Version 3

The Scribd.com edition of “Fix Your School.”

Please send us your input… VisualandActive.com visualAndActive@gmail.com
------------

Fix Your
School
And Get Your Kid Into a
Great University

By the Visual and Active Team

Steve McCrea
TheEbookMan.com
Dennis Yuzenas
WhatDoYaKnow.com
“Mr. Edu-tainment”
Fix Your School

(and Get your Kid Into a Great

University)

Dennis Yuzenas and Steve McCrea

Educational “Edu-Taining” Consultants
WhatDoYaKnow.com, VisualandActive.com
FindaSmallSchoo.com

Back Cover

What makes a great school? What makes a memorable teacher?

Here’s what good teachers remember:

“Students might forget

what you taught them, but
they will always remember
how you treated them.”
This small book gives you a summary (hey, you’re a parent! You don’t have
time for a long book!) of the Visual and Active training method for Edu-taining
teachers. This book also gives you tips about how you can make a difference in
your kid’s future by creating a better school. Finally, it gives you the Vornle
Method (for better leverage ) and the McCrea “Broadcast Yourself” Low-Cost
Marketing Method that most tweens and teenagers can adopt as their own
money-making method of using the Internet to help others to get more
attention….and kids can develop a work ethic.

This is a DRAFT version. Please send recommendations and comments to

visualandactive@gmail.com --- Thank you!

Welcome to the Scribd.com edition of

“Fix your School.” It has been
compiled in a hurry and you will no
doubt find gaps in the narrative and
some typos. The passion that lead to
the creation of this book overwhelms
any sense of “let’s work on it a little
more to get it perfect.”

You can change your child’s

experience in school by working with
other parents and the principal to
create a great school. Your efforts to
change your kid’s school will show
your kid what one person can do…
and will no doubt inspire your child
to do better (and get into a great
university).

That’s the focus of this booklet.

Table of Contents
Chapter 1
There Are More Parents Than Teachers

Chapter 2
The Step-by-Step Program

Chapter 3
These Quotations Inspire Us

Chapter 4
Another View

Chapter 5
Building a Portfolio

Chapter 6
Training Teachers to Edu-tain

Chapter 7
Readings to Inspire Teachers

Chapter 8
What Now?

About the Authors

Appendices
Chapter 1
There Are More Parents Than Teachers

Here's the main issue: If you see an area where a school can improve,
how powerful are you as a parent?

It's you vs. them.

Now--how can we turn this situation around?

1. You are the client.

2. You have numbers on your side. There are

more parents than administrators and teachers
combined.

3. You've read this workbook. You have found

more information than most teachers know about.
Most people have never heard of Dan Pink, Dennis
Littky, ebooks, or alternative assessment by exhibition
or portfolio.
If a teacher or principal has heard about alternatives to "the final exam,"
then the conclusion is often:
"It would be too unwieldy or impossible to do at this school" or

"We've been a successful A-rated school for years -- why mess with
something that works?" or

"We've been teaching students longer than you've been a parent. Don't
you think we know something about how to teach teenagers / tweens /
children?"

=====================

Here is the flyer that we distribute to Parent-Teacher Associations and we

mail the flyer to parents who contact us asking for advice.

a) You can show this information to your principal and your child's
teachers.

b) You can show the information to other parents

c) You can start organizing.

Power can be shared between teachers, parents and students.

Where do the rules come from? Is it TOP DOWN, rules

imposed by the school on the students?

In Littky's schools, part of the process of education is

learning to work in a group to come to a consensus and
learning how to be a maverick in the process. Students with
guidance from the teachers and principal can create the
rules of the school.

Ideally, that would be the way the dining room is reshaped

(many schools have open seating, so there are many
cliques). How can the benefits of assigned seating be
implemented and gained -- what could be changed and how
often should the school have assigned seating while keeping
the great food?

--------------------------------------

How can you attract more parents to your side? How can you persuade
teachers and staff of your school to embrace change? Let's start with this
flyer / brochure: (go ahead, print it)

This effort will require teamwork.

Parents: Do you
sometimes feel alone?
Do schools tell you, “It’s our way or the highway”?

Do teachers who have been teaching for 20 or 30 years tell you, “I’ve
been doing this a long time and I think I know what’s best for your
child”?

“Your child is going to have to step up and deliver.”

“Your child is falling behind.”

In 2006 the Bill and Melinda Gates

Foundation commissioned a study to
find out why students drop out of
school. Was it economic pressure?
Did students want to pursue a
career? Yes, some kids dropped out
to get a job and support their
families. But most students? No…
Most of the students who dropped
out were bored with school. The
subjects were taught in a way that
made them irrelevant to the lives of
the students.

There are plenty of excuses for

boring courses…and you don’t have
to accept any of them.

You’re a parent. You are not alone.

There are more of you than them.

Teachers could be listening to you instead of telling you what your child
needs.
Chapter 2
The Step-by-Step Program

HOW TO FIX YOUR

SCHOOL
Here is the program, step by step:

IF THE PRINCIPAL IS OPEN-MINDED

a) Show the list of

Readings to your
school's principal. Ask
if s/he has heard of
Littky, alternative
assessments, the Bill
Gates speech in
February 2005 at the
National Summit about
High Schools, the New
Three Rs (Rigor,
Relevance and
Relationships). If the
principal has heard of
these topics, you are perhaps the first parent to mention them to him/her.
You could become an ally to his/her push for improvement in the school.
If the principal has not heard of these changes but is open-minded, then
you have found a potential ally for change.

b) Plot with the principal about the next step. Perhaps s/he will take the
information on this website to his staff and then get back to you. Perhaps
you will volunteer to talk to parents. (Step c).

c) Talk to a few parents. Form a committee. Plan on step e.

d) Check with the principal. Is it okay for you to approach your child's
teacher?

e) Visit the PTA. Make a presentation about the "Fix Your School"
process.

f) Meet with your child's teacher. If the teacher is boring your kid, ask the
teacher to review the "Visual and Active Methods" workshop section of this
website. If your teacher is visual and active, suggest that s/he could get a
certificate to enhance his/her teaching methods.

g) Meet again with the principal. "What is the next step?"

h) Contact Visual and Active Consultants: (954) 646 8246. Tell us where
your obstacles are and what you have accomplished. Perhaps we can
make a short presentation by phone or post a video on Youtube addressed
to teachers, staff, the principal and PTA of your school. We are agents of
change and we want to support you in your effort as a change agent.

i) Organize workshops about edu-tainment to improve methods. You can

show videos and pass out readings from the authors that we mention as
our Mentors. Just the mere occasion of a workshop is a victory.

