The Power of PLTW

PLTW is committed to providing a transformative learning experience for students and teachers with lasting impacts from preschool through graduation and beyond.

PLTW Participation Positively Impacts:

PLTW improves student achievement, especially in science and high school.¹

Students who take PLTW courses are more likely to take dual credit courses in high school and to graduate from high school.²

Students attending schools with PLTW have been found to be 7 percent more likely to enroll in postsecondary education than students in non-PLTW schools.²
Participation in PLTW courses increases the likelihood that students will enroll in a STEM major at the post-secondary level.^{2 3}
Participation in multiple PLTW courses proportionately increases the likelihood of a STEM major.³
PLTW students are retained from their freshman to sophomore year of college at higher rates than non-PLTW students.⁴
Minority students who participate in PLTW are more likely to persist in college from their freshman to sophomore year. ⁴

For those students who did not enroll in college, PLTW students median wage was 13.6 percent more than peers. ⁵

Read The Full Reports

The Impact of Applied Learning by One8¹

Preliminary report of the impact of Project Lead The Way by UMKC²

Expanding the Pipeline by Journal for STEM Education Research³

Effect of Project Lead the Way Participation by Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research⁴

Project Lead The Way Students More Prepared For Higher Education by American Journal of Engineering Education⁵

All pathways in the STEM Academy are 100% reliant upon the Project Lead The Way curriculum.

- Dr. Brad MacLaughlin

After having Project Lead The Way for 15 years at our school, we're seeing the fruits of our labor and how our graduates thrive with this kind of education - being prepared for engineering universities, architectural schools, or any kind of STEM profession. Those students are excelling in post-secondary institutions and high-tech careers because of their PLTW experience.

- Michael Aranda Principal, Texas

Learn More about Independence School District's Career Academy Model

All pathways in the STEM Academy are 100 percent reliant upon the Project Lead The Way curriculum.

After making this transformational shift, ISD’s Annual Performance Report (APR) score increased 21.8 percent in just 4 years.

The graduation rate of the district’s Van Horn High School increased 29 percent over the five-year period since implementing PLTW.

Download the Report Here!

Want to see a PLTW Program in action?

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Sources

^{[1] One8 Foundation & Papay, J. (2019). The impact of applied learning on student achievement and engagement: First year results of scaling Project Lead The Way in Massachusetts. Publication by PLTW.
[2] UMKC, Sinquefield Center for Applied Economic Research, & University of Missouri Columbia (2021). Preliminary report of the impact of Project Lead The Way on Missouri high school students.
[3] Pike, G. R., Robbins, K. (2019). Expanding the pipeline: The effect of participating in Project Lead the Way on majoring in a STEM Discipline. Journal for STEM Education Research, 2(1), 14-34.
[4] Utley, J., Ivey, T., Weaver, J., & Self, M. J. (2019). Effect of Project Lead the Way Participation on retention in engineering degree programs. Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER), 9(2), Article 3.
[5] Van Overscelde, James P. (Spring 2013) Project Lead The Way Students More Prepared For Higher Education. Texas State University. American Journal of Engineering Education, 4(1).}