St. Louis area school discipline gap larger than thought

In St. Louis area schools, some students are far more likely to be suspended than those least at risk — 20, 30 or even 60 times more likely, finds a new study from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis and Forward Through Ferguson.

Who Will Help Children? Building Brain Regimes

William F. Tate, dean of the Graduate School and vice provost for graduate education, calls for the region to build a public-private “a brain regime” to protect the region’s children. Key recommendations including improving the region’s teachers, strengthening K-12 STEM education and reclaiming those students who have been pushed out of schools.

Washington University announces local College Prep scholars

Washington University in St. Louis has admitted 49 rising high school sophomores to its innovative College Prep Program, a multiyear initiative that prepares high-achieving students with limited financial resources for college. Recent graduates of the program have been admitted to Yale, John Hopkins, Spelman and Washington University and have received millions in scholarship offers.  Read […]

A new life, a new language

Cindy Brantmeier, professor of applied linguistics and education, has designed a social reading program that employs online games to help adolescent refugees and immigrants. The results are promising — test scores have improved along with student confidence.

Students at every grade need to learn climate science

Even the youngest students are ready to learn about climate science, according to Michael Wysession, professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis and executive director of the Teaching Center.

Who will teach tomorrow’s coders

High school students need computer science skills, but who will teach them? The Institute for School Partnership is addressing Missouri’s desperate shortage of computer science educators through the Code.org professional learning program, which prepares educators with no coding experience to lead computer science classes. The need is urgent: only one-third of Missouri high schools offer computer science.

Everyday MySci: Nurturing your child’s natural sense of wonder

From the playground to the pool to the ballpark, science is all around us. Through its Everyday MySci activities, the Institute for School Partnership at Washington University in St. Louis helps parents nurture their child’s natural sense of curiosity, wonder and discovery.

WashU offers tuition assistance program for surrounding districts

University College, the professional and continuing education division of Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, is now offering a 50 percent discount to full-time employees of St. Louis, Clayton and University City and their school districts. Charter school employees also are eligible.

ISP pilots technology curriculum MySci Do

Students piloting MySciDo

Several schools in the St. Louis Public Schools district are piloting a new STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curriculum and teacher training program called mySci Do. It’s modeled on mySci’s distribution protocol and was designed to apply those methods to technology education. mySci Do is funded by a grant from the Monsanto Fund, and developed by the ISP, Maryville University School of Education, The Little Bit Foundation and The Disruption Department.

College Prep scholars announced

Washington University in St. Louis has admitted 50 rising high school sophomores to its innovative College Prep Program, a multiyear initiative that prepares high-achieving students with limited financial resources for college. The students represent public, private and charter schools from across the region. They will live and study on campus for three summers,  participating in science labs, preparing their college essays and studying with top university faculty. Entering its fifth year, the program has track record of preparing high school students for college.

College Prep scholars graduate, head to college

The College Prep Program, an innovative initiative that prepares talented low-income, first-generation high school students from the St. Louis region for college, graduated its second cohort of scholars. All 34 members received college admission, and 11 will be attending Washington University through the College Prep Scholarship.

Creating a new generation of educators

Good teachers make for engaged students and stable schools. That’s why Washington University is partnering with the St. Louis Teacher Residency program to address two of the most vexing problems facing high-needs schools: teacher turnover and teacher quality.

Hawthorn InvestiGirls takes homework help to the next level

Hawthorn InvestiGirls tutors go beyond homework help at Hawthorn Leadership School for Girls. Their strategy is part of the ongoing effort to bring a rigorous STEM-focused education to women of color, a population that is underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math.

Celebrating science at the ISP’s annual Darwin Day

A life-size cutout of Charles Darwin stands in the corner. Next to him are party hats and a selfie stick. His face adorns a birthday cake that’s wheeled out to much excitement. Numbers are read and fossils are raffled off. Attendees sport buttons that read “I love evolution” and “Team Darwin.”

This isn’t your ordinary Saturday morning professional development day. This is the Institute for School Partnership’s sixth annual Darwin Day celebration.

WashU alum named Missouri Biology Teacher of the Year

Ryan Lacson, a 2013 graduate of the Master of Science in Biology for Science Teachers program at Washington University in St. Louis, has been named the 2017 Missouri Outstanding Biology Teacher of the Year by the National Association of Biology Teachers. Lacson is a science teacher at Galena High School in Galena, Mo. Read more at The Institute for School Partnership.

Teach Me to Help: Empowering Students to Save Lives

Teach me to Help, CPR training program

Missouri law now requires high schools to provide CPR training to students. Teach Me to Help, an emergency response training program founded by Washington University students, delivers CPR instruction to schools with limited resources and inspires students to consider careers in healthcare.

ISP leads Hour of Code challenge in University City school

The university’s Institute for School Partnership led an Hour of Code activity recently for elementary school students in University City. The activity was designed to help kids have fun with both computer programming and science.

MySci curriculum garners national recognition

sound waves

The EQuIP Peer Review Panel for Science (PRP) has identified MySci’s middle school Module 5 Waves as a high-quality lesson and unit designed for the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The unit was written by curriculum writers at the Institute for School Partnership at Washington University in St. Louis in partnership with educators from Mehlville School District, Clayton School District, St. Louis Public Schools, Rockwood School District and Lift for Life Academy.

High school students should study earth science. Here’s why

Ever wonder why some subjects are taught in high school while others are not, or why students spend so much time memorizing facts? According to Washington University geophysicist Michael Wysession, science curricula in the US are based on standards that are more than 120 years old, and being stuck in the past has had serious consequences. Wysession is bringing a new approach to science education to St. Louis and beyond.

College Prep scholars join the Class of 2021

Washington University in St. Louis welcomed the 1,780 members of the Class of 2021 on Thursday, Aug. 24. This year’s class includes six members of the first cohort of the College Prep Program, which prepares talented, first-generation students for life on a college campus.