Innovation in the Heartland
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Project Overview

Innovation in the Heartland is a grant-funded project provided by eMINTS that focuses on 7th and 8th grade classrooms located in high-need rural schools that have a student population of at least 50% qualifying for free and reduced lunch status.  Participation in the project will increase school district capacity to provide high-quality professional learning to staff that leads to impactful STEM and technology integration. The focus will be to apply the eMINTS professional development model to rural schools located in Kansas and Missouri. This project builds upon eMINTS' strong history of improving teacher effectiveness/student achievement and extends our existing PD program to also include a classroom STEM focus. 

The eMINTS program is a whole building model providing professional development for  7th and 8th grade teachers in the subject areas of math, science, language arts, social studies and special education along with building principals and district affiliate trainers. Our train-the-trainer model provides professional development for two trainers in each participating school building. District affiliate trainers provide eMINTS professional development to middle school teachers. Upon completion of the program, trainers are prepared to lead high-quality professional learning and technology strategic planning and integration.


Instructional Model

The eMINTS instructional model addresses all aspects of effective instruction required for modern digital age classrooms. Based upon constructivist learning theory, it has four pillars:

  • Authentic Learning - involving students in real-world, relevant inquiry;
  • Community of Learners - building a positive classroom environment where students feel safe to collaborate with others;
  • High Quality Lesson Design - enhancing teacher capacity to design standards-based lessons that engage students in rigorous problem-solving;
  • Powered by Technology - using technology as a fundamental tool for high-level and transformative learning.  
This project addresses a STEM priority by engaging teachers in the creation of interdisciplinary lessons that use the design-thinking process to solve problems identified in your school’s rural community. Design-thinking will be applied throughout the program from teacher training to administrator training to school level planning.


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  • Home
  • About the Project
    • Project Overview
    • District Planning
    • Implementation Details
    • External Evaluation
    • Participating Schools
    • Control Schools
    • Implementation Teams
  • Programs
    • Teachers
    • Administrators
    • Affiliate Trainers
  • Resources
    • Meeting Recordings/Slides
    • Stakeholder Resources
    • Technology
    • Technology Support
    • Fiscal
    • Communication >
      • In the News
  • About eMINTS
    • Project Personnel
  • Search