I work at a Day Treatment Facility and we deal with a lot of kids that fall into what would be considered the bottom tier of education. Kids that have social and emotional problems and almost all of whom also have academic problems. The kids I teach have issues, all of them. If they didn’t, they wouldn’t be here. Some need more attention than others, but they all need to have treatment. It is built into what we do. In a recent article they talk about this type of education as “alternative”. Research is pointing to individualized, personalized instruction with low student-teacher ratio as being a key for improving the dropout rate. When you think about prep schools and some colleges, those things are part of their process.
Mentors, advisors, small upper-level courses all promote a sense of community and understanding of the importance of the educational process. Here at the Day Treatment, individualized educational plans allow students to find their way and work through their issues. Some do so faster than others. Still others need even more interventions and time to find their way. If we look at the educational process as a journey and not a race we might better understand what the real needs of our in-need students are. We should be trying to create life-long learners, kids that are engaged and excited about learning the opportunities for growth that come with it, rather than place so much emphasis on their test scores.
Bayfront Alternative Education Program “The ECSD Alternative Education Program is a collaboration between the Erie City School District, Sarah A. Reed Children’s Center, and the Bayfront Center for Maritime Studies. The program is a blend of traditional academic curriculum combined with maritime hands-on educational projects and activities aligned with the PA Department of Education standards. The Program also provides an on-site outpatient therapist for providing assessments, evaluations, and therapy (with parental consent). Therapeutic staff provide professional direction and support for the students and successfully work toward the goal of returning students to their home school within the Erie City School District.” Doesn’t this sound like an educational program you’d want your child to be in?
Sir Ken Robinson, an educational reformer, feels that it is only through student-centered education will we answer some of the questions of why kids drop-out. When we look to pay to send kids to college we look for student-centered liberal arts programs. Those programs have typically in the past produced or best and brightest, if we are going to reform our educational system why shouldn’t we look to build the same models in our public education that we are willing to pay for in our private education?
folkedtech 