Digital Promise Global

TO SHAPE THE FUTURE OF LEARNING AND ADVANCE EQUITABLE EDUCATION SYSTEMS BY BRINGING TOGETHER SOLUTIONS ACROSS RESEARCH, PRACTICE, AND TECHNOLOGY.

THE DIGITAL PROMISE LEAGUE OF INNOVATIVE SCHOOLS IS A NATIONAL NETWORK THAT CONNECTS AND SUPPORTS THE MOST FORWARD-THINKING LEADERS IN EDUCATION. LEAGUE MEMBERS REPRESENT MORE THAN 150 DISTRICTS IN 38 STATES SERVING MORE THAN 4.4 MILLION STUDENTS. THEIR DIVERSE EXPERIENCES REFLECT THE ADVANCEMENTS, CHALLENGES, AND VITAL WORK OF PUBLIC EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES. IN 2021, THE LEAGUE OF INNOVATIVE SCHOOLS TEAM AND 9 SCHOOL DISTRICTS HOSTED THE INAUGURAL STUDENTS FOR EQUITABLE EDUCATION (SEE) SUMMIT, A NATIONAL SOCIAL JUSTICE SUMMIT ENVISIONED AND LED BY STUDENTS. THE LEAGUE CONTINUES TO HOST BIANNUAL MEETINGS FOR MEMBERS THAT FEATURE SCHOOL VISITS, GUEST SPEAKERS, COHORT WORKSHOPS FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC CHALLENGES, AND COLLABORATIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING. THE CENTER FOR INCLUSIVE INNOVATION, LAUNCHED IN 2020, CONTINUES ITS WORK WITH A VISION OF A WORLD WHERE STUDENTS WHO ARE FURTHERS FROM OPPORTUNITY CAN LEARN, GROWN AND THRIVE AS THEIR AUTHENTIC SELVES. THROUGH THE VERIZON INNOVATIVE LEARNING SCHOOLS, DIGITAL PROMISE COLLABORATES WITH VERIZON TO EQUIP EVERY STUDENT AND TEACHER AT SELECT MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOLS ACROSS AMERICA WITH A DEVICE AND UP TO A FOUR-YEAR DATA PLAN, AND PROVIDE STUDENTS WITHOUT RELIABLE HOME INTERNET ACCESS WITH A MOBILE HOTSPOT. IN ADDITION TO FREE TECHNOLOGY AND ACCESS, VERIZON INNOVATIVE LEARNING SCHOOLS RECEIVE EXTENSIVE TEACHER TRAINING, SUPPORT, AND THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENGAGE IN A UNIQUE, IMMERSIVE CURRICULUM TO LEVERAGE TECHNOLOGY IN THEIR CLASSROOMS. IN 2021, THE VERIZON INNOVATIVE LEARNING SCHOOLS LAUNCHED ITS 8TH COHORT OF SCHOOLS, EXPANDING THE PROGRAM TO SERVE 512 SCHOOLS. IT ALSO LAUNCHED A HOTSPOT MODEL TO PROVIDE INTERNET CONNECTIVITY TO STUDENTS WHO LACK RELIABLE ACCESS. TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SCHOOLS THAT MAKE UP THE LEAGUE OF INNOVATIVE SCHOOLS OR THE VERIZON INNOVATIVE LEARNING SCHOOLS GO TO HTTPS://DIGITALPROMISE.ORG/INITIATIVE/LEAGUE-OF-INNOVATIVE-SCHOOLS/ AND HTTPS://VERIZON.DIGITALPROMISE.ORG/.

LEARNING SCIENCES RESEARCH FOCUSES ON THE WHY, WHAT, AND HOW OF LEARNING, IN AND OUT OF SCHOOL. IN 2021 DIGITAL PROMISE WAS AWARDED A PRIME RESEARCH GRANT FROM THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION, TO SHARE RESEARCH INSIGHTS WITH BROAD AUDIENCES OF PRACTITIONERS AND RESEARCHERS. DIGITAL PROMISE IS ALSO ONE OF THE LEAD INSTITUTIONS FOR THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION'S AI INSTITUTE FOR ENGAGED LEARNING. ADDITIONALLY, THE INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION SCIENCES SELECTED DIGITAL PROMISE TO LEAD THE SEER RESEARCH NETWORK FOR DIGITAL LEARNING PLATFORMS AND WILL SERVE AS HUB OF A NETWORK OF FIVE DIGITAL LEARNING PLATFORMS, EACH OF WHICH IS COMMITTED TO OPENNESS TO RESEARCH, AND EVENTUALLY, A SET OF RESEARCH PROJECTS THAT USE THE PLATFORMS. DIGITAL PROMISE ALSO CONTINUED TO WORK ON NUMEROUS NSF AND US DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION RESEARCH GRANTS THAT WERE AWARDED IN PREVIOUS YEARS. IN ADDITION TO ITS FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH, IN 2021 DIGITAL PROMISE LAUNCHED A MULTI-YEAR STUDY TO EVALUATE THE IMPACT OF HIGHER ED COURSEWARE ENABLED TEACHING PRACTICES AND IMPLEMENTATION SUPPORTS ON THE COURSE COMPLETION RATES OF BLACK, LATINX AND INDIGENOUS STUDENTS; AND STUDENTS FROM A LOW-INCOME BACKGROUND.

