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The Next Generation: Our Kids, Our Community
Community Forums
Yaakoosge Daakahidi Alternative High School
February 5, 2007
Question #1:
Describe the learning environment that you don’t want in the high schools:
Favored child—These are the “good” kids and these are the “bad” kids. Where different/demanding kids are the “bad” kids. One school for each different “type” of education. Anonymous students—few activities for outside of class. Community identity getting lost. Not enough room, materials, relevance.
Sterile and crowded—students in desks facing the instructor who has been lecturing for the last 59 minutes. Students do not know the people in the room, students or instructors. They do not understand how the lecture applies to the real world.
High teacher/pupil ratio—large classes! Curriculum not relevant or not connected to life/continuing education or jogs. Insufficient space, $, materials. Isolated from community. Insulated. Mostly college prep. No lecturing. Anonymous. Insufficient prep time for teachers. Don’t eliminate life skills classes!
Irrelevant and w/o discussion of post-secondary options and life skills. Unwelcoming to diverse learning styles. Classroom learning only without connection to community or simply at a desk.
I don’t want to see an environment that is rigid, teaching to the middle, no chance for alternatives in selecting curriculum. Not allowing motivated students to be stimulated through their studies and activities. Not having options available. Life skills education eliminated.
Large classes with only lecture as the means of instruction. Impersonal. Sports as the most important thing. Racism—overt or subtle and implied.
Do not want to see an environment that only supports super-achievers and quickly passes over students who learn at slower speeds. This early separation of achievement (or not) can discourage many from continuing school.
I don’t want to see undisciplined learning. I believe that success in life starts in the way our children are taught in school. They should have responsibility to complete work and be held to a high standards. The process used to arrive at a answer is more important than the answer itself. I also think that politics should be kept out of the schools in all ways and science/technology should be the focus.
Poorly trained, unhappy staff. A 6-7 period day.
Overcrowding. Activities not being funded. Not enough funding for all support staff folks. Don’t want us to lose sight of the fact that we are a small community. Classrooms that have more than 20 per class.
Unproductive, slow paced, large number of students, separated classes from middle school.
Question #2:
Describe the learning environment that you do want in the high schools:
Practice a tone of decency. Service learning be a requirement. Have lots of options for non-college bound kids. Variety of instruction designed to meet various learning styles. Meaningful advisory groups. Meaningful parent involvement. Native language classes.
An environment where each and every student will experience affirmation of self; of academic, athletic, or leadership skills in some form----Logic? “Self confidence is key in most successes.”
Small classes. Teams of teachers working with student. Life skills classes. Harmony in activities and academics. Open, friendly, non threatening environment. Balance across the board. Encouragement to ALL. Open mindedness. Funding is not an issue to district from teaching or learning. Service learning. Recognition to ALL.
I want to see more community involvement. Use the talents of our community. I want to see classes focused on the individual; we do that already for special needs but need to do it for everyone. I want to see more career directions classes to help kids focus their studies to their interest. I want to see more credit for acquired skills—classrooms are not the only learning environment.
PTR 18:1. Individual living classes. A daily schedule that has room for flexibility. More technology classes taught by peers. An open and welcoming building. Activities that all students can enjoy. Computers for all students. Smaller learning communities, i.e. advisory.
Diversity…culturally, economically. Relevant and rigorous curriculum. Adequate staffing. Highly engaged students. Many curriculum options—lecture; web-based; community-based. Connected to post-secondary training opportunities. Recognition of all.
Small amounts of students per class. Flexible learning environment. Only 3-5 classes per day. Native Alaskan activities.
The community is part of the learning environment. Students have relationships with each other and staff. Staff is collaborative and new ideas are driven by research and tried when it seem best for students. Administration is sensitive and responsive. Students know what they need to do to graduate. Students have a plan for after h.s.
Small groups/communities: connectedness, acceptance, zero tolerance for “meanness” (racism, bias, teasing, bullying). Every child/student being treated like an individual who must be given an opportunity to learn. High standards for every student. IEP.s for each. No more “I teach this because the “curriculum” says I have to cover this” but more “I teach this because it’s interesting, relevant exciting, etc.”
Smaller sized classes—lower pupil/teacher. More “blocked” classes and teams collaborating. Relevant curriculum –similar school-to-work models. Homerooms. Hands on activities. Common teacher prep time. More variety in non-academic group/activities. Life skills class required for all. For example, personal financing. School vans/buses for field trips. Community involvement. Job shadowing for all. Service learning. Career interests—know thyself. Acquired skills—“career centers.” Lots of options. Safe, open, mixed-up groups. Fun times. Continue laptops for all.
An environment that fosters alternative learning styles through varied delivery; a combo of classroom, community, and social leaning, where academic learning, life skills, and post-secondary exploration are of equal importance, as well as service learning. Interests, culture, learning style is valued and validated. Everyone needs an Individualized Education Plan! FREE POST-SECONDARY ED!
Question #3:
Describe your student when he/she graduates from high school:
A student should feel that he/she has completed to the best of their abilities or that he/she will want to continue their education into college.
A caring individual who is sensitive to family and cultural values. A person who is well liked by his/her peers. A person who chooses their own path after high school and doesn’t do it just because it was expected of them.
Confident; self assured. Articulate, self-disciplined and read to try on many hats. Life-time learner. Has a firm foundation of basic skills. Has outlined a post-secondary plan. Knowledgeable about further training options.
