‘Learning a little differently’
By Kelly Catalfamo, The Day, New London, Conn. | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
What you might not expect to hear, however, is that she's a three-time high school dropout.
Faustino, 20, completed her graduation requirements in January at
For more than 30 years, Palmer has been providing another option for
In September, Palmer transitioned to a type of curriculum called project-based learning and adjusted the response to behavioral problems, and administrators said they're already seeing promising results from the changes. They're even discussing opening up the school to
Currently, to take classes at Palmer, a student must have an individualized education program, or IEP, that explains how to best address that student's needs.
Palmer students are held to the same standards, take the same tests and earn the same diploma as those attending
Student-driven learning
"Project-based learning" may sound like the latest in inscrutable educational jargon, but it describes a surprisingly simple concept that's been around for at least a century.
Most adults spend their time focusing on projects, whether they're work-related or personal, like planning a wedding or doing home improvements. A project-based approach to education attempts to engage students in a similar way by exploring the answer to a question rather than simply having students read textbooks and sit through lectures.
That means teachers will help guide students through the process of asking questions that interest them, researching the answers and communicating what they discovered to others.
What it doesn't mean, emphasized Ross, is an arts-and-crafts biology project like building a three-dimensional model of a cell that isn't designed with rigorous standards in mind.
It's a model driven by the students' curiosity, and one that Faustino said she and her friends at Palmer connected with. "People want to learn," she said. "And when you give people the energy and the right tools, they're going to take that and put it into their life."
Last August, about a year after giving up on high school for the third time, Faustino ran into
With the new teaching method, "you could see a change in every student at the school," said Faustino. She was so impressed by the program that she gave a speech about its success at a packed
In addition to teaching subjects differently, Mileski said, project-based education helps emphasize what she calls 21st-century skills: communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity. Those skills are inherent in the research and problem-solving approach and will help students in the workforce and most other areas of their lives, explained Mileski.
Students like Faustino agree that the projects can have an impact beyond the classroom.
One of the first projects
"Now I go grocery shopping and I'm all freaky about it," said Faustino, who threw out a box of Cap'n Crunch on a recent visit to her grandmother's house, saying it was unhealthy.
The project has even influenced her career plans: Faustino said she wants to work with special education children one day, perhaps as a healthy lifestyle coach. "My goal is to someday have a business where special education kids and teens can go after school to do homework, fun activities, field trips, socialize with peers and have a certified therapist working with them daily," she said.
Ensuring rigor
Although the results of project-based learning can be difficult to track, educators say data indicate that it works.
Palmer tests its students in reading and math a minimum of three times a year. When students last took the assessment in January, with a semester of project-based learning behind them, 80 percent of students' reading scores had increased more than the usual amount between exams. And 87 percent showed higher-than-average improvement in math, said Mileski.
Discipline referrals have steadily decreased since starting the new program, said Mileski. She believes the 21st-century skills taught through project-based learning have contributed to the decline in behavioral problems.
There's some evidence to show that project-based learning improves test scores -- or at the very least doesn't hurt them -- and a lot of evidence to show that it improves students' attitudes toward school, according to BIE's Ross. He believes teachers prefer it, too. But he said things can go awry if standards aren't enforced.
Project-based learning methods have been around since at least the late 1800s, when education reformer
Mileski said Palmer students adhere to the same educational standards as
Math and reading skills are also reinforced by daily intervention blocks, in which students work on individualized assignments with paraprofessionals.
Teachers and administrators plan projects carefully to make sure all core areas are accounted for. They have the freedom to add short-term projects if they feel the students didn't pick up enough from a previous project, said Mileski, who keeps hefty three-ring binders filled with project ideas, organized by content area, on her desk.
A potential problem with the project-based approach is that it requires strong organizational habits, said
Blurring the lines
Project-based learning wasn't developed solely with schools like Palmer in mind. In fact, Ross said he's never heard of another project-based program that only admitted students with IEPs. So it's not surprising that Mileski and Theodoss have been discussing opening the school up to students who wouldn't historically come to Palmer.
Theodoss said sending a few
"Kids who are educated together do better," agreed
Sullivan said the Coastal Connections program is already attracting a variety of students. Coastal accepts kids recommended by
"Traditional high school isn't for everybody," explained Sullivan. He said some people think alternative programs are for kids with behavioral difficulties, but in reality they are simply "a different way to approach learning" -- one that "puts all the pieces together."
Asking the 'why'
An ideal day at
But as with any group of teenagers, kids sometimes struggle to stay focused. In keeping with Palmer's nontraditional model, the school has developed an unusual way of dealing with disruptions.
On Wednesday, one student stopped working on his presentation and walked out of his classroom without a word to any of the three adults present.
"It's an identified need, it's something that we've worked out with him," explained Lilienthal, one of the teachers in the classroom. The boy used to leave school abruptly, walking out of the building and toward his house. Palmer staff discussed the behavior with him and learned that he just needed to take a break sometimes.
Now, the student might leave and sit in the hallway a while or visit the principal for a few minutes before returning to his desk -- something that likely wouldn't be permitted at
"It's a controlled situation," said Lilienthal, who added that the staff has set boundaries for the student's breaks.
That's a typical way of handling things at Palmer -- it's part of a strategy called "life-space crisis intervention."
"One of the questions we always ask is the 'why,'" said Mileski, adding that Palmer teachers and administrators meet each afternoon to discuss any behavioral issues they've been observing. When they notice a pattern with a particular student, they ask, "Why is this student making this choice?" The next step, she said, is helping the student develop the appropriate skills to modify the behavior in the future.
Butcher -who trained in therapeutic crisis intervention at
The approach helps students look at the situation critically. Oftentimes, explained Butcher, inappropriate behavior is "an unconscious thing -- it's how they've learned to cope." Imposing consequences usually isn't effective in changing those coping mechanisms, he said.
"Relationships are the only thing that works in terms of improving behavior," said Butcher. He said he recognizes how challenging it can be to change a school system, but feels every teacher should be skilled in crisis intervention.
Mileski said she tries to foster a sense of community at the school: staff members try to get to know students as individuals, discussing their lives and interests during down time, and apply that knowledge when they notice something's wrong.
Faustino, who came to Palmer after years of being uncomfortable at school, said the approach was a relief for her. She said she was bullied in seventh grade, homeschooled the following year, and found herself so anxious when she returned to public school that she was skipping classes.
Then she started attending
It was more than just talk, she said: Palmer staff helped her find a job, gave her a place to shower and do laundry, helped her find therapy and fill out health insurance forms, gave her a winter coat and helped her overcome her difficulty in math so that she could manage her finances. And one teacher taught a cooking class and explained how to stretch meals to make them last -- vital for teenagers living with a limited income or unpredictable circumstances, as many Palmer students are.
"There's so many benefits for kids here," said Faustino. "If I ever thought about becoming a teacher, I'd want to come here."
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