POWERFUL LEARNING IS A SET OF PRINCIPLES GUIDING EDUCATORS TO DESIGN LEARNING EXPERIENCES THAT ENGAGE THE HEARTS AND MINDS OF LEARNERS. IN 2021 DIGITAL PROMISE LAUNCHED THE CIENA SOLUTIONS CHALLENGE. USING THE CHALLENGE BASED LEARNING FRAMEWORK, THROUGH THE CIENA SOLUTIONS CHALLENGE STUDENTS HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO CONNECT TO THEIR LEARNING IN WAYS THAT ARE AUTHENTIC AND PERSONAL, LEARN THROUGH INQUIRY, COLLABORATE WITH THEIR COMMUNITY AND TAKE POSITIVE ACTION TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THEIR LOCAL COMMUNITIES. AS PART OF POWERFUL LEARNING AND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LEARNING SCIENCES RESEARCH TEAM, DIGITAL PROMISE EXPANDED ITS COMPUTATIONAL THINKING WORK IN 2022. COMPUTATIONAL THINKING IS AN INTERRELATED SET OF SKILLS AND PRACTICES FOR SOLVING COMPLEX PROBLEMS, A WAY TO LEARN TOPICS IN MANY DISCIPLINES, AND A NECESSITY FOR FULLY PARTICIPATING IN A COMPUTATIONAL WORLD. ADDITIONALLY, DIGITAL PROMISE'S MICRO-CREDENTIALS CONTINUE TO OFFER EDUCATORS FLEXIBLE, VIRTUAL AVENUES TO EARN RECOGNITION FOR THE MANY WAYS THEY HAVE GROWN THEIR INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICE. IN 2021, THE MICRO-CREDENTIAL PLATFORM HOSTED MORE THAN 550 ACTIVE MICRO-CREDENTIALS. WITH A CATALOG REPRESENTING MORE THAN 50 ISSUING ORGANIZATIONS, MORE THAN 8,000 NEW LEARNERS JOINED OUR PLATFORM TO PURSUE THEIR PROFESSIONAL AND NEARLY 5,000 EDUCATORS WERE AWARDED MICRO-CREDENTIALS. DIGITAL PROMISE'S POWERFUL LEARNING PORTFOLIO ALSO INCLUDES EFFORTS TO IDENTIFY AND PROMOTE DIGITAL LITERACY SKILLS AND SUPPORTSFOUNDATIONAL AND/OR OCCUPATIONALAMONG HISTORICALLY AND SYSTEMATICALLY EXCLUDED ADULT LEARNERS. IN 2021 THE ORGANIZATION PRODUCED RESEARCH EXPLORING THE USE OF MICRO-CREDENTIALS ON THE SOCIAL MOBILITY OF RURAL LEARNERS, PRIORITIZING THOSE IMPACTED BY POVERTY, PARTICULARLY BLACK, LATINO, AND INDIGENOUS POPULATIONS.

RESEARCH IN ACTION WORKS TO TRANSFORM THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN EDUCATION RESEARCH AND PRACTICE. AS PART OF THESE EFFORT THE LEARNER VARIABILITY PROJECT (LVP) AND THE LEARNER VARIABILITY NAVIGATOR (LVN) A WEB APP, SEEK TO UNCOVER EVIDENCE-BASED FACTORS AND STRATEGIES TO MEET LEARNERS WHERE THEY ARE ACROSS VARIED CONTEXTS AND NEEDS. IN 2021 DIGITAL PROMISE CONDUCTED A REFRESH OF THE LEARNER VARIABILITY NAVIGATOR WITH A LENS TOWARD EQUITY BY SOLICITING PERSPECTIVES AND FEEDBACK FROM EDUCATORS AND EDTECH TEAMS. WE'VE ADDED A SENSE OF BELONGING FACTOR TO OUR LEARNER MODELS, AS WELL AS CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE PRACTICES FOR LEARNERS, SUCH AS BUILDING EMPATHY, DEVELOPING CULTURAL AWARENESS, AND DISCUSSING RACE.