CalTAC

The S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation has awarded a grant to the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) at the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST), to help Cal TAC build a new STEM Teaching Excellence Program (STEP) designed to strengthen STEM teaching quality and leadership in California. “Thanks to this support, Cal TAC will build on […]

Art Lopez, a member of CCST’s California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC), was selected by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Center for Women & Information Technology as one of the top 100 computer science educators in the US, and participated in a workshop to help launch Computer Science Education Week in Washington, D.C. […]

The California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) and its parent organization, CCST, have released a resource guide that is the culmination of more than two years of investigating digitally enhanced education (DEE), that included two symposia convened by Cal TAC. The guide focuses specifically on assessing the efficacy of digital teaching and learning, assessing what […]

California is in a prime position for enhancing science, technology, mathematics, and engineering (STEM) education, and the state needs to do so in order to maintain its leadership in high-tech innovation, according to a report released on June 30 by State Superintendent Tom Torlakson, INNOVATE: A Blueprint for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics in California […]

The California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) has released the latest in a series of papers discussing the efficacy of digitally enhanced education, exploring what works, for whom, and under what conditions in classroom settings. A CalTAC convened symposium, one in a series supported by the Stephen D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation and the Stuart Foundation, […]

Cal TAC brought together education leaders from around California last week to discuss what current research says about the effect of digital teaching and learning platforms, tools, programs and resources. “The role of information technology has shifted from that of an enabler to that of a transforming culture,” said keynote speaker CCST Senior Fellow Mohammad […]

A delegation from the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) spent three days in Washington, D.C. last week, introducing Cal TAC as an organization dedicated to strengthening STEM teaching and learning throughout California, and briefing Senate staff and Congressional members about their current work on digitally enhanced education. The delegation included Cal TAC Chair Brian […]

A new summary report has been released detailing the proceedings of a June 2012 summit on integrating digital media into teacher preparation in California. (Click here for the report.) The summit, convened by the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC), brought together science and math teachers, university faculty, philanthropists, and technical experts to develop a strategy […]

Using digital media to improve teaching and learning is essential to the classrooms of the 21st century. However, many challenges must be overcome in order to fulfill the potential of digital education in California, as the members of the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) discussed in a recent meeting. Cal TAC is a group […]

California, the nation’s leading high-tech state in many respects, is trailing the nation when it comes to support for digital education – the enhancement of education, both in and out of the classroom, with technology. According to a recent assessment by the Digital Learning Now, a project that assesses states’ support and readiness for digitally […]

Successful education reform, particularly in STEM disciplines, (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), has been a major concern both for California and the nation in general. The gap between education policy and practice can, however, at times be significant. For educator Peg Cagle, a former member of the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC), this is […]

On October 21st, the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) brought together teachers and educational experts from around the state to discuss assessment systems in California. The symposium at the Sacramento Convention Center, “Working Towards an Assessment System with Value: Informing and Strengthening STEM Teaching and Learning”, focused on innovative formative assessments both in the […]

The infusion of funds from ARRA promises some relief for the strained California education budget, but the system – already coping with over $7 billion in mid-year budget cuts from 2008-9 – is struggling to cut costs, a struggle that has directly impacted classrooms and teachers. Members of the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) […]

On September 8th, the National Academy of Engineering and the National Research Council held a symposium to release a new report emphasizing the importance of introducing engineering into K-12 education. The report examines the status and nature of efforts to teach engineering in U.S. schools. California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) member Pete Arvedson attended […]

The National Research Council Center for Education, National Academy of Engineering (NAE), CCST, and the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) have hosted three symposia designed to inform and develop a California STEM Innovation Network (CSI-N), in order to more effectively coordinate and drive the issues of STEM education in the public agenda. The first […]

The California Teacher Advisory Council’s (Cal TAC) primary mission is to make a difference for science and math education by connecting with policymakers and education researchers; Cal TAC members bring their wisdom of practice to venues where teachers’ voices are not normally heard. However, the extraordinary members of this group also have a substantial impact […]

On February 8 and 9, the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) participated in a meeting at the Beckman Center in Irvine that was organized by the National Research Council Center for Education. Cal TAC members served on the planning committee. “Enhancing Professional Development for Teachers: Potential Uses of Information Technology” brought together educators and […]

A member of the California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) was recently given a prominent feature in the UCLA Magazine. Juliana Jones, a mathematics teacher at Montera Middle School in Oakland and member of Cal TAC since 2005, was invited to contribute a feature on how students, new teachers and working professionals in other fields with […]

The California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) is a group of expert K-12 teachers providing a valuable connection between the teaching community and the educational experts and policymakers who are shaping California’s educational system. Cal TAC member Janet English provided this account of the Northrop Grumman Weightless Flights of Discovery, a program designed to inspire […]