South Central Pennsylvania Educators Prepare Middle School Students for 21st Century Careers Through Creative Computational Thinking Initiative

NEW OXFORD, Pa. and NEW YORK, Oct. 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Tata Consultancy Services, (TCS), (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS) a leading global IT services, consulting and business solutions organization, and Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital education content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, have announced the South Central Pennsylvania launch of their Ignite My Future in School (IMFIS) program.

The program will provide a select group of middle school educators from South Central Pennsylvania – including host Lincoln Intermediate Unit 12 – with the opportunity to participate in Ignite My Future in School's Day of Discovery. During this day of professional development training, local educators will connect with TCS and Discovery Education's curriculum experts to learn about the program, understand its purpose and develop innovative strategies for integrating these new resources into classroom instruction.

Much like critical thinking, computational thinking equips learners with essential skills for solving complex problems to find innovative solutions through skills such as collecting and analyzing data, modeling solutions, or applying algorithmic thinking. Ignite My Future in School combines the best of digital content, lesson plans, career vignettes, and professional learning to help teachers prepare their students for careers of the future. The initiative offers educators instructional resources and year-round curriculum support to ensure that computational thinking is embedded into core subjects such as math, sciences, arts, and social studies. This interdisciplinary approach helps students to obtain the necessary skills required for 21^st century careers across all industries. Through this program, over 3,000 students in South Central Pennsylvania will receive computational thinking instruction embedded into their core subjects.

Pennsylvania currently has 19,852 open computing jobs and averages less than 3,000 computer science graduates annually. Ignite My Future in School hopes to bridge the gap by developing relevant skills for future job opportunities in the new digital economy, including Artificial Intelligence, machine learning and the Internet of Things (IoT).

"These brilliant teachers are the catalysts stimulating learning in today's youth. Through this program our goal is to provide each educator with the skills and resources needed to help bring computational thinking to life in their classrooms," said Balaji Ganapathy, Head of Workforce Effectiveness, TCS. "Ignite My Future in School gives teachers a one of a kind professional learning experience, enabling them to connect their curriculum to real-world applications, which enriches and strengthens their teaching and brings relevance and context to every core subject."

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 objective, TCS and Discovery Education have partnered with U.S. school districts in the Washington, D.C. area, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Michigan and Wisconsin as early adopters and launch sites of this transdisciplinary approach. Since launching in 2017, IMFIS has provided training materials valued at more than $2 million and engaged over 185,000 students and 3,300 educators in all 50 states. To learn more about Ignite My Future in School, go to www.ignitemyfutureinschool.org.

About Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS):
Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that has been partnering with many of the world's largest businesses in their transformation journeys for the last fifty years. TCS offers a consulting-led, cognitive powered, integrated portfolio of IT, Business & Technology Services, and engineering. This is delivered through its unique Location Independent Agile delivery model, recognized as a benchmark of excellence in software development. A part of the Tata group, India's largest multinational business group, TCS has more than 400,000 of the world's best-trained consultants in 46 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $19.09 billion for year ended March 31, 2018 and is listed on the BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange) and the NSE (National Stock Exchange) in India. TCS' proactive stance on climate change and award-winning work with communities across the world have earned it a place in leading sustainability indices such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), MSCI Global Sustainability Index and the FTSE4Good Emerging Index. For more information, visit us at 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:
As the global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12 classrooms worldwide, Discovery Education is transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content, professional learning, and the largest professional learning community of its kind. Serving 4.5 million educators and over 50 million students, Discovery Education's services are available in approximately half of U.S. classrooms, 50 percent of all primary schools in the UK, and more than 50 countries around the globe. Inspired by the global media company Discovery, Inc., 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. Explore the future of education at DiscoveryEducation.com. Stay connected with Discovery Education on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @DiscoveryEd.

About Lincoln Intermediate Unit 12 (LIU):
The Lincoln Intermediate Unit 12 (LIU) is one of 29 Intermediate Units formed by the Pennsylvania State Legislature in 1971 to provide consultative and advisory support to local school districts. Created to replace the County Office of Superintendent, Intermediate Units provide educational services as needed by the educational community. The LIU is located in New Oxford, Pennsylvania and provides educational services to Adams, Franklin, and York counties in the areas of Adult Education, Nonpublic School Services, Business Services, Migrant and English as a Second Language, Instructional Services, Special Education, Management Services, and Technology Services. The LIU serves local schools and communities, local businesses and nonprofit organizations, all Pennsylvania schools, other Intermediate Units and libraries via statewide programs, and federal, state and local agencies.  Funding sources include state subsidy, government and foundation grants, contributions from districts, and fees for service. The Lincoln Intermediate Unit is governed by a 13-member board of directors comprised of representatives from the 25 component school district regions in Adams, Franklin and York counties.

The STEM program is part of the Educational Services Division of LIU. The Educational Services Division provides quality, customized learning opportunities in response to research and effective practice.  LIU STEM is dedicated to supporting computer science and STEM initiatives across the entire FrAY STEM Ecosystem. LIU STEM is a member of the CS4ALL movement.

SOURCE Tata Consultancy Services

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