Essential Questions for Personalizing the Environment

1. What does personalization look like?

A personalized school is a community of fully engaged students in an environment of

collaboration between students, faculty, staff, family, and the larger community where

students are recognized and known as individuals, and where staff work together to

encourage student ownership of learning.

2. What are the personalization needs of the school community?

"A strong relationship between the educator and student, between the student and the

subject, contributes to and creates a strong relationship between the student and the

school, between the student and the idea of education" (Angert, B., Policy? Pupils

Passionately Pursuing Personal Growth).

The inherent need of the school community is for students to feel more connected. The

structures, routines and impersonal relationships of large schools make students feel

unengaged and alienated (Wasley and Lear). At Huntington Beach High School, faculty

and staff identified a 'hot list' of students (students who were failing classes and/ or

getting into trouble consistently) and set those students up with an adult mentor. Within a

couple of years, they saw a decrease in suspensions and the list of these students was

shorter (Shore).
Students need to be involved in the reform and changes that are taking place at Auburn

High School. Theodore Sizer states, “Student voices are the missing link in school

reform” (Cushman, Horace , volume 11, #1. Sept 1994) Students should have a role in

the curriculum—to the extent possible, but also in schedule changes and school

governance. Student involvement in school reform gives students the opportunity to see

that they are in control of all aspects of their learning (Cushman, 1994).

Committee members sought to gather input from the AHS faculty regarding their

impressions of our personalization needs. The results of a survey ranking said needs of

Auburn High School garnered 18 total responses. The faculty indicated the strongest

interest in advisory groups, smaller class sizes, and increased student involvement in

school governance. However, it should be noted that the opinions of the Auburn High

School faculty were at different ends of the spectrum concerning longer instructional

periods; some faculty feel that this was a top need, while others ranked it as a low

priority.

3. What are the structures that lead to a more personalized environment?

One of the structures that may lead to a more personalized school environment is the

small learning community. This may also be called a school-within-a-school, a learning

academy, or a themes program, among other names. Whatever they may be called,

research shows that small learning communities help to create a more personalized

environment for teachers and students alike. SLCs help to alleviate teacher isolation since
they require more collaboration between teachers than the traditional, departmental,

comprehensive model. SLCs can also bolster student commitment and ownership of

learning (Raywid). Students learn better in context and with a clear reason for learning

(Anne Arundel County). Students may choose their school, academy, or theme, and the

model may lend itself to greater opportunity for real-world learning; thus students are

given both reason and context for learning.

Advisory Groups are another structure that leads to a more personalized school

environment. "Teachers who have been a part of an effective advisory system describe it

as the single most important design element for making possible a high level of

personalization". (Wasley and Lear). All faculty and staff are trained to advise and

support a small group of students (usually 10 - 15). The advisor monitors, guides, and

nurtures students' personal and academic growth. It allows for all students to belong to a

group and have at least one adult that knows them well.

In order for teachers to more effectively meet students' needs, it is imperative that

teaching loads are reduced. Much of the research available states that teacher loads are

excessive and that the negative effects of stress are having a considerable impact on

teachers. Forty percent of teachers in England and Wales report feeling stress due to

excessive workloads. The consequences include declining job satisfaction, reduced ability

to meet students’ needs, significant incidences of psychological disorders leading to an

increased absence from work, and a high proportion of claims for disability caused by

stress. Stress also leads to teachers leaving the profession in large numbers, and impacts
recruitment internationally. There are also financial consequences, as stress leads to short

term absentees and teachers going on long term disability leaves. There is some evidence

that the impact of teaching load and stress are more serious for women. Two thirds of all

teachers are female; therefore these data might lead to a sharper focus on gender issues

by teaching unions, employers and governments in addressing workload issues.

Factors that contribute to teaching load are not limited to classroom interactions and

lesson preparations. Teachers must juggle diverse, intense types of interactions and

respond to requests by colleagues, administrators, parents, and community members.

Teachers report experiencing very high stress related to reporting practices and issues.

International studies show that teachers' work intensification mirrors societal trends

toward overwork. Site-based management has led to increased teacher workload.

Imposed and centralized system accountability, lack of professional autonomy,

relentlessly imposed change, constant media criticism, reduced resources, and moderate

pay all relate to teachers’ stress.

While a large body of research suggest serious problems relating to teaching load, a large

number of government reports and media publication imply that teachers “have it easy”

and can be expected to do more. Most of the media fail to do even the most basic

research to back up their claims. Governments have consistently ignored a wide range of

data and research that shows that teacher stress caused by workload is a crisis requiring

action. Governments are not likely to act until the crisis in retention and recruitment

becomes clear even to them.

Effective union action is the most obvious way to deal with issues relating to teaching
load and stress. The research suggests however that there is a big need for collaboration

between unions, employers and governments to address teachers’ workload and stress. A

pragmatic approach to deal with this problem should lead to a decrease in short term

absences, long term leaves, and teachers leaving the profession all together.

A more radical change to personalize the school environment would be the

implementation of an alternative to the “traditional” school schedule. Within the past

decade, many public schools have made a transition to one of the many forms of a block

schedule. While the research has yielded both positive and negative results concerning

the overall efficacy of the block schedule, several sources have quoted positive reactions

from teachers who were surveyed in their study

According to a study done in 1997 (Staunton, Jim, and Adams, Teresa) “teachers enjoyed

having less up-front lecturing, more one-on-one interactions with students, and a less

hectic schedule.”

Another study by Staunton claimed that “teachers at four block-scheduled high

schools….. indicated that block scheduling allows teachers to vary their instructional

practice, experiment with new assessments, reduce their hectic pace, and cover less

material in greater detail.”

