resource library: Innovative programs

With the tools of technology, the support of the Galileo Educational Network, and an inquiry-based model of learning, grade 10 classes took on the question: “What are the implications of living in a democratic society within a larger global context?”

An alternative high school in New Hampshire, USA, has developed a curriculum that revolves around working with the local community, as students carry out 150 hours of community service a year.

Roots of Empathy is an evidence-based classroom program that has shown dramatic effect in reducing levels of aggression and violence among school children while raising social/emotional competence and increasing empathy.

NatureMapping brings real science to the classroom and the students out into the world as data collectors. And it’s not only the students who benefit; in some cases, the results startle professional biologists.

Rather than keep her students behind desks all day, intermediate teacher Sharon MacKenzie gets her students out of the school more than half of the time.

This program charts the creation of the Hadley Learning Community, a school designed to provide 21st Century learning environments for a deprived area of Telford, in rural Shropshire, UK. The school includes education and programs for early years to adulthood and incorporates community programs and services.

High school students who created a business plan detailing the market potential they see in the rising demand for goat meat in Indiana will get a $28,000 school district loan to open a goat farm.

Youth Engagement, Skill Building and Experiential Learning

In an effort to expand upon opportunities for students, Focus Programs are designed to provide students in trades in-class and practical on-site experience.

The Alberta Initiative for School Improvement (AISI) is a bold approach to supporting the improvement of student learning by encouraging teachers, parents, and the community to work collaboratively to introduce innovative and creative initiatives based upon local needs and circumstances.

Since closing its large juvenile training schools 20 years ago, Missouri has become a model for the nation in juvenile corrections. The small scale and therapeutic, family-oriented atmosphere distinguish Missouri’s juvenile facilities from the training schools common throughout most of America.

The six year old Pathways to Education program has had a dramatic result in reducing the high school drop-out rate in Regent Park (Toronto) from 56% to 10% and increasing the proportion of young people attending post-secondary education from 20% to 80%.

Community Forest International’s education program unites schools from New Brunswick, Canada with schools in Pemba, Tanzania creating a cross-cultural, environmental learning experience. Students participating in this innovative learning partnership will address climate change by measuring their school’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions and off-setting their environmental impact by planting trees.

Teachers, administrators, students, parents and schools work together to identify strengths and improve learning in Vancouver schools.

The Saturna Ecological Education Centre (SEEC) is an experiential, place-based ecological learning centre on beautiful Saturna Island, British Columbia that provides Southern Gulf Islands students with elementary Eco-Adventures and high school Environmental Studies programs.

Primary school children are learning six different languages from the age of nine under a pioneering new plan. The idea is to give them a taste of all six so they can then decide for themselves which language to opt for when they transfer to secondary school.

Aboriginal Education is for all students. Evergreen School Division has included the Aboriginal perspective in as many areas of the curriculum as possible from Kindergarten to Grade 12.

Most Swedish children who leave pre-school at the age of six cannot read or write. Yet within three years of starting formal schooling at the age of seven, these children lead the literacy tables in Europe. Could the absence of testing, inspection and excessive paperwork, combined with a strong emphasis on play and relaxation, be the very secret of their success?

How does a 19th Century Maori war chant figure into the college aspirations of a bunch of student athletes in El Segundo? Just another means of preparing students — not just for college, but for life.

Youth Engagement, Skill Building and Experiential Learning

A village primary school has brought a new sense of pride to a former mining community devastated by a pit closure, by becoming the first in the UK to be wind-powered through a wind turbine located in the school grounds.

In the city of Reggio Emilia, Italy, (famous among educators for the constructivist approach in their preschools), children help to design their classrooms. The strategy is based on the idea that to take ownership of their learning, children must own their learning space.

For over 30 years, Carol Dweck has studied students’ motivation and she says: “Here is the most important thing I have learned: The most motivated and resilient students are not the ones who think they have a lot of fixed or innate intelligence. Instead, the most motivated and resilient students are the ones who believe that their abilities can be developed through their effort and learning”.

A unique database known as “Our Story” is attracting Indigenous Australians into remote Northern Territory community libraries to build digital archives of their culture.

Tell Them From Me is an assessment system that measures a wide variety of indicators of student engagement and wellness, and classroom and school climate that are known to affect learning outcomes. The anonymous survey covers areas including: perceptions of testing, sports-team involvement, attendance, post-graduation goals, bullying, self esteem, student anxiety and depression.

SchoolPLUS focusses on the school as the centre of the community and the hub of services and supports for the neighbourhood it serves. It proposes that the role of schools have changed and now serve two functions: one, to educate children and youth; and, two, to support service delivery for the greater community.

There is nothing that unique about students creating furniture – what makes this program special is the level of detail the students are involved in from the concept, design, production and sales of the product. Students and trades people alike are taking a second look at what is happening at the Kanata-based high school.

Research shows ‘Signs of Suicide’ prevention program helps reduce the number of attempts by high school students.

ArtsSmarts is the largest education initiative in Canada dedicated to improving the lives and learning capacity of Canadian children by injecting arts into their academic programs.

Success By 6 Peel is a collaboration of more than 40 partners in business, labour, education, recreation, health, social services and government dedicated to providing important opportunities and experiences for children in the Peel School District to develop the emotional, social, cognitive, and physical skills to reach their fullest potential from birth to age six.

In the New Horizons Project the elder community members act as mentors to students working on independent study projects, thereby greatly enriching the school programming. The school utilizes the wealth of experience, knowledge, skills and wisdom of the older citizens, and the whole community benefits as a result.

Imagine a School was a dramatic performance created by high school students from Halifax, Toronto and Vancouver that opened the Canadian Education Association‘s symposium “Getting it Right for Adolescent Learners” in 2006. Find out what adolescents are saying about their experiences in high schools and what schools would look like if we “got it right”.