STEAMed Magazine October 2016 | Page 19

What ’ s Next ?
making for all students by purposely connecting STEM and the arts . On Tour connects the content and context of a given masterpiece to STEM content and concepts . We view On Tour as an example of supporting the “ wellrounded education ” called for in the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act ( ESSA ) now being implemented in U . S . public schools .

What ’ s Next ?

The guidebook content is currently available only in print , which means students and teachers must have printed copies with them wherever the artwork is located . As you know , the process of correcting , updating and reissuing printed copies can be time consuming and expensive . Ronny introduced me to On Tour shortly after he completed the original materials . I proposed ways we could make On Tour available to those with computers , tablets and smartphones . Relying on my experience with WordPress , I recently built and launched the steamontour . com website . Steamontour . com tells the story of the project in a more vivid way than I could manage here . I invite you to visit and comment !
During the next few weeks , I ’ ll be converting the guidebook content associated with each of the 24 masterpieces to a format suitable for access via the iPad , iPhone and other mobile devices . A small wall plaque for each masterpiece will list the title and artist , with space to affix a Quick Response ( QR ) code sticker . Teachers and students with mobile devices and a free QR app can scan the code to link to the corresponding guidebook page on the website . The project will also be available to a wider audience , as anyone with a similar device will have access . Online or not , the On Tour gallery can easily be a public attraction for visiting “ tour groups ” such as parents , caregivers , nearby schoolchildren , civic and community organizations . The website could also serve as a lesson exchange , where teachers can share , find and download suggested activities related to On Tour artwork .
The STEAM on Tour Guidebook
Figure 7
STEAMed Magazine
19
October 2016 Edition