Context
School Background
My school, which meets a primary parole requirement, was created to serve adjudicated youth. Next year we will have five teachers and two social workers for sixty students. Our first goal is to keep students from re-offending, but we still strive to cover all the state and federally mandated objectives we can. Because this will be my first year at this site, I have spent time with other faculty and the social work staff to gain some background on the students as well as the particular strengths and challenges that go along with this student body. Faculty spend a great deal of time each day helping students deal with issues that have come with them from outside school. For example, while visiting on a typical day last year, I observed that one student arrived intoxicated and another had not been home—or to sleep—before he showed up at school. Students were concerned that their routines were going to be altered because of state testing and were struggling with the changes to the schedule. Thus, the first two hours became adjustment time; a few students went off to decompress with social workers; others went on to their advisories to start individual projects. Throughout the day, the importance of relationships among those in the school became increasingly apparent. At our site, the students' experience is enhanced with group and individual counseling with social work staff. Because of the potentially sensitive nature of this unit, we will first have to spend time building relationships among students and teacher (me).
Big Picture Learning
The school is a Big Picture Learning school. 10 The Big Picture model was created in 1995 by Dennis Littke and Elliot Washor to add authenticity and real-world experience for students who have found that traditional high schools do not work for them. Students' education plans are highly individualized based on interests, needs, and arts (at our site) or internship opportunities outside of the school. Big Picture Learning is built on a three-part philosophy. The first of these is relationship-building. Students' learning is weakened in situations in which students do not feel safe or comfortable; conversely, students' learning is enhanced in environments where they do. Consequently, each class, called an advisory, spends significant time, especially early in the year, building its own culture of family, stability, and trust. Outside of content area instruction, advisory is the home base and relationship core for students; advisors are responsible for not only a student's instruction, but also for his/her emotional well-being. The second is relevance; reluctant students are more inclined to strive for academic success when they see its relevance to their lives, needs, and personal interests. The third is rigor, based on the idea that especially with at-risk students, rigor is more readily achieved after relevance and relationships are established.
The class spends most days with their advisor who should be immediately responsive to the needs of both group and individuals. Rather than taking final exams, Big Picture students present an exhibition to their learning team (parents/guardians, advisor, and other invited guests) at the end of each quarter. They present what they've learned and how they've learned it, though demonstration, teaching, and visual aids. Each exhibition reflects that student's individual growth and reflection and can be a powerful learning tool in itself. Most Big Picture schools emphasize preparing at-risk students for the college experience; again, while a few of ours may eventually go that direction, our first goal is preventing recidivism.
Academic Context
While a great deal of each student's curriculum plan is individualized, the school places a priority on literacy development, and each advisory will take an English class with me three times a week. This unit is for use during their English/language arts class. They will almost always be reading a book, whether fiction or non-fiction, in addition to experiencing other ELA units like this one.
Student Body
The students tend to be older (16-21, not 14-18) and significantly behind in credits. In terms of academic achievement, they mirror the subjects in the articles I read on incarcerated or delinquent youth by being several grade levels behind their non-offending peers. Last year there were 22 students consistently enrolled; 36 were served over the course of the year. They had an average suspension and/or expulsion rate of nine each. Six students were diagnosed with serious mental health disorders and are on medication. Approximately fifteen students dealt with substance abuse issues. Near 100 percent were victims of poverty and trauma, whether chronic or singularly devastating. Often these students have destructive behaviors such as substance abuse and poor sleep and nutrition habits.
Many also face the problems that go along with being a minority in a very segregated city. Approximately 1/3 are Caucasian, 1/3 African American, and 1/3 Native American or a mix of any two of the three. Tulsa's racial history is worth mentioning; race riots in 1921 in which much of the black part of town, known then because of its economic success as Black Wall Street, was destroyed by white Tulsans. Many shadows and questions linger, and the city is one of the most divided—geographically, culturally, and socio-politically—in the country. Skepticism and mistrust often pervade the relationships among educators, families, and communities.
All of these conditions have significant negative influences on the quality and quantity of learning. Classes are multi-grade and multi-ability. For most of these students, who have full time jobs, children, or generally difficult existences, school has no apparent, immediate relevance. Interventions for behavioral problems or social service appointments will interrupt the unit flow for some students, but our flexible schedule allows for accommodations.
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