Scene+Four

Setting - Open House in the Eager Newbie’s (Shannon Price) classroom

Shannon Price has asked parents to take a seat to begin introductions. She briefly mentions the district mandate and the pilot program of project based learning at the school. She has invited a friend from college who is a company rep for Intel to talk about how project based learning can help their company.

Shannon “Good evening parents. I am excited to announce that this year our school has been selected to pilot a program to incorporate technology into the curriculum through project based learning. Our children will need 21st century skills to be successful in the world that awaits them, and project based learning will give them the opportunity to refine those skills. We also have a special guest this evening. I have asked John Williams from Intel to come and share his point of view on this new focus of learning and how it can help his company.” Eager Newbie wonders how parents feel about project based learning, and it doesn’t take long for her to find out.

Neg parent (Francis Ford) “Does project based learning involve group work? My child has been in groups before and he always ends up having to do the work. This sounds like the same situation. I don’t understand why you can’t just teach things the same way that I was taught. What happened to emphasizing reading, writing, and arithmetic? Pretty soon our kids won’t be able to do anything for themselves because they can just push a button on a computer.”

Intel (John Williams) “Let me interject here, Shannon. While I understand and respect your concerns, I have to point out that we no longer conduct business as usual. We live in a global environment that requires a different skill set than before and our challenge to prepare our children has never been greater. Our company is looking for people that can problem solve effectively and work in a team atmosphere. Project based learning models these types of conditions and will give students a head start on preparing for their future.”

Student (Henry Davis) "I am really tired of doing worksheets in all of my classes. I like working on computers. Will I be able to do more than just take notes and tests?"

Shannon "Well, Henry, my goal is to make your experience both educational and fun. Hopefully we can try some cool projects out on the computers and find some things you might enjoy."

Francis “Well that all sounds fine and good but how are you going to monitor this? When my child is sitting behind a computer how are you going to know that they are actually on task as opposed to using a proxy to get on Facebook or play a game? Our kids are being exposed to social networking, email, and who knows what else on the Internet and it is simply too much too fast in my opinion.”

Shannon “These are all valid concerns. I will be actively involved in keeping students engaged with relevant and interesting projects and assignments. Hopefully you will see evidence of this through work that your child produces and shares with you. Our technology department monitors our network and filters are in place to prevent students from going to websites that are inappropriate or adult-oriented. I am also going to send out a class newsletter each month, so please be sure to write down your email address if you would like to receive this.” I sure hope that parents give this a chance to work, thinks newbie.

Open House Pic Source: http://www.springfield.k12.il.us/schools/washington/?p=121&i=1865&b=44