A recent professional development session for Illinois high school teachers in the Des Plaines Valley Region helped them become more familiar with Raspberry Pi technology. The full-day training included creating a web server or website, using the Pi’s camera and sensor, developing a python coding program, and brainstorming classroom activities.
Teachers who attended received a free Raspberry Pi starter kit. The professional development session also was offered free of charge to teachers, who earned continuing education credits for attending.
Despite the fact we interact with technology in almost every aspect of our professional and personal lives, we still tend to view the “IT industry” as distant and enigmatic. Media compounds this distance by reporting about IT industry mergers and layoffs, or how help-desk positions have been offshored to India and China. What they don’t adequately report is that these are ongoing corporate transitions — and that in the United States, IT techs aren’t losing jobs, but continuing to advance their careers.
In truth, the IT industry offers our students upwardly mobile careers with family-supporting salaries. By exposing our children to technology at home and school — and starting meaningful conversations with them about IT job opportunities — we can direct them to rewarding careers that offer a lifetime of personal and professional growth.
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