Norma+Thornburg

= = = I. INFORMATION =

Mrs. Thornburg, a native of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is a world leader in the field of project-based learning and also in the incorportion of robotics in the constructivist classroom. She has been a classroom teacher, a principal, a technology coordinator, and an educational consultant. Her personal philosophy is harmonious with the work of Piaget and constructivism as exemplified through project-based learning. Using her knowledge of emerging trends in technology, she helps teachers develop constructivist strategies to engage students in learning activites that build valuable life skills for the 21st century.

Mrs. Thornburg is currently the director of emerging technologies for the Thornburg Center where she shares her insights on trends relating to tools that help students learn more effectively.



One of the the mission of Thornburg Center is for space exploration, to inspire students and improve education through the design and implementation of an international program on space explorarion that incorporates elements of a solid transdiciplinary curriculum.



Her time is split between the United States and Brazil, where she consults for schools, presents at conferences, and works in both the public and private educational sectors. She also is the Director of Emerging Technologies for ARS Consult, a brazilian educational consulting firm headquartered in Recife, Brazil. Mrs. Thornburg has many years experience working in the field of inquiry-driven project-based learning (PBL) and was the lead designer of a five-year PBL program that, at its peak, reached over 15,000 students throughout Brazil. Her most recent work involved leading a major school redesign project (pre-K through middle grades) where everything from classroom layout to underlying school culture was transformed in support of the students and faculty.

Contact Norma Thornburg

**II. REFERENCES**:

http://www.tcpd.org/normas-biography/ http://www.tcse-k12.org/ http://www.zoominfo.com/p/Norma-Thornburg/179268347