McCallie school has joined forces with Bright Spark, a local nonprofit group, to help expose students throughout the Chattanooga area to design thinking. The partnership will launch Saturday, Oct. 22, with a training seminar for teachers and students from 26 area schools working on two design thinking challenges for students in grades 6 through 12.
The ExperienceInnovation Simulation Learning Experience will be offered free of charge to five students and one educator from each of the enrolled Bright Spark 2016-17 competition teams.
Saturday’s training session will take place in the Center for Technology, Engineering, and Design located in the bottom floor of Walker Hall on McCallie’s campus. As many as 150 participants are expected and will be working in the TED on projects to design the high school of the future and build playgrounds that incorporate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) concepts.
ExperienceInnovation is a half-day expert-guided innovation simulation that reveals the fundamentals of IDEO's design thinking approach. Participants work in teams through the design thinking process to formulate solutions for improving sustainability for a town in California.
Check-In begins at 12:45 p.m. at Walker Hall with the simulation beginning at 1 p.m. and ending at 4:30 p.m.
Bright Spark is an organization launched by business consultants Bridge Innovate with the goal “to ignite creative confidence with students and educators.” Additional funding for their programs is provided by The Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, Causeway and The RSA Fellows-Chattanooga Network Fund.
"The TED is looking forward to hosting students and teachers from around Chattanooga for a day of exploring how design and innovation can immediately impact our community," said McCallie Director of Educational Technology Brad Droke. "The Turner Center for Technology, Engineering and Design provides a space and programs where students can explore their passions, be inspired and develop a capacity for creativity, invention and innovation. Through our partnership with Bright Spark, we can now provide that for the broader Chattanooga Community."