Workshops Part Two

Part One of our workshops intended to raise our students' awareness of their own learning needs was a series of short seminars on the brains, learning environments, sleep, nutrition, and adolescent brain development. Some of the students found it tedious. Some found it helpful.

Part Two was a "conversation cafe" where small groups of students sit down with a teacher/facilitator and discuss the following questions:

What skills do you need? What knowledge do you need? What should TAS emphasize more? What is lacking here at TAS?

To "what skills do you need" students suggested:

the ability to research well
note-taking
time management skills
focusing skills
prioritizing information
organizing/where to start with a paper or project
help expressing what is on my mind
remembering
independent living
skills socializing/social skills
manners
comfort in society
independent learning
more “practical skills”
living and coping skills for college
how to find and apply for a job
cooking/shopping for self
computer skills
test taking
how to kill an animal with your bare hands
career survey/exploration
etiquette
resumes
expressing feelings tactfully
public speaking
writing: basic expository/journalism
raising a family
how to teach a class and organize it

These are all very sensible and realistic. We do offer quite a bit of the above, but clearly some students do not are not aware of this, or do not feel what we offer quite meets their needs. I love how varied and concrete this list is.

What knowledge do you need?

basic knowledge
in-depth courses
personal finance/basic accounting
insurance
architecture
college counseling
career counseling
current events
modern history
politics
WWII
therapeutic music
nutrition
horse science/care
welding/metalwork
goal formulation
driving/general coordination
shop class type skills
college visits/what is college life like?

Again, very astute. These lists show a maturity and perspective taking that I find very comforting. The facilitators did fine work in getting most of the students to contribute- these lists do reflect a fairly wide sample of students.

What should we emphasize more?

meditation
college prep
SAT prep
college field trips
mindfulness
study skills
quiet areas
activities
more class discussion instead of independent reading
shop classes
structured study halls
better organized field trips
more cooking time
student planned field trips with more teacher help
basic living skills
breakfast
timeliness througout the day- classes, blessing, lunch
philosophy/meaning of life
guidance counseling
more freedom in art classes, more basic skills

more small group discussions
greater variety in physical ed: more cardio/stretching
jewelry making
split last period in two
more fundraisers
math and science levels for different abilities and skills
more respect from certain students for the teachers and other students
more intervention from teacher if this is not the case

What is lacking at TAS?

more challenging classes
different course levels
understanding of age differences and skill levels
greater awareness of student interaction
last period of school is too long
quiet areas
teacher-student interaction in larger classes
homeroom groups/guided conversations
grade levels
guest teachers
Shim Gum Do
computer lab
better computers
greater variety in libray/better organized
a public library class

All in all a substantial list.

Next step is to post these on a bulletin board at school and to encourage the students to prioritize it it terms of time frames and degree of need.