Paul Luria teaches and eager group pf ukulele enthusiasts for our Adult Learning in the Fitchburg Area (ALFA) program. Paul led the group in some seasonal selections as well as potential choices to play at the upcoming 20th Anniversary ALFA Art Show, May 22, 2024.  ALFA, a lifelong learning institute that serves adult learners in Fitchburg and the surrounding communities.

The Fitchburg State University Center for Professional Studies' Advanced Placement Summer Institutes (APSI) first week is in full swing. In the AP Biology track, High School Teachers are conducting a week long transpiration experiment. The APSI are designed to support all aspects of AP courses, including AP methodology, curriculum, class assignments and examinations as well as providing strategies for teaching AP courses. Art & Design Educators spent the week long program in a combination of lecture, projects, and discussion to improve their teaching skills. 

The educational landscape as we know it is drastically changing. Teachers are currently questioning how and if artificial intelligence (AI) should be used in education. Products that educators currently are using, such as Canva for Education, have recently incorporated AI features to help streamline workflow, increase productivity, and spark creativity. Other educational companies have also announced soon to be released AI features. It's important that educators understand that AI has been in the background of our daily lives prior to ChatGPT's existence and now AI will be more reliably available.  

Are you struggling to pass the MTEL? Are you feeling overwhelmed and not sure where to focus your study time? Try one of the various MTEL Preparation Workshops at Fitchburg State University. This spring 2017, we are offering workshops in the following areas:

This week, our AP United States Government and Politics Summer Institute instructor, Bob Baker, shares three concrete ways to improve your understanding and working knowledge of FRQ patterns and the AP scoring guidelines:

Now that the A.P. Biology exam is completed, this is a perfect time for your class to explore topics of interest. Many teachers approach this time to allow students to investigate issues by debates (Are GMO foods safe? Designer babies-should there be limits? Mandating vaccinations? Should animals be sacrificed in medical research?). Other teachers use the time to do dissections using fetal pigs or cats. Student interest in forensics has inspired teachers to prepare “mock crimes” and have students use scientific evidence to determine the perpetrator. If your school is close to the elementary school in your town, students could be paired with an elementary school class to work with younger students and prepare a “book” that they write together on a biology topic.  Some teachers have their A.P. Biology students work with the Introductory Biology students to act as “teachers” of topics being covered. Use this time to have students share their enthusiasm for biology.

Fitchburg State University has been hosting the AP Summer Institutes for over 10 years.

A collaboration between local, state and private public safety agencies and

The 6^th Annual Next Generation Leadership Summit at Fitchburg State University is once again coming together to be a catalyst for leadership development among police professionals. This Summit enables participants to build the critical competencies needed to grow as leaders in the public safety arena. Each year the field’s demand for well-educated and better-trained leaders increases. As such, this Summit meets this demand by helping you to build a better understanding of leadership, communication, and executive functioning, and by further helping you learn how to build productive relationships throughout your department and within your community.

Blog post by guest blogger, Reid Weber

A Personal Experience with Medieval Studies

For those of us teaching in higher education, our middle or high school classes can seem like ancient history. I look back in vague horror at equations in chemistry, wrestling with that confounded X in algebra, or my inability to do a second chin up in P.E. Yet, without a doubt my academic curiosity was nurtured in secondary education. Sure, I struggled with algebra, but I embraced social studies, history, literature, and the arts. I remember Mr. Kindschuh’s World History course well and even as I lecture today in front of university students, I marvel at the details I have held onto for so long. I remember being inspired by images of castles and cathedrals, culture and conquest, and the validation of discovering something I was truly passionate about. I was a B-/C+ high school student with little enthusiasm for most of my classes, but that brief flirtation with world history was the foundation for my success later in life.

1 Graduate Credit / 15 PDP Hybrid Course
5 sessions 4:30 – 6:30 pm, plus 5 hours online

Two Sections:
Starting March 15, 2016 in Lowell
Starting April 13, 2016 in Fitchburg