- Career selection classes - make mandatory in the junior year of high school a class in career selection. Continue it in the senior year, and follow through in the first two yeas of college. Examine available careers, educational requirements, career development and salary expectations, and whether who you are would be a good fit. I have a reflective intelligence, for example. I have to think about everything that comes my way. That's fine, but I would make a terrible baseball umpire, or a politician who has to think on his feet. What are your strengths and things you need to work on? How would they fit with those job requirements?
- Political philosophy - you will hopefully vote your whole life, in what amount to hundreds, perhaps thousands of important decisions that will affect your life for at least four years at a time; ultimately for your lifetime. Understand socialism, capitalism, fascism. What is a republic versus a democracy?Are there historical lessons out there for those inclined to pay attention?
- Basis Macroeconomics - understand how the economy works, what the prime rate is, the banker's spread, supply-side economics, the Federal reserve, competing economic theories. You will be hearing about it on the TV news, or in the newspaper the rest of your life.
- Personal finance - Simulate, as closely as possible, the real world of figuring out how to make a living. I graduated with a degree in Philosophy and Literature in 1974, and my next step after graduation was as a commercial bank branch clerk, the lowest rung on the career ladder at the bank. My parents were so thrilled that their son was going to college, none of us had considered what I would do after graduating. Understand the dangers of easy credit, how to make reasonably smart purchases, the importance of paying your bills on time, of saving for the future. Time is the great friend of wealth. Start in your 20's, stay with a good program, and you will be much happier throughout your life, especially when you retire.
- Ethics - discuss right and wrong. Talk about honesty with each other. How would you behave in a certain situation? Why? Study basic ethical philosophies and several religions as guideposts.
Now, the course for seniors: computers. There is a world out there that is virtually exploding before us, in a good way. There are hundreds of bright, energetic seniors in this area who already enjoy using a computer, but they don't know what they don't yet know. And there are countless others who don't know the first thing about computers and, sadly, eschew even trying. Give them a toehold, a platform.
Let a small committee of seniors, with the guidance of a Belleville High School computer instructor, design the syllabus. Make it exciting. And offer it at the new Belleville High School in fall 2012! Whaddya say? C'mon!
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ReplyDeleteJerry,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the blog with me. I wanted to give a bit of key feedback as an educator and as Director of Belleville New Tech.
Career selection classes - I love everything about this except the when. In Belleville New Tech (BNT), we piloted a project that had students creating an EDP (included career selections, college/post secondary exploration, career attainment). These students presented for a panel including college advisers, and military recruiters. This has opened the eyes of many students, and in some cases created a sense of engagement that was not there previously. Next year, we will do this project earlier, and in grander scale, as well as develop a plan for continuous improvement and follow-up for individual students
Political philosophy - Agreed, in a traditional classroom setting we cover concepts of Government, Economics, History, but we fail in showing relevance of the material. Essentially, the blocks are there but they have no clue what they [students] can build. In BNT, we approach learning in a Project Based Learning (PBL) format. We fully intend to create Social Studies program that integrates knowledge with application. Our goal is to have our students engage in learning and application of the content to make a change in their world now, not maybe, not later. This is why community members such as yourself, and those who were kind enough to reach out to us, are so crucial to the success of our school and our students futures.
Basic Macroeconomics - Again, I would simply repeat the above statement. Carol Thompson of the DDA has approached us with an incredibly interesting problem that she hoped our kids might be engaged in. The amount of macroeconomic, micro-economic, and political / legal abound.
Personal finance - same as above
Ethics - A large piece of what BNT does, what makes New Tech --tick-- is the focus on culture. We strive to create a student body that honors appreciation for individual and community betterment. As our program matures we will implement mandatory hours of community service each student must complete. Many of our students are already advocating for assisting several causes. Currently, our Bio-Lit Facilitators are working on a PBL that engages the students to learn about their content and make a difference in their community (relay for life). Doing what is right, not what is easy or most lucrative for the individual, is a lesson every BNT scholar will have several experiences with.
Now, the course for seniors:
computers. BNT is a 1-1 computing environment. One visit in BNT will make any observer notice that our kids are far advanced in their use of technology. Adults often misjudge the ability of the younger generation in regard to technology ability. They can Facebook, Twitter, game, and text, beyond that many students lack skills that are applicable to future career readiness. This is something that we at BNT excel in changing. All of our students use technology as a tool, not entertainment. They organize, collaborate, and create in a digital format on a daily basis.
Let a small committee of seniors, with the guidance of a Belleville High School computer instructor, design the syllabus.:
I agree 100%. Part of what we consider as a highly successful New Tech is a school that includes students and community members in our curriculum choices, projects, and lessons. In some cases, community members or students actually teach content or skills in a BNT class room. Mr. Darket is currently creating a WW2 project which will include input from students then community members before he even presents it to our teaching team for approval.