Regional Forums Highlight REL Mid-Atlantic Activities in Pennsylvania

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Educators and policy makers regularly have questions about ways to improve student learning.

To provide technical assistance for education professionals in a five-state area, the Regional Educational Lab Mid-Atlantic (REL Mid-Atlantic) regularly holds regional forums in various locations. Several forums, offered free of charge, are scheduled in Pennsylvania during spring 2010 to discuss Institute of Education Sciences (IES) practice guides.
 

• Assisting Students Struggling with Mathematics: Response to Intervention (RtI) in Elementary and Middle Schools—May 6, Cross Keys Village–The Brethren Home Community Conference Center, 2990 Carlisle Pike, New Oxford, Pa., 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (lunch provided). The event will feature a presentation and discussion period led by Russell Gersten, professor emeritus in the College of Education at the University of Oregon; Benjamin Clarke, research associate at the Instructional Research Group and Pacific Institutes for Research; and Laurel Marsh, a professional education instructor who serves as a math coach at Swansfield Elementary School in the Howard County Public School System, Columbia, Md. The speakers will be joined by a panel of practitioners from southcentral Pennsylvania to discuss high-quality research related to RtI Math and to assist participants in recognizing roadblocks to successful RtI Math implementation.
• Helping Students Navigate the Path to College: What High Schools Can Do—May 21, Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, One University Drive, Uniontown, Pa., 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. (lunch provided). This event will focus on the five recommendations put forth in the IES practice guide titled Helping Students Navigate the Path to College: What High Schools Can Do, and will feature Nicole Farmer Hurd, executive director of the National College Advising Corps headquartered at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Hurd will be joined by a panel of educators from southwest Pennsylvania to discuss high-quality research related to college preparedness and the role high schools can play in the process.

To find out about future forums, or to obtain further information, contact REL Mid-Atlantic (phone 866-735-6239 or e-mail info@relmid-atlantic.org), or visit www.relmid-atlantic.org

REL Mid-Atlantic is a collaboration led by Penn State’s College of Education and includes four other partners—Rutgers University, ICF International, the Metiri Group, and Analytica, Inc. REL Mid-Atlantic’s funding is provided by the U.S. Department of Education.