Oct 5, 2016 12:00:00 AM
by Erika Sanzi
For the past several years, some of the country’s brightest tech minds and wealthiest foundations have joined hands with the White House to solve one of America’s most remedy-resistant problems: High school is boring.Summit Public Schools, a group of charter schools known for their innovation, teamed up with Facebook code writers to develop a personalized learning software tool. Rhode Island signed on as an early adopter and Whitmire spent some time visiting. Now in its second year, there are 13 Summit Basecamp schools in the Ocean State, all of which are using Summit’s personalized learning plan (PLP) created for all subjects in grades 6 through 12. The Basecamp model is designed around a commitment to self-directed learning. Students are able to work at their own pace and aren’t limited by what their classmates are, or aren’t, doing. At a glance, students (and their teachers) know that projects in red are still due and projects in blue have been completed. Whitmire describes his own visit to a Basecamp school, Blackstone Valley Prep, and spells out for his readers what this personalized model looks like in real time through the eyes of a student.
The heart of the software, everyone agrees, is the steady, vertical “pacer line” that cuts through all the projects. That shows students where they stand on each assignment and whether they are ahead of or behind schedule—creating a benchmark even as students are allowed to move at their own speed.
"We are moving into an environment of continuous improvement...the model is forever changing and adapting.”And while she may be most focused on charter schools, her words are applicable to all high schools working to prepare their students in a way that will not only make their diplomas more meaningful but will have have them ready to succeed in higher education and the workforce.
Erika Sanzi is a mother of three sons and taught in public schools in Massachusetts, California and Rhode Island. She has served on her local school board in Cumberland, Rhode Island, advocated for fair school funding at the state level, and worked on campaigns of candidates she considers to be champions for kids and true supporters of great schools. She is currently a Fordham senior visiting fellow.
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