Times Observer photo by Brian Ferry Beaty-Warren Middle School eighth graders Mason Moore (left) and Bill Bennett work on a crank and slider mechanism in Automation and Robotics under the tutelage of Project Lead the Way Master Teacher Arthur Anderson.

A Warren County School District teacher is leading students to engaging, hands-on classroom environments in engineering, computer science, and robotics.

And, he is leading teachers in those same programs.

Technology Education Teacher Arthur Anderson was recently named a Project Lead the Way Master Teacher.

At Beaty-Warren Middle School, Anderson teaches three PLTW programs – sixth grade Design and Modeling – an engineering course, seventh grade Application Programming – computer science, and eighth grade Automation and Robotics – an elective. He is also the advisor for the VEX Robotics Team.

He also teaches Tech Ed programs at Warren Area High School – STEM 9 and manufacturing technology – with driver education sprinkled in. “I’m interested in expanding PLTW into the high school,” he said.

Project Lead the Way “provides transformative learning experiences for PreK-12 students and teachers across the U.S.,” according to the PLTW website. “We create an engaging, hands-on classroom environment and empower students to develop in-demand knowledge and skills they need to thrive. Our pathways in computer science, engineering, and biomedical science engage students in hands-on activities, projects, and problems; empower them to solve real-world challenges; and inspire them to reimagine how they see themselves.

The learning model at PLTW is one of continuous improvement based on feedback from teachers like Anderson.

The APB model includes Activities that help students gain knowledge and develop skills; Projects that allow students to use the skills; and is problem-Based with open-ended problems that allow students to come up with unique solutions.

“It involves problem-solving and critical thinking,” Anderson said. “Hopefully, they carry some of that” through into further education, careers, and throughout their lives.

Anderson has been delivering PLTW programming since 2017. He was accepted as a master teacher for the Design and Modeling class last school year and started teaching teachers over the summer.

He worked with 28 other middle school educators. “It was a really good group of teachers that I got to work with,” he said. “It’s an honor to be able to teach other teachers.”

COVID caused some problems with the Master Teacher program. Virtually teaching teachers how to run a program with a focus on hands-on work is not ideal, he said. But, the teachers are getting back to some in-person training.

Working with those other educators is not a one-way street. “In addition to being able to train teachers, it’s been a great way to get more information,” he said. “Teaching adults has helped me with how I teach the class.”

“The kids think it’s neat that I not only teach the kids the content, but I teach adults, too,” he said.

Starting soon, students at Beaty will be piloting a “formative assessment.”

Anderson accepted a request that he pilot the new program that attempts to “see what the students know as they’re working through the program.”

It is an exclusive group. “Last I knew, there were only 12 schools participating nationwide,” he said. “It’s a neat opportunity for us here in Warren County to be able to shape how student learning is moving along.”

Anderson has applied to be a master teacher for the Application Programming class. He hopes to also become an Automation and Robotics master teacher, but the program requires multiple years of delivery and that class is in its first year at Beaty.

One of the benefits of the PLTW program at the high school level is that students can earn college credits. “We have AP for the other content areas,” he said. “Nothing for Tech Ed. PLTW can offer some college credit in engineering, computer science, and biomedical science.”