Thinking outside the box, restructuring the school day, and shifting from traditional grading systems to competency-based learning that emphasizes more than getting a good grade are key strategies of the Digital Promise League of Innovative Schools, a national network of school districts connecting thought leaders in education, according to an article in eSchool News.
Here are innovations taking place in three districts:
- Mineola High School in Long Island (NY) emphasizes a structured but flexible blend of 1) teacher-led workshops and seminars; 2) independent learning in which the instructor and the students in a course engage with course content at different times; and 3) career training. These priorities give students time to explore personal interests and develop skills that will help lead to success in life.
- Traditional letter grading was dropped at Vermont’s Bellows Free Academy Fairfax High School in favor of a system that has students earning scores based on attaining standards-based proficiencies. Students no longer ask what their grades are; instead, they focus on the skills they’re learning and how those skills apply to the real world.
- Students come to realize their strengths and interests at Bostonia Global, a charter school in California’s Cajon Valley Union School District, through the district’s World of Work. This is a comprehensive K-12 career development and assessment curriculum and framework. This structure allows every student to articulate who they are – their identity and their interests — and their purpose — what they want to contribute to the world.
eSchool News
