As World Teachers’ Day approaches, Microsoft Corp. is announcing the new 2012–2013 Microsoft Innovative Pathfinder and Mentor Schools being inducted as part of its Innovative Schools program. The 99 new Pathfinder Schools and Mentor Schools from 51 countries were chosen because they have strong school leadership and have established a record of innovation and successful change implementation.
The U.S. schools were selected from Alaska, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington. They have demonstrated student success and are great showcases for one-to-one computing, rethinking curriculum design, bringing innovation to scale for a district, and professional development.
The following are the six U.S. schools inducted as Pathfinder Schools this year:
• Lake View High School (Chicago), a public school which offers an interdisciplinary Early College STEM program in three IT-related pathways: traditional STEM, arts and humanities.
• Great Falls Elementary School (Great Falls, S.C.), whose teachers use a variety of effective technological strategies to engage students through an innovative, challenging curriculum that is focused on inquiry-based, hands-on learning.
• Loudoun County Public Schools (Ashburn, Va.), which provides mobile devices, a robust wireless network and a learning management system to foster rigorous academic standards.
• Birmingham Covington School (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), a school committed to being a Global Learning Hub where people can see, learn and participate in intellectually rich, future-orientated activities.
• York County School Division (Yorktown, Va.), which created a districtwide “bring-your-own-technology initiative” through which students master content and skills while making a difference locally, nationally and globally.
• Medina Elementary School (Medina, Wash.) whose staff members are working to instill lifelong learning skills and strategies through the district common curriculum, extensions inside and outside the classroom, and technology.