j) Follow up on the workshops. Are teachers implementing the

recommendations of this website and the results of the workshop that you
organized?

k) Wow, so many steps! Check the progress of your child. Is your child
still bored in class? If so, return to step (f) and plan a new strategy. How
can Edu-Tainment be immersed in classroom procedures?

l) Review the Vornle Method and start your child on the road toward the
Great University that you dream s/he will attend.

m) Update this plan. Check that there is progress. Re-read the

Readings and become inspired to do more. Constant improvement.

n) The Small School Option: You can make a great school better by
breaking it into smaller pieces, perhaps 200 or 300 students per school,
per principal. See Bill Gates' speech about the New Three Rs (a
adaptation of Dennis Littky's formula). Bill Gates gave $800 million to
1,000 schools to break them into 4,000 smaller schools. Hmmmm, maybe
it's an idea worth looking at... www.FindaSmallSchool.com

=========================

IF THE PRINCIPAL SAYS, "We've been teaching kids for decades and we
know what works," then you might need to change the order of the
approach:

Start with other parents and the PTA.

Start with your child's teachers. Urge them to put more "edu-taining"
procedures in the classroom.

Start by writing to us and let's brainstorm alternative approaches.

Visualandactive@gmail.com

=========================

The steps are many and the way is arduous and it's not clear that the
process that we have described here will work. You might need to change
the order of the events.

Fix Your Child's School!

Chapter 3
These quotations inspire us.

"Movies, soap operas, TV shows and radio shows are competing for the
minds of our young people. If we are going to have a chance at educating
them, we need to use the same methods -- audio and visual." Paul A.
Wagner in Collier's Magazine, 1949

“Given the widening array of possibilities, there’s no reason that every child
must master the sciences, algebra, geometry, biology, or any of the rest of
the standard high school curriculum that has barely changed in half a
century.” Robert Reich, former Sec. of Labor

Multiple Intelligences: If individuals indeed have different kinds of minds,

with varied strengths, interests and strategies, then it is worth considering
whether pivotal curricular materials like biology could be taught AND
ASSESSED in a variety of ways. 
Performances of Understanding:
When it comes to probing a student’s understanding of evolution, the
shrewd pedagogue looks beyond the mastery of dictionary definitions or
the recitation of textbook examples. A student performs her
understanding of the Holocaust when she can compare events in a Nazi
concentration camp to such contemporary genocidal events as those in
Bosnia, Kosovo or Rwanda in the 1990s. 
“Measures of understanding”
may seem demanding, particularly in contrast to current, often superficial,
efforts to measure what students know and are able to do. Nonetheless, a
performance approach to understanding is justified. Instead of mastering
content, one thinks about the reason why a particular content is being
taught and how best to display one’s comprehension of this content in a
publicly accessible way. When students realize they will have to apply
knowledge and demonstrate insights in a public form, they assume a more
active stance to the material, seeking to exercise their “performance
muscles” whenever possible. Howard Gardner, Intelligence Reframed

Let's start with assumptions that most people born before 1950 have
about school and learning:


1) If you pay attention in school and do the work, you will be a success.


2) If you can't do something (if you can't perform a skill like writing or
reading with good comprehension), then you lack the brain power or you
weren't using your natural abilities. You weren't paying attention.


3) The remedy (if the student doesn't understand) is to repeat and repeat
until the student gets it right. “It's not the teacher's fault... I just need to
keep trying until I get it.”


If teachers brought in the innovations of the 1970s, 1980s and later,

they would introduce the following changes in their classrooms:


1. Teachers would collect their lectures (and distribute CDs with audio
tracks) to allow audio learners to pick up the information. Teachers would
learn how to store videos and how to edit and share videos on CD/DVDs.


2. All students would build portfolios of their performances and

artifacts that show understanding. Written tests would be less important.
Videotaped performances of understanding would be more important.


3. Teachers would invite mentors into the classroom. (Oh! That will
mean there is less time for lectures and the teacher might lose control of
the class). Teachers could give academic credit for time spent in
internships outside the classroom. 


4. Teachers would have dinner with each student, meet the parents
and other people who give the student emotional and nurturing support.
teachers would share email addresses and exchange cell numbers.

5. Teachers would visit an “edu-taining school” (for example,
BigPicture.org) and learn how these topics come together in the
classroom.


What would happen if a teacher introduced Dan Pink's "six elements" into
the classroom? (From A Whole New Mind: design, story, symphony,
empathy, play, meaning)
What if students were expected to include China,
India and countries in South America in class discussions (in the way that
we include England, France and Italy in many classes)? 
If you are a
substitute teacher, what is your responsibility to ensure that students are
exposed to the topics presented on this page? What are the connections
between the forces that shape our world? Asia, Automation and
Abundance (Danpink.com)

The "back to basics" movement and the focus on standardized tests ("drill-
and-kill") have brutalized schools. The students aren't having fun, the
teachers aren't having fun. There is another way. -- Dennis Yuzenas

To find out how “That’s Edu-Tainment” (the Visual and Active workshop
for teachers) can come to your school, call (954) 646-8246
visualandactive@gmail.com

VisualandActive.com youtube.com/visualandactive
Chapter 4
Another View
Start by reading the blog at www.TheStudentIsTheClass.com.
The blog is authored by Dr. Abraham Fishcler, former president
of Nova University.

Here is the key observation:

“No politician lost an election because of his vote on an

educational issue.”

Every politician says he or she is “an education candidate.”

Yes, but what happens when there are budget cuts? The money
comes from the education budget and social security and
medicare are hardly touched.

Florida added the Lottery in the hopes of adding money to the

budget for education… Before the lottery, 48% of the state
budget went into Education. After the lottery, 42% of the budget
went into education.. and the other 6% is covered by the lottery.
The state of Georgia was smarter: The lottery money did not go
to the Legislature, but was placed in a trust fund for educational
uses. The lottery has ADDED to the revenue stream for
schools in Georgia.

Conclusion: No matter how many million parents get fed up

with the current state of schools, nothing substantial will
change. The decision-making takes place in a school board,
and that board’s hands are tied by mandates from the State and
Federal departments of Education. So, what can a school
advocate do?

