Improving Student Performance through Real-World Learning Experiences
#3 | 5 November 2015
“From our culture of kindness, we are pursuing our passions to college and beyond.”
-Mission Statement: Nashville Big Picture High School
Learning In Action:
|
The Big Picture:
Recently, leaders of Campbellsville High School had the great pleasure of visiting the Nashville Big Picture High School, part of the Metropolitan Nashville Public School district, in Nashville, Tennessee. NBPHS was founded nine years ago as a joint effort between MNPS and the Big Picture Learning organization. At this school, students and teachers work together to achieve college and career readiness through workshops, project-based learning, and Learning Through Internships (LTIs), but the overall objective of the educational process is to obtain information through real-world learning experiences. A unique quality of this school is that students attend classes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, where they cover core content areas, work on critical thinking skills, and participate in advisory groups. On these days, students attend "workshops" in the morning, focusing on Empirical Reasoning (science), Quantitative Reasoning (math), Communication (English), Social Reasoning (social studies), and Personal Qualities. In these workshops, learning is initiated through both traditional and non-traditional instructional formats. Part of NBPHS's real-world learning experience occurs through LTIs. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, students intern for five hours (each day) in an actual workplace, centered on the students' needs and interests, and then each student shares their experiences through quarterly exhibitions. Before beginning, students practice phone skills, interview skills, and many other things one needs to be successful in a professional environment. As their website states, NBPHS strives "to educate students and to assist them in realizing their full potential as responsible, productive, contributing members of society by providing an educational environment in which students are challenged, excellence is expected and differences are valued." | Click here to visit NBPHS. In the next edition: Individualized vs. Personalized Learning |
Focus On Best Practices:
Common Ground Can Transform GPAs:
"Many people have experienced the magic of a wonderful teacher, and we all know anecdotally that these instructors can change our lives. But what if a teacher and a student don't connect? How does that affect the education that child receives?
Is there a way to create a connection where there isn't one? And how might that change things, for teachers and students alike?
These are the sorts of questions that fascinated Hunter Gehlbach* and his colleagues at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. (NPR.org)
| Click here to listen to or watch the full episode.
"Many people have experienced the magic of a wonderful teacher, and we all know anecdotally that these instructors can change our lives. But what if a teacher and a student don't connect? How does that affect the education that child receives?
Is there a way to create a connection where there isn't one? And how might that change things, for teachers and students alike?
These are the sorts of questions that fascinated Hunter Gehlbach* and his colleagues at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. (NPR.org)
| Click here to listen to or watch the full episode.
Spotlight on Classroom Tools: Kahoot!
Create a fun learning game in minutes (we call these ‘kahoots’), made from a series of multiple choice questions. Add videos, images and diagrams to your questions to amplify engagement!
Kahoots are best played in a group setting, like a classroom. Players answer on their own devices, while games are displayed on a shared screen to unite the lesson – creating a ‘campfire moment’ – encouraging players to look up.
Social learning promotes discussion and pedagogical impact… whether players are in the same room or on the other side of the globe! After a game, encourage players to create and share their own kahoots to deepen understanding, mastery and purpose. (Kahoot).
I Click here to view a demonstration video.
Kahoots are best played in a group setting, like a classroom. Players answer on their own devices, while games are displayed on a shared screen to unite the lesson – creating a ‘campfire moment’ – encouraging players to look up.
Social learning promotes discussion and pedagogical impact… whether players are in the same room or on the other side of the globe! After a game, encourage players to create and share their own kahoots to deepen understanding, mastery and purpose. (Kahoot).
I Click here to view a demonstration video.
Additional Resources:
EdmodoJoin the CIS Personalized Learning community and see how Edmodo can enhance your classroom.
|
Video TechnologyOn-Click screen capture recording on Windows or Mac computers with no install for free.
|
Purdue OWLPurdue OWL is the online writing lab used to assist Purdue students (and all digital learners) with all sorts of writing techniques, formats, etc.
|