Barr foundation strives to reform high school experience
By Magdalen Bresee and Dylan Hatch
Observer Contributors
Are you satisfied with your high school experience? According to a 2015 Gallup Student Poll, only 35% of high schoolers believe they possess adequate problem-solving skills, and only 33% of students feel they have a mentor who encourages their development. These alarming responses reflect the inadequacy of modern secondary education and prompt many to examine the specific elements that are failing students.
The Barr Foundation, in association with its 22 partnering communities throughout New England, including four school districts and MWCC in North Central Massachusetts, is leading the effort to renovate high school by learning from the thoughts and experiences of local students with the Portrait of a Graduate Grant.
Several students from Narragansett Regional High School in Baldwinville, Massachusetts, expressed their concern with the lack of emphasis that’s placed on the practical skills relevant to their courses.
One student, Emma Hughes, stated that while math courses should ideally indoctrinate problem-solving skills, not enough conversation about those skills is being integrated into the material to make that intention clear.
“There’s definitely the outline to make the connections, but I feel like the teachers don’t know that we need that. I feel like it should be more explicitly designated that you’re not teaching systems of equations for systems of equations, you’re teaching them to show a step-by-step process”
The students generally agreed that explicitly outlining the goals of their education would be vital for them to fully obtain those goals; however, they felt as if the administration doesn’t take their opinions into as much consideration as it should.
Another student, Mary Lawindy, stated that while the administration tries to hear student voices, “it’s not a priority.”
High school could inspire and encourage students by helping them identify and expand upon their personal strengths. Instead, the modern curriculum revolves around standardized testing that overshadows students’ varied academic strengths and ambitions. The Barr Foundation seeks to emphasize students’ individuality by enabling them to build upon their personal strengths to succeed in their unique post-secondary goals.
The Portrait of a Graduate process achieves this goal by opening lines of communication between high schools and other community stakeholders to promote a widespread collaborative effort in changemaking. Several schools in the north central Massachusetts area have been chosen to receive the grant and initiate the process. These schools include Fitchburg High School, Gardner High School, Leominster High School, Murdock High School, and several separate schools partnered with Mount Wachusett Community College for Early College programming.
These educators have the opportunity to better understand what is necessary for their graduates to become integrated and productive within their community, to find career fulfillment, or to become academically successful in higher education. By the end of this investigative process that includes examination of strengths as well as gaps, educators will be able to implement meaningful changes in their schools that ensure those goals will be met.
Although the Barr Foundation works diligently to achieve its goal, amending the flaws of high school ultimately requires student feedback and cooperation. No voices are more influential and vital to reinventing the curriculum than those of students who are actively undergoing the high school experience. If you wish to join the movement and share your high school experiences (whether they be positive or negative), please contact uwyv@mwcc.mass.edu.
Current dual enrollment students Maggie Bresee and Dylan Hatch plan to continue writing more articles throughout the semester exposing the experiences and thoughts of current high school students. They will work to ensure your feedback is reflected in the objectives and outcomes of our project.
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