You can move your child to a small school (a charter

school) and write a letter to the school board (stating
that your child will return after x y z reforms take
place)… and hope that 100,000 more parent will copy
your example.
This strategy is described in a 24-page booklet to inform
parents and students about alternatives to big-box
schools
http://www.scribd.com/doc/15636953/In-Praise-of-Small-
Schools-in-24-pages

Or…
THE NEXT EDUCATIONAL PROJECT
Dr. Fischer would like to find a K-12 system willing to implement the
Fischler Innovation Zone (FIZ). His preference is to implement the
conversion in one zone (five or six elementary schools that feed a
middle school which feeds a high school). It will take one year to get
the community support in place.

Dr. Fischler changed higher education but “this is even more important
since 33 percent of ninth graders do not finish high school,” wrote Dr. F.

http://www.thestudentistheclass.com/2006/07/vision-for-educational-
change.html#links

In other words, wait for the Fischler Initiative. Wait for a Fischler
Innovation Zone (FIZ) to be started in your school district. Write to
your school board and request a FIZ in your area.
Chapter 5
Building a Portfolio

Notes from a conversation with Lois

Hetland (Mass. College of Art)

The following notes are from an interview with Lois Hetland, a

professor in Project Zero. These are a transcript from the interview.
April 10, 2006

Q: Portfolios are used to evaluate student learning, but could

portfolios be used to evaluate a school? The way high stakes tests
are being used?
Dr. Hetland: you are trying to
assess the quality of the
teaching by measuring the
quality of the learning. What
we're really doing is measuring
how much kids have learned.
We're also measuring what
they've been taught.

...and whether what they've been taught is important enough to be

spending their time on. It's a complex mix of things we're trying
to achieve in assessment.

There's nothing wrong with a standardized test as long as it doesn't

shape the entire curriculum.

We see arts being dropped out of the curriculum. Kids are being
rote-drilled on reading, writing and math skills. The skills aren't
enough for kids to succeed in the world. Students could succeed
completely on the test but not have what they need for succeeding in
the world.

Skill is not enough. We need kids inclined to use those skills, to do

something with them. The students also need to recognize "where
are the problems out in the world?" To stay alert when an
appropriate skill can be useful.

Portfolios have a better chance of documenting and recording that

kind of information than a standardized bubble test.

The bubble test is good at telling you if someone can recall

particular bits of information out of context. But there is not a strong
connection between a good test result and using that information
flexibly in response to a new situation, to the needs of context. We
need more effective measures if we want our kids to learn for
understanding. That is, learn in a way that allows them to respond in
an adaptive, critical and creative way to the problems in the world.

We don't want to give them highly refined problems all the time with
very clear answers.

Problems in the world are fuzzy and you have to poke your way
through them.

Portfolios can give kids practice in that kind of thinking. "I've

done something... Now, what is it for?"

For example, we can ask, "How can we find out the truth about
something that took place a long time ago?" as a goal for
understanding. History is about finding out (how do historians
think?), and what is "truth"? Well, students soon discover that
history is not about a sequential list of facts. Students learn that
history is about making interpretations and comparing positions.

That type of understanding is more likely to show up in a portfolio

than on a standardized test. You can see growth over time in a
portfolio.

How can you use a portfolio to assess whether a school is doing its
job?

Let's speak for a moment about standards. Standards set by states

are leaning in the right direction. They are trying to give a clear
enough vision of what we want our kids to have to become disciplined
thinkers.

What are disciplined networks of information? How do we use this

information? Now we can check our teaching to see if we are aiming
in the right direction. Some standards are too fragmented (what is 2
+ 2) instead of "why do we have algorithms?"

The skills have to be in service of the understanding. It's not just

skills, it's "skills for what?"

Q: I often hear students ask me when I teach a matrix, "when

am I ever gonna need this?"
Dr. Hetland: in portfolios, we have kids and teachers self-reflecting
about these big ideas that cut across the school. Then we can see
how well is this school developing information in students' minds.

So let's assume that every classroom has kids keeping portfolios.

Kids reflect on what is in the portfolio and they select items to
demonstrate specific learning.... So this is going on in every
classroom in the state.

If we have a random selection process when we drop into a school,

then we have within our grasp the data to help us understand how
well the school was aiming toward the particular goals. This random
selection does not take kids off the task of really developing
understanding.

In systems, you get what you assess. That is a quotation from

Lauren Resnick and everyone knows that it is so. If you measure a
reading skill, you get that skill, not the understanding for using the
skill.

We name what we value when we test it. We currently value discreet

information out of context. We end up saying that we don't value
understanding and "using information logically and creatively in
response to problems in the world."

However, there is a problem with reliability. Reliability tells me

that I won't get a wildly different result if the same person takes
the same test one day apart if nothing new has been taught. If
student A and student B each know the same amount, they should
get the same score.

Portfolios are subject to different interpretations. There is so much

variation in the way kids learn. Are the people rating the portfolio
going to grade in a consistent manner? It is not an insurmountable
problem.

Look at the international baccalaureate diploma. The external

examiners are trained to evaluate in a consistent way. They achieve
very high interrelated reliability ... But you have to train people
to assess portfolios according to clear criteria. It would take funding
and effort and commitment

If we had a group of external evaluators, we would be getting a much

richer evaluation of teachers and schools.

Q: Howard Gardner mentions gathering a portfolio as a way to

measure understanding. How would it work for a standardized test?
How could a portfolio be introduced as part of the standardized
testing process?
Hetland: There are issues about validity and the reproduction
or duplication of results and how the test is evaluated. If the
child repeats the test and gives a best effort, will there be a
similar result? Is the test valid? Does it really test
understanding? Can a second evaluator look at the portfolio
and give it the same grade as the first evaluator gave? These
are issues that can be worked out. The IRS doesn’t look closely
at every income tax return. Only a certain percent are audited.
So evaluators in schools could pull two percent of the portfolios
from High, Average and Challenged learners. You can learn
more about this by looking at books that describe portfolios.

Q: Do you know of any schools that are assessing their kids in this
way, with portfolios?
Hetland: There’s a list of schools that use the Multiple
Intelligences methods.

Q: I’ve just visited the Met school in Providence, RI where students

are given evaluations by a two-page letter (every 9 weeks) , not by
letter grade. The teachers teach all the subjects for four grade levels
so that the students are known very well by their advisor. The
emphasis is on connecting the student’s interest to the real world and
finding rigor in the process. I would imagine that their “exam by
exhibition” follows the Gardner model of assessment.
Hetland: I’d like to learn more about the Met school.

Q: In Florida, we use a standardized test called the FCAT. I’m

interested in figuring out how an expanded FCAT would work.
Would there be a set of guidelines for the appearance and contents of
the portfolio? I’ve seen how a “high stakes” exam distorts people’s
thinking, or rather how teachers twist and turn in order to respond to a
standardized test.
Hetland: This would not be a “best practices” portfolio. I would
imagine that you want the standardized portfolio process to
show progress in understanding, so there have to be a range of
materials, not just the best of the student’s work.

