Advanced Math for Engineering and Science, and Computer Science The national landscape for STEM, Cyber, Cybersecurity, and Computer Science is growing exponentially each and every day. This growth is an opportunity for educators to provide real world connections in to the classroom, a context for the content, as well as providing students with possible career pathways for the future.
www.cyberinnovationcenter.org