Kingston, TN (PRWEB) December 04, 2013
The Kentucky C3R, a collaborative, career and college readiness initiative that is introducing innovative instructional strategies and online learning tools statewide reports there are now more than 100 rural middle and high school across 30 districts using the WIN Learning online suite of tools. After just 90 days of use, students have logged more than 7,700 hours on the system, and administrators report that significant progress is being measured. The Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative (KVEC) and Green River Regional Educational Cooperative (GRREC) are implementing the program, funded by a U.S. Department of Education Investing in Innovation (i3) grant.
Across Kentucky, teachers are integrating WIN Learning and career-focused instruction into classes such as English language arts and math, and students are responding positively to the real-life relevance the program offers, said Dessie Bowling, KY C3R grant manager. In one school district, 82 percent of the students who completed the WorkKeys Assessment passed. This represents a 76 percent increase from the year before.
The federal i3 competition sought to reward districts, school consortia, and nonprofit organizations that proposed the most-innovative programs focused on improving teacher effectiveness, low-performing schools, standards and assessments, and data systems. The $ 650 million initiative is part of $ 100 billion in education aid funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the economic-stimulus measure passed by Congress four years ago.
The Kentucky initiative outlined a plan dedicated to increasing student achievement and graduation rates within two high-need rural regions of Kentucky using WIN Learnings Personalized Career Readiness System in both middle and high school curricula. The standards-aligned, web-based courseware offers project-based activities that can be adapted to a variety of instructional offerings including elective courses, math and literacy intervention classes, blended learning models, extended day programs, and career readiness certification programs.
Based on the propriety WIN Educonomy Model, the program is helping Kentucky students understand employability, and foundational and social skills within the context of future careers based on job market data specific to their local and regional economies.
This real-world focus helps determine the personalized selection of coursework and other experiences that will lead our middle and high school students to their desired careers, either directly after graduation or following further training and/or completing their college education, added Bowling.
Each of the registered Kentucky students begins with the Initial Skills Review application, which measures individual career readiness and skill development gaps. After that, students are given access to the WIN Learning Career Readiness