Q: If we have to have high stakes tests, let’s make them assess the
students’ actual learning. A lot of students are picking up tremendous
lessons in Social Reasoning and Emotional Intelligence. It’s clear to
me that the FCAT assesses only a part of the linguistic intelligence
and portions of the math and 3-D abilities. The rest of the learning
styles and capacities are untouched. I’m curious to know how the
portfolios could be constructed to accurately expand what is
assessed.
Hetland: There is some standard literature out there that will
guide the creation of useful formats.

(Dr. Hetland then described some books that are available at the
PZ.Harvard.EDU web site).

(See Gardner's point about how to assess students from Intelligence

Reframed)
If individuals indeed have different kinds of minds, with varied
strengths, interests and strategies, then it is worth considering
whether pivotal curricular materials like biology could be taught AND
ASSESSED in a variety of ways.

www.newcityschool.org
Becoming a Multiple Intelligences School
Thomas R. Hoerr (Principal, St. Louis)
Page 27
Keeping a portfolio for each child – a collection of work and artifacts
that give a picture of the child’s growth – is a way of capturing
progress without using paper and pencil measures. Unless the
portfolio is given credence an shared with parents as a report card is,
however, it will seen as just a grab gag with little educational
significance. At New City School, the spring Portfolio Night highlights
the role of the portfolio.

During Portfolio Night parents and children review student artifacts

and reflections and put their hands on evidence of student growth.
Families come together to celebrate student progress and
accomplishments and to talk about areas needing more attention and
effort. In short, reviewing portfolios gives parents an opportunity to
view their children’s progress in all of the intelligences.

IMPORTANT
All items in a portfolio should contain a reflection sheet. Completed
by students, teachers or both, these forms indicate the particular
intelligence an item addresses and why it was chosen for the
portfolio. Without a reflection sheet, it is easy for objects to lose their
significance over time. Photographs of three dimensional
accomplishments as well as audiotapes and videotapes that capture
a student’s progress should also be included in each portfolio.

==============
To see more material by Daniel Pink, go to his web site at
www.DanPink.com
I've collected some of Pink's writings and interviews at the GATES
SPEECH web page
See also the writings of Dennis Littky

http://sites.google.com/site/stevesattutor/home/portfolios

"I don't know why more students don't

submit a portfolio. Harvard looks at
portfolios from home-schooled kids, so
why not from anyone if there is a well-
organized portfolio..."

The Vornle Method (see the full method described in the

Appendix)
To learn more:
Visit the Vornle Method at www.SATVideos.com
http://sites.google.com/site/visualandactive/Home/evaluations/vornle-method-for-
college-applications
Chapter 6
Training Teachers to Edu-tain
If you want to hear about a dynamic method of teaching, visit
www.VisualandActive.com, a website by teachers for teachers and
parents who want to make education “edu-taining.” By mixing elements of
entertainment in the course, we can make the learning stick. Find out what
Bill Gates heard:

Until we find the child’s passion, it’s just school. When the child
finds his passion, we teach to that passion. We can find
internships for high school students: Kids say, “I love this
internship!” and teachers can teach to that interest. – Dennis
Littky, The Big Picture

To learn more, get a free workshop at

youtube.com/visualandactive
>> OFFER: perhaps you would like to win a
free workshop. Send your email to us and
we will draw the name of the winner every
month. If you enter once, you are entered
for all future drawings.
Winners so far:
1 August: Embassy Language Center, Fort Lauderdale

1 September: Bok School of the Arts, West Palm Beach

1 October: Will it be your school?

Questions: Visualandactive@gmail.com (954) 646 8246

More about trainings:
http://sites.google.com/site/visualandactive/Home/about-us/thats-edu-
tainment
Chapter 7
Readings to Inspire Teachers

Trust. Truth. No Put-downs.

Active Listening. Personal Best.
Seen at New City School in St. Louis, Mo.

Howard Gardner
Alternative Methods of
Assessment
Key quotes from Gardner
Multiple Intelligences is most
usefully invoked in the service of
two educational goals. The first
is to help students achieve
certain valued adult roles or
end-states. If one wants
everyone to be able to engage
in artistic activities, it makes
sense to develop linguistic
intelligence for the poet, spatial
intelligence for the graphic artist
and sculptor, movement intelligence for the dancer and musical
intelligence for the composer. If we want everyone to be civil, then it
is important to develop the personal intelligences.

The second goal is to help students master certain curricular

materials. Students might be encouraged to take a course in biology
so as to better understand the development of the living world. If
individuals indeed have different kinds of minds, with varied
strengths, interests and strategies, then it is worth considering
whether pivotal curricular materials like biology could be taught AND
ASSESSED in a variety of ways.
Intelligence Reframed, p. 167

Performances of Understanding
When it comes to probing a student’s understanding of evolution, the
shrewd pedagogue looks beyond the mastery of dictionary definitions
or the recitation of textbook examples. A student demonstrates or
“performs” his understanding when he can examine a range of
species found in different ecological niches and speculate about the
reasons for their particular ensemble of traits. A student performs her
understanding of the Holocaust when she can compare events in a
Nazi concentration camp to such contemporary genocidal events as
those in Bosnia, Kosovo or Rwanda in the 1990s.

“Measures of understanding” may seem demanding, particularly in

contract to current, often superficial, efforts to measure what students
know and are able to do. And, indeed, recourse to performing one’s
understanding is likely to stress students, teachers, and parents, who
have grown accustomed to traditional ways of doing (or NOT doing)
things. Nonetheless, a performance approach to understanding is
justified. Instead of mastering content, one thinks about the reason
why a particular content is being taught and how best to display one’s
comprehension of this content in a publicly accessible way. When
students realize they will have to apply knowledge and demonstrate
insights in a public form, they assume a more active stance to the
material, seeking to exercise their “performance muscles” whenever
possible.

Bill Gates (National High School Summit speech) The first R is Rigor –
making sure all students are given a challenging curriculum that
prepares them for college or work. The second R is Relevance –
making sure kids have courses and projects that clearly relate to their
lives and their goals. The third R is Relationships – making sure
kids have a number of adults who know them, look out for them, and
push them to achieve. The three Rs are almost always easier to
promote in smaller schools. ... Students in smaller schools are more
motivated, have higher attendance rates, feel safer, and graduate
and attend college in higher numbers.”

