MOBILE, Ala. – Middle school teachers from northeast Alabama are in Mobile this week for professional development training related to We Build It Better’s science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics curriculum.
Central School, New Hope High School, and Meridianville Middle School in Madison County, Plainview School in DeKalb County, and Albertville Middle School in Marshall County are among those in the area that employ the We Build in Better STEAM curriculum and have teachers attending the training.
A total of 36 middle school teachers from Alabama, California, Florida, Kansas, Mississippi, and Wisconsin convened at Flight Works Alabama on Monday, July 18, for a week-long program designed to enhance their proficiency in We Build lt Better’s unique STEAM learning system.
Rod Hall, Agriscience teacher at Plainview High School, said, “STEAM touches every facet of our economy, and agriculture is no exception. I’m excited to put a cutting edge on my traditional teaching and emphasize science, math, and technology components in today’s agriculture teachings.”
Erika Amos, a teacher at Albertville Middle School, summed up the value of the program, saying, "We Build It Better teaches students more than STEAM skills through hands-on learning. Our students will learn workplace and critical-thinking skills that they'll be able to take away from the classroom and into their future career paths, be it college or technical school in the work field."
Teachers will master the skills to transform their classrooms into Centers of Invention and Innovation, exercise product development by using industry-grade tools and equipment, become fluent in manufacturing and industry terminology and to begin or continue their journey to become subject matter experts in real-world business and manufacturing concepts and practices.
Activities this week are as diverse as building a model Airbus A320 aircraft to designing and constructing an electric vehicle, to 3D printing their first invention. Roughly one-fourth of attendees are conducting refresher training, while the majority are new to We Build It Better. A total of 81 schools in five states taught the We Build It Better program in the 2021-2022 academic year. Another 27 schools in six states are adopting the program for the 2022-2023 school year, for a total of 108 schools in eight states.
About We Build It Better
We Build It Better is an all-inclusive industry-designed, educator-developed, curricular experience that engages middle school students in a work-like STEAM environment. The program lays a foundation for students to understand the process of developing a new product and equips them with the skills needed to design and create an innovative solution to a real-world industry-based challenge.
The We Build It Better program was developed by Flight Works Alabama in partnership with Airbus, Amazon Web Services, the State of Alabama, Alabama Power Foundation, Snap-On Incorporated, and Mott MacDonald. The program’s objective is to weave 21st century work skills with higher-level thinking skills such as measurement, product design, tools, electric wiring, fiber optics, and coding to encourage students to design inventions of their own.
To learn more about We Build it Better, visit https://www.webuilditbetter.org/ or its Facebook page.
About Flight Works Alabama
Flight Works Alabama (FWA), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, recognizes a community’s economic growth and resiliency correlates directly with education. FWA’s state-of-the-art education center strives to inspire visitors and provide opportunities for learners of all ages to master 21st century work skills and soft skills. The vision of FWA is a long-term impact on education and workforce development for the Gulf Coast and beyond.
To learn more about Flight Works Alabama, visit FlightWorksAlabama.com or their Facebook page.
