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Home > Getting Smart Podcast > 304 - Trace Pickering on Community-Connected Projects


	Podcast:		Getting Smart Podcast
	Episode:		304 - Trace Pickering on Community-Connected Projects
	Category:		Education
	Duration:		00:31:02
	Publish Date:		2021-01-27 02:00:00
	Description:		Today, Tom is virtually sitting down with Trace Pickering, the Executive Director of Iowa BIG — one of Getting Smart’s favorite learning programs in the country! Trace has a background in community building, has served as the Associate Superintendent of Cedar Rapids Community School District, and has also served as the Associate Director of Education Reimagined. Trace has a legacy of empowering people to pursue interesting and important projects while bringing together an entire community. In this conversation, Tom and Trace discuss the power of community-connected projects, how to scale a program like Iowa BIG, and how to create a culture of project-based learning. Trace also shares about the genesis of Iowa BIG, some incredible student-led projects that have come out of Iowa BIG, and his thoughts on why community-centered learning is more important than ever. Key Takeaways: [:09] About today’s episode with Trace Pickering. [:55] Tom Vander Ark welcomes Trace to the podcast! [1:05] Did Trace grow up in Iowa? [1:16] Trace and Tom go into the “Way-back Machine” to 12 years ago after the Cedar River covered Cedar Rapids in a flood. Trace shares his reflections from what he learned in the process of a local newspaper inviting him to host a series of community conversations about what was next for Cedar Rapids. He also shares how this series of community conversations led to the creation of Iowa BIG. [6:54] Trace explains what Iowa BIG is, what its mission is, and how long it has been running. [8:46] How does this work for students? How many high schools do they work with? [9:23] Trace shares about how Iowa BIG is learner-centered and how the projects work around this. [11:54] Do many or all of the student projects at Iowa BIG revolve around the concept of “community as classroom”? [12:22] The idea that students should do work that matters to them and their community is really central to every project that’s co-constructed at Iowa BIG. [12:42] Trace shares a recent example of an incredible student project that helped out the community in the midst of the pandemic. [17:05] Trace shares how they incorporated communication expectations into that project and how the organizing students developed and demonstrated communication standards as part of the project. [19:07] Trace shares how they incorporate science and math learning into these community projects and shares a specific example of an amazing student project. [21:50] Trace gives advice to those who want to start up a similar program and become more learner-centered. [23:48] Tom offers further suggestions on how you could begin to implement a similar program. [24:11] What would an Iowa BIG ecosystem look like? What if all high schools were learner-centered? [26:57] Does Trace feel that this sort of work is more important than ever in this current landscape? [29:09] Where to learn more about Iowa BIG and the work that Trace Pickering is doing. [30:01] Tom thanks Trace for joining the podcast! Mentioned in This Episode: Iowa BIG @IowaBIG Twitter The Iowa BIG Podcast on Spotify @IowaBIG Facebook @IowaBIG Instagram Trace Pickering ’s LinkedIn XQ \| Iowa BIG The Power of Place : Authentic Learning Through Place -Based Education, by Tom Vander Ark , Emily Liebtag , and Nate McClennen Difference Making at the Heart of Learning : Students , Schools , and Communities Alive With Possibility, by Tom Vander Ark and Emily Liebtag LimoLink Getting Smart Podcast Ep . 265: “Jenny Pieratt on Powerful PBL ” Get Involved: Check out the blog at GettingSmart .com. Find the Getting Smart Podcast on iTunes, leave a review, and subscribe. Is There Somebody You’ve Been Wanting to Learn From or a Topic You’d Like Covered? To get in contact: Email Editor @GettingSmart .com and include “Podcast” in the subject line. The Getting Smart team will be sure to add them to their list!
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