Has a plan for after high school. Has skills (social, life, academic, work readiness) to live independently. A contributing member of society. Has a community connection. Read for life-long learning. Understands importance of continued education. Basic reading, life, math, communication, writing skills. Self confident/problem solver. Can set goals and knows how to achieve them.
Self confident, varied interests, knows gifts/skills. Understands how to learn and to develop new skills. Connected to multiple groups. Focused: has a goal but can flex when life happens. Able to read and function in the real world. Can thrive, not just survive. Has a lot of choices (because they kept their mind open). Can go to college if desirous of it (money available). Can prove abilities, knowledge, skills, gifts through some sore of project or portfolio, etc. Accepting and caring. Has a plan. Respects others’ ideas and values while knowing what he/she believes and why and how to live it.
A student will have explored many areas of learning because realizing what you don’t like is just as important as knowing what you do like. Will have the skills to be a productive adult. Have social skills to interact with others. Be flexible but still make their point. Know who he/she is, where they came from, how they got here, and where they’re going. **Can take more than 4 years to graduate if they need to!
I want a student that graduates with the knowledge and tools necessary to have a successful life. He should know the basic courses well enough to get a job and have the self-discipline to keep it. He should have a plan for the future and know how to get there. He should know what it means to be a good American and member of the community. He should be motivated to take the next step and that step should be well informed whether it is college, military, work, or any combination there of. No matter what, he should know what it takes to be successful and how to achieve it.
My student will be able to communicate both written and orally. Will have confidence in themselves to take their next step into life—be it higher ed, vocational training, joining a branch of the military, etc. They will have respect for themselves, others, the community, and environment. I want them to be part of the community and participate by volunteering. Understand relationships and the importance of creating and maintaining and respecting. Open to new ideas.
He will have options. He will be able to evaluate his options. He will be able to select among his options. He will be able to perform.
My graduate is self-confident, a problem-solver, kind to others, dares to dream, takes steps to make the dream a reality.
Ideal graduate—good morals and values. An education and tools for post secondary plan. Be a good decision maker and help guide them in a career path. They may be interest in i.e., rigor for college prep, hands on career opportunities (trades, business opportunities), more equitable sports opportunities and activities. Computer skills, electronics basis, rigorous prep courses for community businesses.
Has hope and or is inspired. Has a plan/knows there are options/aware of resources, and has life skills necessary to be independent. Can identify people that care. Feels that they have learned relevant curriculum and has been able to explore. A person that is empathetic and compassionate, understands the world and their community.
Question #4:
What advice do you have for making the best learning environment happen?
Look at what is going on now—Don’t close mind to change—Listen to the students—watch what excites them and what doesn’t—Make school relevant—Use resources outside the box—Offer individual plans so students progress at their pace w/o pressure. Look at models that can be translated to our set-up in Juneau. Create curriculum from kindergarten to 12 that is tied together so as you progress through the grades, you make connections.
I think exit exams should be eliminated. We should trust the teachers to plan their classes. If we hired the teachers to teach, allow them to teach their way. Look for volunteers in the business community that work for companies, the government, are self-employed and ask them to tell the students how they got there and how a student can be and do anything they want. Have classes that teach the basic skills but also instill that no matter where person comes from, this is America and there is no limit on the success anyone can have if you work hard enough for it.
INVOLVE STUDENTS of all types→ not just the top. Ensure that implementation of any model is thoroughly looked at from post-grad and middle school (vertical learning). Create SUSTAINABILITY. APPLIED AND RELEVANT ACADEMICS with high expectations. Education is the only “business” that can have a 40% dissatisfaction rate and still be in business. Or even if that % is lower, it’s still not acceptable. Students should feel safe in questioning what’s offered.
Equity and differentiation. Inclusiveness. Advisory for every student. RIGOR for every student with NO student allowed to be invisible and slip through the cracks. Hands-on, experiential learning. Curriculum- relevant and integrated and cultural strands woven throughout. DISCIPLINE w/high expectations. Respectful environment.
Listen, listen, listen to parents and students. Teach goal setting. Ongoing means to assess student satisfaction. Means to remove ineffective teachers. Student leadership opportunities. Well trained advisory facilitators. Solve the sub problem!
Professional development, especially cultural, for teachers. Partner with the community→ use the land that we live in as a text book. Allow teachers adequate time to collaborate. Keep class sizes small. Create home room/advisories. Find permanent ways to fund so project can be long lasting.
Give teachers time to know kids, to collaborate, to contact parents, to plan,. Give students clear expectations, boundaries supported by community. Model respect/expect respect. Provide money/opportunities for supplies, to collaborate, to learn. Opportunities to explore outside of “academics.” Small, connected communities. Respect for gifts/abilities and help for differences. Life skills for those who need them. Program equity/differentiation. Don’t spend too much time planning—start implementing with the expectations that things will need tweaking.
LOTS of choices for class offerings. Respect for all. Listen. More job/life related classes. Social workers in schools. Small class size. Advisory. Increase teacher prep time/more collaboration. Involve students in community activities. Hands-on activities. Clearer connection/not repetition from class to class. Be inclusive; more support aides. Mapping.
Listen to the input from students about how they want their school to be shaped. Keep the class size small. Try to implement some sort of mentoring/advisory per class.
Communicate between all facility and staff with students and parents and discuss what they expect to get out of high school.
Dare to dream about what can happen; don’t say why it can’t happen. “Dare to disturb the universe.”
A school board by itself is a limited and dated vehicle to effectively manage the kind of change that’s now necessary in today’s district. It (the Board) should solicit a new model…and embrace it.
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