Schools don't teach the

Alison Gopnik (The Teacher as Coach)
same way children learn. ... Children seem to learn best
when they can explore the world and interact with expert
adults..... They learn by watching adults, trying
themselves and receiving detailed corrective feedback
about their efforts. ...A good example of such teaching
in our culture is the stern but beloved baseball
coach. How many school teachers are as good at
essay writing, science or mathematics as the average
coach is at baseball? And even when teachers are
expert, how
many children ever get to
watch them work through writing an
essay or designing a scientific
experiment or solving an unfamiliar math
problem?

Robert Reich (former Sec. of Labor) “Given the widening array of

possibilities, there’s no reason that every child must master the sciences,
algebra, geometry, biology, or any of the rest of the standard high school
curriculum that has barely changed in half a century.”
Lois Hetland, Steve Seidel, J. Walters (Portfolio Practices, Project Zero)
"Many universities allow home-schooled students to submit
portfolios of their work to show their progress. Couldn't
every student submit a portfolio with their college
application?
Paul Wagner, former president of Rollins College "Movies, soap operas,
TV shows and radio shows are competing for the minds of our young
people. If we are going to have a chance at educating them, we need to
use the same methods -- audio and visual."

Educators
Thomas Hoerr (Building a Multiple Intelligences School)
should: personalize education and work to individualize
instruction; view students' parents as partners and educate
them, too; and demonstrate that students are prepared for
the future.
Dan Pink (Free Agent Nation, A Whole New Mind, The MFA is the New
MBA) What would happen if a teacher introduced Dan Pink's "six
elements" into the classroom? (From A Whole New Mind: design, story,
symphony, empathy, play, meaning)

What if students were expected to include China, India and countries in

South America in class discussions (in the way that we include England,
France and Italy in many classes)? 
If you are a substitute teacher, what is
your responsibility to ensure that students are exposed to the topics
presented on this page? What are the connections between the forces that
shape our world? Asia, Automation and Abundance (Danpink.com)

We have done a very poor

Thomas Friedman (The World is Flat)
job of conveying to kids the value of science and technology
as a career choice that will make the world a better place.
 Engineering and science is what led to so many
improvement in our lives. But you talk to K through 12 kids
about changing the world and they don't look at computer
science as a career that is going to be a great thing."
(quoting Richard A. Rashid, director of research for
Microsoft) ... We should be embarking on an all-hands-on-
deck, no-holds-barred, no-budget-too-large crash program
for science and engineering education immediately. (page
275)

Dennis Yuzenas (WhatDoYaKnow.com) The "back to basics"

movement and the focus on standardized tests ("drill-and-
kill") have brutalized schools. The students aren't having
fun, the teachers aren't having fun. There is another way.

One day we
Richard Feynmann (The Pleasure of Finding Things Out)
read about dinosaurs and the book said that the dinosaur
was twenty-five feet high with a head six feet across. "Let's
see what that means. That would mean that if he stood in
our front yard, he would be high enough to put his head
through the third-story window but not quite because his
head would be a little bit too wide."

About Finding a Child's Passion:

Until we find the child’s passion, it’s just school. When the
child finds his passion, we teach to that passion. We can
find internships for high school students: Kids say, “I love
this internship!” and teachers can teach to that interest. –
Dennis Littky
"If there was anything in a person, of real worth, it would come out whether they went to
college or not."

Alfred Pope

-------------------------

Small Schools Booklet

Compiled by a teacher at a small charter school who visited
The Littky school in Providence, RI (Metcenter.org). This
booklet is available for FREE download on scribd.com and
you are encouraged to share the link with parents, teachers,
students and principals. Here is the link:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/15636953/In-Praise-of-Small-
Schools-in-24-pages

-------------------------

"See that bird? What kind of a bird is that?" And I said, "I
haven't the slightest idea." He said, "It's a brown throated
thrush. In Italian it is a -------; in Portuguese it is called a ----
--; in Japanese, they say -------. Now, you know in many
languages the name of that bird and yet you know absolutely
nothing whatever about the bird. You only know about
humans in different places and what they call the bird. Now,
let's look at the bird."

My father taught me to notice things.

I was a small boy and my father used to read to me from an

encyclopedia. One day we read about dinosaurs and the
book said that the dinosaur was twenty-five feet high with a
head six feet across. "Let's see what that means. That
would mean that if he stood in our front yard, he world be
high enough to put his head through the third-story window
but not quite because his head would be a little bit too wide."
The Pleasure of Finding Things Out
By Richard Feynman
(Discuss the title of this book)

---------------------------------

Excellence versus Perfection

A high school principal at a conference spoke about tips on
reducing stress at work. "I recognize the difference between
excellence and perfection. I believe it is important that my
students bus their tables and put their trays away after they
have eaten. You may think this is being nitpicky or that it's a
minor issue. i believe that teaching kids responsibility is
maybe the most important lesson we offer. My students
generally come from upper income families and the cafeteria
staff is largely lower-income. What's the message when
they walk away and leave their trays?

I can get 96 percent of my students to put their trays away.

That's good, but it's not perfection. I want 100 percent of
the trays put away. But I've come to realize that by striving
for 100 percent, I would turn the place into a prison. In doing
that, I would crate an incredible amount of stress for my self
and everyone around me. So I've learned to be satisfied
with excellence."
Becoming a Multiple Intelligences School
Thomas Hoerr

--------------------

We should develop students who know how to:

identify problems,
use their intelligences to solve problems and create
products,
demonstrate their understanding in a variety of ways, and
work with others.

Educators should:
personalize education and work to individualize instruction;
enable students to develop and use their areas of strength;
view students' parents as partners and educate them, too;
offer an environment that supports faculty growth; and
demonstrate that students are prepared for the future.
Becoming a Multiple Intelligences School
Thomas Hoerr

Get the Littky Book, The Big Picture

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Big-Picture/Dennis-
Littky/e/9780871209719/?itm=2&usri=1
and read these pages:
page 34- Quote by Robert Reich, the former Secretary of
Labor
pages 66-70 School size
pages 86-92 Discipline
pages 113-114 Real work
Page 116 the formula that Bill Gates used in his Feb. 2005
speech to Governors at the National High School Summit.
pages 152-162 Grades? no, narratives

pages 162-168 Tests? no, exhibitions

More readings:
http://sites.google.com/site/visualandactive/Home/about-
us/thats-edu-tainment/readings/littky-on-npr

If you know someone who can translate this workbook,

please show them www.visualandactive.com and our course
called "That's Edu-tainment."
If you know a principal or director of a school who wants to
transform the school's teachers, tell us... we can create an
excellent workshop...
Chapter 8
What Now?

