 |
|
A struggling school finds reason for hope
By forming community partnerships, Hope High School in Rhode Island and other struggling public schools are showing signs of improvement.
from the May 31, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 4
Each art teacher has a white binder in his or her classroom containing the curriculum outline and a map – a colorful display of concentric circles showing how the themes overlap with art skills and other elements students are expected to demonstrate, such as invention, communication, and reflection. The new curriculum has been "one of the best things that has happened in the past year," says Valerie Kline, the lead visual arts teacher. She makes it available, and "students look in the binder to see evidence of proficiency." At times they're surprised and proud to see that she's chosen their work to display there.
Alexis Firsty, a first-year teacher at Hope and a graduate of RISD, says she loves the curriculum because "it always starts with a concept and a theme. The kids see we're not just learning a skill; we're learning something more meaningful."
Her ninth-graders are busy creating small books about how they've grown. Student Kevin Bailey's book is based on a tree, and he gives a rapid-fire explanation: "When I was a kid, I was like a seed.... When I was 5, 6, and 7, stuff got complicated; that's why the branches are all mixed up.... Then, when I grew up, someone passed away that was very important to me, and that's the crow right there." He points out two other crows, two more deaths, and then continues: "The egg represents when my little brother was born.... The leaves represent the stuff that's actually starting to come out – like now I'm starting to do good, so now I'm starting to spring out."
"I can confidently say I have connected with each of [my students]," says Amy Weigand, another graduate of the RISD master's program who teaches at Hope. "Because of the nature of art being a lot about who they are, what they think about things, they do get a little bit deeper."
In a class taught by veteran teacher Laura Travis, students spend time regularly at the RISD Museum of Art. For a recent "real world" assignment, they had to study patterns in historic furniture and design something for pretend interior-design clients. Every art assignment at the school has some type of writing component. And because Hope classes meet every other day for 90 minutes, there's time for in-depth projects.
RSS feed
