One of the best parts of our program has to be the ways in which we try and connect students and their work with the outside world. We do our best to break down the barriers between school and the outside world — no easy task — and hope that the work can be measured against real world standards and that the successes and failures of trying to do something authentic can provide important experiences.
Today we’ll begin by asking the why connecting to the outside world matters. I know I’ve asked this a thousand or more times before but I want to make sure that we discuss why this matters. Tomorrow, I think I’ll look at what’s get in the way, mostly because I want the eleventh graders to consider their role in these partnerships, i.e., how can I stop being the gatekeeper or the conduit to the outside world and become a coach instead?
Later in the day:
We had a good conversation. What’s striking to me is how closely they’ve internalized this notion of an outward facing education. While we do not explicitly criticize how other schools operate, the students definitely have an understanding of what this means, to focus on outside connections.
Here are some of their thoughts, which I’m going to build around tomorrow as a way of seeing whether it’s happening or not:
Our projects should connect because our projects solve real world problems. TJC
So that we understand the work we do and how we learn from them. TJC
To inspire others. ES
…our projects need to connect to the outside world because we need to be able to understand …how it will be once we actually are on our own. JF
To see who likes our stuff. AB
Projects are more important than a grade. AB
The only reason I can think of is because we have real standards for our work. QG
We learn about what’s out there in the world but also how to change it. TC
Maybe our projects can touch people in a way that they can help themselves. DL
It is important for projects to connect to the real world because you can make a change somewhere, you can better a community. JH
Sometimes when you do projects, you break barriers, you do things people don’t believe you can do, and you can prove people wrong. JH
Projects connected to the outside world have more meaning. KB