However, it is necessary to assess how various forms of block scheduling affect learners

at different levels. For example, while the above research yielded positive results, a
comprehensive study done by the College Board professed that block scheduling

negatively impacted students taking Advanced Placement courses.

(http://www.collegeboard.com/research/pdf/block_schedules_10409.pdf)

The important question here is not whether or not block scheduling is necessary for our

personalization needs, but which form of block scheduling would meet the needs of ALL

learners at Auburn High School.

Personalizing the school environment through service learning

Another way for students to feel “connected” or to get involved is through service

learning.

What is service learning?

According to Learn and Serve America and the National Youth Leadership Council

(NYLC), service learning is a philosophy, pedagogy, and model for community

development that connects the academic curriculum with the inherent caring and concern

that young people have for their world.

Service learning can be a catalyst for students to make connections with each other, with

the community, and most importantly, between what they are learning and the larger

world.

The school-based practice of service-learning offers a promising approach to the

challenge of civic engagement since it capitalizes both on students’ willingness to

volunteer and on the options presented in community settings for students to become
civically engaged. Service learning is broadly defined as a teaching strategy wherein

students learn important curricular objectives by providing service that meets authentic

community needs. Typically the service learning cycle includes student planning, action,

reflection, and celebration. In high quality service-learning projects, students have

considerable voice in determining activities, and teachers facilitate knowledge and skill

acquisition. According to Skinner and Chapman (1999), service learning is practiced in

half of all public high schools (Billig, Root, and Jesse, 2005).

Some of the structures that will lead students to a more personalized environment are

learning contracts and a student-faculty legislature. A learning contract, sometimes

referred to as a personal learning plan, should be made by each student and each group of

students, then reviewed by an advisor or teacher. The teacher/advisor would have to guide

a student or group of students through the process of creating learning goals and devising

a way to meet those goals. The student is forced to take responsibility for his or her

learning in order to abide by the contract. A group learning contract reduces isolation,

builds community, and teaches the importance of working with peers (Boyer, 2004).

In some schools a student and faculty committee is established to create school policies

on academics, discipline, and general school requirements; “When students have the

chance to practice making responsible decisions as a group, they take another major step

toward adulthood in a democratic society” (Cushman, 1994). The governance system

should help students take responsibility for their own actions and the actions of their

peers (Cushman, 1994). Francis W. Parker Essential Charter School has established a
constitution that establishes comities of students and faculty to establish the policies of

the school. The constitution clearly defines branches of the government and the roles of

each branch. The constitution of the Francis W. Parker Essential Charter Scool can be

found at http://www.parker.org/constitution/index.html.

4. What practices are necessary to personalize the school environment?

To implement and maintain a successful small learning community format, a

reconfiguring of faculty interaction must occur. Whether the SLCs be based on themes,

questions, or vocations, SLCs require collaboration beyond the traditional departmental

level. As such, a reordering of both faculty and student schedules may be necessay.

Common planning time for SLC "teams" to devise and discuss instruction and assessment

practices is necessary, as is professional development for all members of the SLC.

Research has shown that professional development and common planning time are

crucial to letting the SLC function as something more than an administrative body

(Supovitz).

As the SLC evolves, other practices--governing boards or flexible scheduling, for

example—may demand consideration.

To create an Advisory Group, professional development for the teachers/staff who are to

become mentors is a must. Many teachers would be uncomfortable in this role without

the proper training and it is important that the advisory period does not become a
glorified study hall. The relationships formed must be ongoing so students feel a sense of

belonging and that someone cares about what they do. There should also be guidelines for

what is to be accomplished during the advisory period. Advisory periods could involve

college plans, topics about safety (bullying, internet use, etc), discussions about grades,

and many others. Prior to instituting an advisory period, a plan for each period (even if

somewhat open-ended) should be drafted.

Through service learning teachers and students can explore topics in a real world way.

Service learning is woven into the fabric of the curriculum, not as an add-on or “extra”

thing that has to be done. According to the National Youth Leadership Council, the

following are critical elements to a successful program.

• Youth Ownership- Young people are active partners in a service-learning project

which empowers them to take control of their learning and builds leadership

skills.

• Genuine Community Needs- The youth and practitioners (teachers) engage the

community as a partner to identify needs and strengthen relationships between the

youth and the community.

• Connections to Learning Objectives- Teachers tie projects to specific learning

objectives, where learning becomes experimental and applied, deepening student

understanding.

• Reflection- Reflection is used to help students internalize the learning, provide

opportunities to voice concerns, and assess where they are in the learning process.
 • Partnerships- The partnerships built between the youth and the larger community

can bridge intergenerational, racial, and cultural gaps.

• Making it Happen- Each project begins with careful collaborative planning,

followed by implementation, and ends with evaluation of the success and failures

of the project. This process insures that the students have a complete knowledge

and appreciation of their experience.

5. What role do members of the school community play in personalizing the

environment?

To truly personalize a school environment, all members of the school community should

take part in the process of personalization. Faculty and school administration, who

directly and indirectly make up the leadership of the SLCs, play key roles in

personalization. Given full autonomy, a faculty team may determine the focus, questions,

class offerings, instruction and assessment practices, disciplinary actions, even the

schedule within a given SLC. Depending on the chosen model, students may have a say

in any of the areas above. At the least, students and advisors play a role in personalizing

the school environment in the choice of school, theme, or academy. Parents and

guardians also play a role in helping their student choose a path. If the model encourages

or requires student involvement beyond the building (work study, internships community

service), community government and businesses lend to the personalization process as

well. The school committee plays a determining role in approving substantive changes

and funding.
6. How can we assess the level of personalization of the school environment?