Code.org collaborates with Friday Institute for new virtual PD model
Coronavirus has impacted nearly every aspect of Code.org’s Professional Learning Program. In just a matter of months, we — along with our network of 57 regional partner organizations — have completely reimagined how to deliver high-quality, effective computer science workshops to thousands of teachers through more than one hundred local workshops around the country.
In that short time, many of our partners acted quickly and came up with innovative and novel solutions to replace our in-person model, which required that CS Discoveries and CS Principles teachers meet for a one-week workshop in the summer followed by a series of follow-up sessions throughout the year.
Now, in an effort to support our partners across the country in delivering high-quality summer professional development in the midst of the impacts of coronavirus, we’re excited to partner with the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation to introduce our first-ever virtual summer workshop model for the CS Discoveries and CS Principles Professional Learning Program.
This collaboration represents our shared commitment to providing a viable, local alternative to in-person learning experiences this summer at a time of limited mobility and great uncertainty due to the impact of COVID-19. These workshops will be offered by many partners around the country starting Monday, July 6.
Check availability and apply to attend a virtual professional development workshop in your area
The Friday Institute, part of North Carolina State University’s College of Education in Raleigh, has been providing virtual professional learning for more than 10 years. During that time, they have reached more than 60,000 educators in 160+ countries!
While the format and activities of the virtual model might be different from the in-person model, we are committed to grounding our workshop design decisions in the same values and goals we apply to the entirety of our Professional Learning Program. This new model can be completed over one five-day workshop period (just like the in-person summer workshops) or split across multiple weeks. It involves a package of asynchronous learning opportunities combined with synchronous, facilitator-led sessions. To successfully engage with and meet the program outcomes, a participant must engage in the complete set of experiences and sessions.
The Friday Institute worked closely with the Code.org Professional Learning team and Code.org-trained facilitators to design these workshops, and the Friday Institute team has sought and incorporated input and feedback from stakeholders in our network throughout the design process
We appreciate the hard work and quick thinking of the computer science education community during these truly unprecedented times, and we can’t wait for teachers across the country to experience this new workshop format. Classrooms might be closed, but the learning doesn’t have to stop!
-Code.org Education Programs Team