Well, you reached the end of the book. There are some
appendices, but you made it to the core idea (presented in
Chapters 1 and 2). If you want to discuss the options, contact
1+ 954-646-8246 or send an email to visualandactive@gmail.com
-- how can we improve this presentation?
About the Authors

Steve is a teacher of English as a Second Language in Fort

Lauderdale. He can be reached at
FreeEnglishLessons@gmail.com.

Dennis is a middle school teacher of Social Studies. His

website is www.WhatDoyaKnow.com
Appendix

1. What Learning Style Are You?

2. Rubric for a Performance
3. A Manifesto
4. The Vornle Method
5. Mentors on Video
6. 14 points about Dennis Littky’s
School
Appendix

What Learning Style Are You?

The Concrete Sequential individual:

Needs and enjoys structured situations.
Likes to work with hands-on projects.
Likes things to be ordered and arranged in specific ways.
Likes clear and definite directions.
Is always "busy", looking for constructive things to do, can’t sit still for long.
Is a natural organizer.
Prefers to do things step by step.
Follows directions.
Is a natural editor, can take anything and make it better.
Has a great fear of being wrong…. And prefers:
Order and quiet
Exact directions
Guided Practice
Know the accepted way of doing something
Can apply ideas in a practical, hands-on way
Are given approval for specific work done
========================
The Abstract Sequential individual:
Reads avidly for information and ideas logically presented.
Needs a quiet environment to think and work.
Likes to debate about ideas and controversial issues.
Likes to learn just to learn - self-directed.
Gathers information and analyzes ideas.
Strives for intellectual recognition.
Thinks in a structured, logical and organized way.
Fears appearing foolish or uninformed…. And prefers:
Lecture and reading
Follow traditional procedures
Work alone
Research
Logical explanations
Are respected for intellectual ability
===================
The Abstract Random individual:
Dislikes routine procedures and orderliness.
Is extremely sensitive to his/her own and others’ feelings.
Is flexible, accepting and responds easily to change.
Learns well through discussion and sharing of ideas.
Is imaginative.
Personalizes information.
Is usually involved in many projects or interest at one time.
Is focused on friends and relationships.
Has a fear of not being liked…. And prefers:
Cooperative work
Assignments with room for interpretation
Balance of social activities and work
Noncompetitive atmosphere
Personalized learning
Are given personal attention and emotional support
==================
The Concrete Random individual:
Is highly curious.
Finds out-of-the-ordinary answers to problems.
Seems driven to say or do things in a way others have not.
Is a risk-taker.
Likes to discover his/her own way of doing things; must test things for self.
Is extremely independent and competitive with self.
Prefers to investigate and experiment; enjoys hands-on experimenting.
Skips steps and details.
Shows original creativity; has varied and unusual ideas.
Has multiple projects going at once.
Finds possibilities, creates change.
Is notorious for not reading directions or instructions.
Fears structure…. And prefers:
Trial and error approach
Hands-on experiences
Brainstorming and open-ended activities
Produce real, but creative, products
Original and unique approaches to problem solving
Self-directed learning

Source: Floatingneutrinos.com
Appendix
Rubric or Checklist for a
Performance of
Understanding
Based on the work of Lois Hetland and others

Evaluation of the Student’s Performance of

Understanding

Name of Student:
_____________________________________
Date: ______________

Topic for Performance of Understanding:

______________________________

Checklist for Presentations (based on work by Patricia Crosby and

Pamela Heinz)
Information
Gains attention of the audience with an interesting
detail ___

The student explains why the topic is interesting to

him/her ___
Uses gestures to enhance the speech ___

Shows enthusiasm about the topic ___

Maintains eye contact with the audience ___

The student’s speech is clear and audible ___

The speech is not rushed (the student speaks at an

appropriate pace) ___

Answers questions from the audience ___

Organization
Uses visual materials to clarify important points ___

Communicates beginning, middle and end of the

presentation ___

Many specific words are used ___

(“glamorous” or “fabulous” rather than “nice” or “good”)

Main ideas are supported with details ___

According to Howard Gardner, “Measures of understanding” may
seem demanding, particularly in contract to current, often superficial,
efforts to measure what students know and are able to do. And,
indeed, recourse to performing one’s understanding is likely to stress
students, teachers, and parents, who have grown accustomed to
traditional ways of doing (or NOT doing) things. Nonetheless, a
performance approach to understanding is justified. Instead of
mastering content, one thinks about the reason why a particular
content is being taught and how best to display one’s comprehension
of this content in a publicly accessible way. When students realize
they will have to apply knowledge and demonstrate insights in a
public form, they assume a more active stance to the material,
seeking to exercise their “performance muscles” whenever possible.
Appendix
Here is a document that summarizes my philosophy of education. What is the
goal of the teacher? To transform into a mentor, advisor, facilitator and reduce
the role of dictator.

Our Manifesto?

Every time you walk into a classroom, you have the

opportunity to create a new world. Cary, Tony, Dennis and I
take that opportunity.
We're visual and active teachers.

We upset the expectations of students. They come in and

expect to dictated to. They learn that there's another way to
transmit information, there's another way for the students to
discover and grab and understand something about the
world. Watch Tony, Cary, Dennis in a classroom. They get
students involved. The students participate. The learners
are no longer observers or passive receivers of bits of
information. Students don't occupy a visual and active
classroom. Students don't sit, copy and shut up. They don't
wait for the teacher... they take the initiative.

This book is written to capture that intensity. The energy and

power that Dennis, Cary and Tony create in their educational
worlds come from links to videos and dynamic material on
the Internet, powerful questions that students are asked.

This book could have a lasting impact on you as a teacher.

you will be standing in line in Washington, DC, as Dennis
was, and a stranger will walk up to you and say, "Hey, you're
Mr. Y! I was your student ten years ago. You were the best
teacher I ever had. People remember how you treated them.
They might not remember what you taught them, they might
not remember the material that you presented in the
classroom, but they remember how they felt in your class.

The systems that Dennis Yuzenas and Dennis Littky put in

place in their classrooms, the rules that Cary, Tony and I
impose on the class, these are the methods that we use to
show respect for students. We ask them, "What do you want
to learn? How can we make this interesting? TELL ME
HOW YOU LEARN and we will adapt to you."

