K-12 Programs

Improving engineering awareness and understanding nationwide can't happen overnight. It requires a number of initiatives at all levels of K-12 education, including professional development. Our work is achieved in four main areas:

The Gateway Project

Made possible at first by a grant from The Institute of Museum and Library Services, this project now supports 58 school district leadership teams.

Engineering Curricula Development

A large part of what we do has been to evaluate, develop, test, and standardize curricular materials for K-12 classrooms.

Educational Standards

The NCTL's efforts to standardize engineering/technology education began with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and now span the country.

Professional Development

Our staff work in partnership with local or state teacher educators to provide professional development for teachers about engineering and technology. We adopt a train-the-trainer model, working jointly with teacher educators to help them better understand core engineering and technology concepts, how to most effectively communicate these to other teachers, and how to structure and run workshops about engineering and technology.