This is something that will actually help you in life. Nobody has had this opportunity, and for us to have it, it’s just something like—it’s like a blessing. 
This is something that will actually help you in life. Nobody has had this opportunity, and for us to have it, it’s just something like—it’s like a blessing.
CCC student teams work in three ways: online in the Moodle open-source learning management system, in the classroom with their teachers, and through experiential learning events at corporate and academic locations around the state.
Throughout the school year, students learn by enrolling with their teachers in a password-protected online learning environment available via the Connecticut Education Network and delivered through Moodle. The CCC course Web site (http://ctcconline.org) supports CCC teams and facilitates the completion of the school-year-long project challenge. Working with their teachers, student teams complete the standards-aligned curriculum, which includes Web-based resources (such as podcasts, video, text), assignments (such as journal writing, blogs, interdistrict discussions, team-only discussion forums), and an ePortfolio tool that allows them to capture evidence of skills and artifacts developed during the program.
Unlike distance-learning, CCC courses are delivered using "blended learning"—a model validated by IBM as achieving superior retention and performance over a traditional face-to-face or stand-alone online model. Because the role of the teacher in a CCC program is vital to the team’s development and successful completion of the challenge, the program commits a full week to summer professional development, as well as providing consultant visits to classrooms during the year and maintaining online and telephone support.
A third and equally vital component of the CCC program is the opportunity for experiential learning at day-long quarterly events held at corporate and academic locations across Connecticut. These structured working meetings introduce students to other students from a mix of urban, suburban, and rural schools in a meaningful context of collaborative inquiry with invited college faculty and members of the business/academic community. A brief plenary address sets the tone for the meeting by introducing a perspective on current issues in business. Students then usually break into facilitated working groups (based upon the curriculum) such as Web site development, research, finance, marketing, product development, and management, each led by an invited speaker and supported by CCC staff. After an intense morning of presentations and consultations, students present an update of progress and field questions from their mentors and peers.
All three aspects of the program contribute to the team’s preparation for the final event. Participants compete for awards and recognition as they present their ideas and projects to a panel of business professionals, scientists, and higher-education faculty both online and in person at the annual Connecticut Student Innovation Expo at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford. Each team posts appropriate work products and multimedia marketing materials to their company or non-profit Web sites for online evaluation. Each creates an interactive exhibition booth at the Expo. Finally, students deliver a five-minute elevator pitch to demonstrate their innovative solutions.