When you join us in this visual and active world, you will
discover that you are part of the show, part of the movie. We
are in a movie, we aren't just spectators. Movies are no
longer entertaining to many of us visual and active teachers
because we are tied of being spectators and observers. We
want to participate -- and we participate so much that we are
part of the show.
Appendix

The Vornle Method

The following description is a DRAFT and
it includes some of the commentaries made by the author and editors
of the material. It was written as a long letter from John Vornle (a
skilled writer and a graduate of Colgate University) to his children.
None of them read the material completely, but perhaps you will.

Posted by one of the editors...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

A perspective on
College
by John Vornle
---------------- d r a f t -------------

Introduction
by Stephen McCrea
This pamphlet opened my eyes. I am a high school teacher. At least
once a day I hear:
“I need to pass this course to get into college.”
“If I get a good score, I’m in.”

Once a week I hear

“Man, how am I ever going to raise my SAT? I just don’t get it.” (This
is usually a student who wants to get into a first-rate school and
needs a combined score of at least 1150).

Most people believe that you need to get three good ratings.
Good GPA
Good SAT
Good rank in class (top 10 percent)

Having a 3.9 GPA means nothing if you are ranked in the top quarter
of the class (grade inflation is everywhere!).

But I hear of students with 3.8 GPA, a combined SAT over 1200 and
a rank of 24 out of 300 who have applied to five colleges -- and they
get no letters of acceptance.

What went wrong for these students who have accumulated such
good records?

Mr. Vornle’s analysis (“U.S. universities are businesses”) helps me

explain the system to my students and it reveals two strategies:
a) If you are a “full pay” student (able to pay full tuition), you have a
surprise waiting for you … a “line of negotiation” into the process of
college admission.
b) If you are not an athlete or if you lack the funds , this pamphlet
gives you three steps to use to improve your chance of getting
accepted.

After reading Mr. Vornle’s manuscript, I now ask my students, “What

else should you be doing to get ready for college?”

I hope you will agree that this short pamphlet will give students a new
view into the “admission process” and that you will become a
negotiator.

It’s no longer a passive “admission process” (I hope they pick me).

It’s more of a “Seize the Day” process: what can you do to grab the
attention of the reader of your application? “Hey, reader! Look at
what you will lose if you don’t read about me!”

Good hunting!

Steve McCrea
High School Teacher, MPA, Math 800, Verbal 720
Certified to teach English 6-12, Math 6-12, ESOL K-12, Political Science 6-12
Accepted at MIT, Yale, Swarthmore, Haverford, Princeton
Waitlist at Harvard.

Some questions about colleges and the college

application process:
A) Getting perspective on American Universities
What are the revenues of a university?
What are the expenses?...Hmmm..
What are revenues divided by the number of
students? hmmmm.

That number is HALF of the tuition? That means any student

paying full tuition is carrying another student...

What should be an applicant’s strategy of negotiation?

B) Selecting a College/ How do you get to know a college?

Big school or small school?
What is your personality?
International or close to home?
Junior year abroad?
How do you REALLY get to know a college?
Should you stay over night?
What questions should you ask?
How do you get away from the college appointed "guide" to the
campus and really get to know what it's like to be on campus?
Is the student-written guide to campus life and to the professors
overly spiteful?
Can you believe what you read in web sites?
Is any of this important?

C) How do you best prepare yourself?

What is needed to be successful in college?
What skills do you need to pick up in high school?
What should you ignore at school?
What is "fluff" and what is needed in later life?

A) Getting perspective on American Universities

Question: What is the business plan reality of a college?
Answer: If you divide the average revenue of a university that charges
$32,000 per year by the number of enrolled students, the average
revenue per student is actually around $17,000. This is the average
tuition (and other fees) collected by colleges for each student. To me,
this means that every student paying more than $17,000 is
subsidizing the rest of the student body.

• American Colleges are excellent at

promoting themselves to students,
parents, and the business
community. They are expert marketers. They are far ahead
of European universities who have not spent much money marketing
themselves over the past 20 years.
Why do I tell you this? American colleges are full of fluff.

Note: Spend your time in college making friends with the people you
will want to remain in contact with after college. They are life-long
friends. Get involved in as much as you can.

• Universities are businesses. They collect

revenues from the parents of students.

• Why do I tell you this? Most people think that universities have a
“higher purpose.” They do, but most fail in the execution.
• What are most American Universities? The American university is a
simple business.
• McCrea adds: Universities claim that they are “not for profit” but
running a university is a business. The typical college seeks clients
who will pay for its services.

B) Selecting a College/ How do you get to know a college?

At almost any university you can find a positive situation. Pick
subjects you are interested in learning about now and dedicate
yourself to associating yourself with the best teacher/ professors in
the university system you can find.

Question: Given the importance of the teachers, why do universities

not tell you much about their teachers, classes and curriculums?
Answer: Profits.

C) How do you best prepare yourself?

Question: What are the three top qualities colleges look for?
Conventional Wisdom:
GPA
SAT
Rank in class

The Vornle Answer: Other than athletic ability (which is number one
for many colleges), I am going to say:
(1) evidence of leadership (...of having organized peers and
motivated a group to do something);
(2) extra-mural distinction in some extracurricular activity, i.e. not
just editing the high school paper, but writing for the local community
newspaper, or getting nationally ranked in chess or debating;
(3) personal dash, charisma, popularity, especially with adults.
Evidence of leadership in fundraising is very attractive. “Personal
dash with adults” is a trait schools won't ever admit noticing, but it
influences them, like it or not.

Why do I tell you this? #3 is important. You need to capture the

attention of adults so that they volunteer to write you the letters of
recommendation.

What are Admission Realities? Selective American colleges and

American Ivy League colleges are very difficult to enter. The
competition is intense.
However, there is room at those top schools for middle-ability kids
from eastern prep schools and ambitious families to attend the best
programs in the mid-west.

Afterward/ Conclusions/ Comments

D-1
The marketing hype and tension associated with American colleges,
their emphasis of being a business first and foremost, distracts from
the reason for seeking a higher education.

The world is open to each of you. I want you to consider colleges and
universities outside the United States where: a) you may get a better
education, and; b) you won’t be distracted by American conventional
wisdom and being stuck with students that are less mature, less
culturally aware.

D-2
Don’t base your choice of universities on “feel,” or “comfort” with the
campus.

Since information about teachers, classes, course requirements,

teachers’ assistants, etc., are hard to find, maybe you can create your
own system of questions that you want to know about places.

As far as the application process goes, make yourself stand out! The
French have a saying: “Vive la difference!” It’s the differences that
will make you attractive. Document yourselves well. Aim high! Aim
for whatever you are interested in.

