HARRISBURG, Pa. and
NEW YORK, Nov. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Tata
Consultancy Services, (TCS), (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS) a leading
global IT services, consulting and business solutions organization,
and Discovery Education, the premier provider of digital education
content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, take
their Ignite My Future in School platform to Marshall
Math Science Academy in Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania. As early implementers of this system,
Harrisburg teachers will receive
professional development, educational resources and year-round
support to integrate computational thinking into core subjects such
as math, sciences, arts, and social studies. In turn, students will
learn foundational skills for 21st century careers –
across industries – through this transdisciplinary approach.
"I'm thrilled to learn that the Harrisburg School District was one of 10
districts throughout our Nation to be chosen to participate in the
"Ignite My Future in School initiative," said US Representative
Scott Perry (R-PA). "Today, less
than 25 percent of U.S. schools teach computer science related
courses; however, in less than five years, one million more jobs
will require computer science skills. 'Ignite My Future in School'
will allow Harrisburg School
District teachers to learn the fundamentals of transdisciplinary
learning and help prepare our students for careers of the
future."
Marshall Math Science Academy will serve as the initial center
for the district initiative, adding to the area's burgeoning
computer science movement. Harrisburg recently hosted its first-ever
commonwealth data hackathon. The event had technology
professionals, designers, entrepreneurs, and students, create
prototypes and apps to improve citizen services and drive
innovation.
Pennsylvania possesses a clear
demand and interest in the field of technology, and aims to
increase enrollment in STEM-specific majors by 10,000 at
state-supported postsecondary institutions by
2020. Additionally, by 2018 there will be approximately
300,000 Pennsylvania jobs that
require STEM skills or content knowledge, and over the next ten
years, 71 percent of new jobs will require computer science
skills. Ignite My Future in School hopes to address the
disparity by cultivating relevant skills for 21st
century job opportunities, particularly the new digital economy,
Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, and the Internet of
Things (IoT).
Local teachers and parents will have the opportunity to apply
computational thinking during the Day of Discovery and Community
Night at Marshall Math Science Academy. Seventy-five teachers from
across Harrisburg schools will
experience a full day of professional development in computational
thinking strategies for their classrooms. In the evening, families
will engage in hands-on learning experiences with DE educational
experts.
"Computer science knowledge is crucial in today's job market,
and it's vital that students acquire necessary technical skills to
ensure a successful future," said Balaji
Ganapathy, Head of Workforce Effectiveness, TCS. "Our
partnership with Discovery Education will enable educators in
Harrisburg to increase learning
and engagement for students not only in computer science, but core
subjects as well."
On a National level, Ignite My Future in School has a
goal of engaging 20,000 teachers and one million U.S. students by
2021. As a first step towards this goal, TCS and Discovery
Education announced that 10 U.S. school systems across the
country – with more than 6,700 teachers and 194,000 students –
joined the effort as early adopters of this transdisciplinary
approach in a five-year educator training and learning commitment
to help empower middle school teachers.
These select schools will experience the unique opportunity to
learn and apply computational thinking through an annual free day
of professional development for educators and community night for
parents. TCS and Discovery Education have also launched an online
program, TECHademy, which will engage teachers nationwide in
an exclusive, cost-free, virtual professional development
experience that includes curriculum resources, eLearning courses,
webinars, and more. These resources are aligned to national
standards, as well as the recently launched K-12 Computer Science
Framework.
Ignite My Future in School builds on
TCS' robust community initiatives that have inspired more than two
million young people in STEM education and careers. TCS is a
founding partner for two national mentoring initiatives in
the United States, US2020 and
Million Women Mentors. Its flagship student engagement program, TCS
goIT, has engaged more than 12,000 middle and high school students
across 56 cities in the United
States and Canada with
hands-on experiences in computer science, inspiring them towards
tech careers in all sectors. Moreover, TCS is part of the CSforAll
Consortium and has national partnerships with NCWIT, NPower, the
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, CECP, National 4H Council,
Boys Scouts of America, and Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
About Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS)
Tata
Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business
solutions organization that delivers real results to global
business, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match.
TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT, BPS,
infrastructure, engineering and assurance services. This is
delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery Model™,
recognized as the benchmark of excellence in software development.
A part of the Tata group, India's
largest industrial conglomerate, TCS has over 389,000 of the
world's best-trained consultants in 46 countries. The company
generated consolidated revenues of U.S. $17.6 billion for year ended March 31, 2017 and is listed on the BSE Limited
and National Stock Exchange of India Limited. For more information,
visit us at www.tcs.com. To stay up-to-date on TCS news in
North America,
follow @TCS_NA. For TCS global news,
follow @TCS_News.
About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is the
global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12,
transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital
textbooks, multimedia content, professional development, and the
largest professional learning community of its kind. Serving 4.5
million educators and over 50 million students, Discovery
Education's services are in half of U.S. classrooms, 50 percent of
all primary schools in the UK, and more than 50 countries.
Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and
like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers,
and transform classrooms with customized solutions that increase
academic achievement. Discovery Education is powered by Discovery
Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one
nonfiction media company in the world. Explore the future of
education at DiscoveryEducation.com. Stay connected with
Discovery Education on social media through Facebook, follow
us on Twitter at @DiscoveryEd, or find us
on Instagram and Pinterest.
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SOURCE Tata Consultancy Services