Justice Scholars: University Collaboration
This project aims to give students the chance to achieve a fundamental level of fluency in a second language before graduating from high school by providing them with an introductory course in the 8th grade and moving up yearly. I am part of Pittsburgh Westinghouse's College in High School, connected to the Justice Scholars program. This program was created by Esohe Osai, Assistant Professor in Applied Developmental Psychology in the School of Education at the University of Pittsburgh. “I saw a need to bring college-level courses to the children of Homewood. A place that had yet to be chosen to provide such exposure opportunities. After years of struggling, strategizing, and collaboration, the Justice Scholars serves not only the students of Homewood but also U-Prep and Westinghouse.” (56)
This phase of the work will utilize the Justice Scholars, College in High School course, and Pittsburgh Public School teachers to create a more robust language curriculum where children leave their schools fluent in a foreign language in their junior and senior years. If implemented correctly, a student should expect to be exposed to a foreign nation, leave high school with few college foreign language credits, and, most importantly, speak a second language fluently. Teachers in other districts nationwide should look to their local universities for assistance in making this a reality.
JSI Resources: Blueprint and Proof of Concept
- College in High School-Intro video
- Justice Scholars Video- Trailer 1
- Justice Scholars Video-Trailer 2
- Justice Scholars Research and Data
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