Appendix
Other Points
E-1
• The important factors in selecting a college are the characteristics of
the teachers/professors with whom you spend your time and the
legacy of learning and inquiring process they are able to impart to
you.
Why do I tell you this? This is why I think you should be going to
college.

E-2
Question: What do colleges want?
Answer: They want full-pay, traditional age (between 17 and 19
years old in the freshman class), well-rounded students, who also
have exceptional grades and Board scores.

Why do colleges want “free kids”? It allows them to earn more

profits. “Free kids” are considered desirable because:

1) As current students, they are likely to be rewarding to teach and to

graduate on time (Incoming grades and scores are the best
predictors of on time graduation.);
2) They are likely to contribute to the extracurricular life and morale of
the community (Their future is expected to be like their past.);
3) They raise the rankings of the school, which heavily turn on the
academic profile of the undergraduate body (The fact that rankings
rest heavily on profile of student body is partially defensible, since
students do learn from each other, and partially sheer snobbism.);
4) As alumni, the full-pay kids contribute more to the school.

E-3
The type of person who reviews your application is not a professor.
They are regular people trying to select an “entering class of
students” who will meet the criteria as determined by the school’s
president.

As an applicant you need to have done the things that make you
stand apart from your classmates. Being like everyone else is a
distinct disadvantage.
E-4
• Of an entering class of 1000 students, the Admission Committee
objective is that 800 must meet the GPA and SAT criteria, and half
must pay the full tuition. The remaining 200 are selected to complete
sports teams, meet social objectives (blacks, other minorities,
religion), satisfy special organizational skills (band instruments,
chorus, art, student government, newspaper reporting, community
service).

Why do I tell you this? You have a chance to get into even the most
selective colleges if you meet special criteria that they need. The
challenge is figuring out “what” is needed and then landing with an
admissions person who agrees with this characteristic’s importance
to the school.

E-5
Reality check: All the double-700 SAT, full-pay, top 10% of high
school class, well-rounded 17 year-olds in the whole country will not
fill the freshman classes of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Stanford.

E-6
• Student Counselors in High School provide suggestions based on
statistics (GPA, SAT and acceptances of past students).
• Why do I tell you this? Don’t expect much!

E-7
• For students, universities are a place of learning and fun! However,
they are not “transparent”: Universities don’t make good information
available about their teachers and courses (especially not to
applicants).
• It is difficult for non-students to find out about the personal teaching
style of professors and the reaction of students to the professors;

E-8
• If a person becomes a tenured professor, he then has an easy
secured life with relatively no pressure.
• Why do I tell you this? Professors are sometimes good, sometimes
bad.

E-9
Why go to University? The certificate is important. It is the expected
thing to do in the American system. The interaction with the student
body is important for your education.
However, keep it fun. Participate fully in the life of the campus and
the community. Good luck.
Appendix

What else can parents do?

Ask to become
a MENTOR ON VIDEO
www.MentorsOnVideo.com

Suggested QUESTIONS to answer

1. What did you learn in school that you still use
today? (This answer shows relevance.)

2. What do you wish you had learned in school?

Additional relevance plus a suggestion to a teacher to include
something extra in a future lesson.)

3. Name one of your teachers. If you can name the

teacher, then something was given by that teacher to
you. What was it? Honor that teacher by telling us
why you remember that teacher. (This shows an important
relationship)

4. Tell us about a book. What have you read in the

past ten years that you use today? (This answer
shows continued learning -- and we are asking you for a
performance about what you took from the book, a performance of
understanding.)

For more data, contact posdev.net.

McCrea Educational Archives is borrowing your image and voice to
educate students. If you wish the video to be withdrawn, we can stop
future distribution. Your video image will be seen by students who
need adult role models.

Mentors On Video is a program to

allow "ordinary humans' (non teachers) to visit middle
and high schools on video. You can go to a "real"
school and get videotaped. Or you can ask for
someone to video you.

My production company, McCrea Educational

Archives, sells video training for FCAT preparation,
SAT preparation, training for teachers and "how to
read better". All of this training is placed on DVDs
and CDs and there is often an extra 100 or 150
Megabytes on the CD or DVD. What to do? Put
some videos of Mentors on the CD. Free. Your
donation of your time will be returned by having your
voice and/or image shared with dozens of students.

Students tend to watch a CD if they are told that it is not required.

"Huh, maybe this is the new Pirates of the Caribbean DVD."
Sometimes they are bored, sometimes they are hooked. The idea of
the mentor isn't to appeal to EVERY student, but rather to hijack at
least one student from the reverie induced by surfing on the Internet
or playing with an Xbox game.

If you wish to participate, please contact me. Make your own video or
call me and I'll put you on the list for me to video you.
Appendix
How Does Dennis Littky Operate his
Schools?

“Kids are dying out there,” said Dennis Littky, founder of Big Picture
Schools, in an interview on National Public Radio. He meant that
many students are dying of boredom in school and some, literally, are
dying because many schools are not as safe as they could be.

Littky also asks, “Even kids in A schools could do better if they were
working in a doctor’s office or an architect’s office during the school
day.” See the appendix.

Littky’s remedy?
1. make the school smaller.
2. Help kids find and reveal their passions.
3. Find internships to put their passions to work.
4. Get a lot of mentors.
5. Ask every parent to read excerpts from his book The Big
Picture, so that everyone is onboard the school-reform train.
6. Ask teachers to write narratives, not just grades.
7. Ask students to give “stand ups” or exhibitions instead of
written tests.
8. Parents are part of the curriculum team and the team for
planning the student’s individual education plan (IEP).
9. Every student writes a 75-page autobiography based on
interviews with people who know or knew his grandparents
and parents. The work can be in the form of a magazine or
video (edited).
10. Teachers are called “Advisors” and they stay wit the same
cohort of 15 students for 3-4 years.
11. Advisors teach all the subjects. If additional support from
another teacher or mentor is needed, the advisor still learns
with the students.
 12. Schools invite alumni back to the school, allowing alumni to
use computers and to network and get job references.
Returning alumni act as mentors to current students. The
school tracks the alumni for at least 10 years, sending a
packet and questionnaire asking “what do you wish you had
learned in 10th grade? What was useful? What could the
school do better?”
13. Make all the classwork and homework real. If possible, bring
real work from the outside world into the classroom to make
a real project.
14. Every student applies to college as part of the requirements
to graduate. If you don’t submit an application to three
colleges, then you don’t receive your high school diploma.

See what happens.

This is the end of this DRAFT document. A book is never realy ever finished.
Please make some suggestions about how we can improve the format or
presentation of this material.

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