The most common excuse you may hear kids say in school: “I’m not going to ever use this stuff in life.” That evasion of productivity won’t be so easy to adopt anymore with the newest online comedy for tweens: swivet. swivet, blends 6-8th grade STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) concepts with complex social and cultural topics, and has emerged as an online tool for enabling unique interests in the same STEM concept standards. Based at a fictional high school in southern California, swivet is also filmed at locations throughout the United States and internationally to broaden the cultural scope of the show. Season 1 explores Zimbabwe and South Africa as cultural hubs and countries full of learning opportunities for STEM concepts.
swivet airs online every Tuesday evening on swivetzone.com with a total of 11 episodes to be released through December 10, 2013. Season 2 will premiere March 18, 2014. All episodes will be available on any video capable devices. Johnson & Johnson is the lead inaugural sponsor for swivet. Each episode of swivet is independently informative and entertaining, starring an accomplished screen actor’s guild cast and an all-star Hollywood production team. swivet is produced by the International Center for Professional Development (ICPD).
“Our goal is to engage and entertain tweens while heightening their interest in STEM. We hope swivet will inspire students to take more STEM course work in their high school and post-secondary educations,” said Scott May, ICPD Executive Director and an Executive Producer of swivet.
ICPD invited some lucky students from John Burroughs and Langdon middle schools Washington DC, and St. James Catholic School in Falls Church, VA to attend the premiere of swivet at The International Spy Museum in DC. For the 100 students who got an exclusive viewing of the first episode, swivet has already broadened their scope of entertainment and education. Educators and kids alike celebrated the red carpet premiere’s jump-start into developing plans for the show to debut in classrooms across the country. This innovative approach to appeal to middle school students’ personal interests embraces the digital revolution in which this age group is growing up.
The International Center for Professional Development (ICPD) is a non-profit organization that offers continuing education programs for students and professionals using personalized face-toface experiential training and ongoing web-based support. ICPD programs advance professional careers by demystifying complex aspects of career development and enhancing relevant skills for emerging industries. For more information, visit www.icpdprograms.org
