There's a new wave of learning that schools are catching onto these days, and students and staff at Kenaston School are some of the innovators leading the pack and bringing education into the 21st century.
If you stepped foot in a classroom at the school, odds are that you'd find students using a tablet or personal computer, either working on their own or together in groups. Meanwhile, their teacher provides supervision, or they're allowed to go at their own pace.
It's the 'modern classroom', so to speak. Students use technology to help guide themselves in their daily work, and the approach taken by the Sun West School Division highlights that the old way of doing things, where an entire class goes at one speed and uses the same formula, just isn't beneficial to students anymore. In the new era of education, the more traditional learning methods that older generations grew up with were found to be somewhat counter-productive, citing the different strengths and weaknesses among students.
The new approach, an initiative known as PeBL (Personalized Electronically Blended Learning), recognizes that everyone learns differently, and while there are some traditional ways at play, it also uses some innovative methods and introduces new ways for students to receive an education.
Many parents have been curious to see this new way of learning in action, which is why Kenaston School hosted a learning expo on Thursday, March 23. The event started at the end of the school day with parent/teacher conferences before a chili and bun supper was served by the Grade 9 Practical & Applied Arts class, with silver collection proceeds of the meal netting $212.85, which was donated to the Children's Health Foundation.
An assembly in the gym that gathered everyone in attendance featured a performance by the school's circus club, including acrobatics and even some plate spinning. Principal Greg McJannet then went over the focus of the evening, which was to have students talk to the public in an open house-style showcase about utilizing the PeBL formula and why it works best for them. Dr. Guy Tetrault, Sun West's Director of Education, said the formula puts students' education into their hands.
"PeBL tries to give the students voice and choice," he said. "We need to get students more involved in their own learning in order to have skills such as character and communication."
Tara Rink, chairperson of the Kenaston School Community Council, took a few moments to highlight the role of the SCC as it relates to school activities and their impact in the community, and also praised its members before mentioning an upcoming general meeting taking place on April 26.
After the gym assembly, Principal McJannet encouraged everyone to take a tour around the school and visit the numerous classrooms to speak with students and check out their stations and demonstrations that showed how Kenaston School was taking learning into a bold new direction.
Guests were given a map that detailed the various displays and presentations in each classroom. For example, in the gymnasium, Grade 5 and 6 students proudly showed off their STEM projects (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics), while Grade 7 and 8 students did the same with their Innovative Learning displays. Or in another classroom, parents and other guests could see how younger kids such as Grade 4 students were utilizing new-age technology such as iPads to help them learn. In one classroom, guests could check out the different styles of art being created by these budding artists, as well as what students such as Cole Sanderson and Brennon Haffner were learning in Computer Club, where people can donate old computers so that the Grade 9 students can take them apart and learn about all the ins and outs of what makes the machines run.
One of the more interesting tour stops for parents was the classroom in which Principal McJannet and several students spoke about Epiphany, a learning management software system being implemented into Kenaston School. The system creates a personalized learning plan for students, tracking and monitoring their progress over time, and provides an overall view of the student as it relates to their success and challenges. Students create their own profiles and update it frequently, with categories relating to their educational strengths and struggles, as well as outside-the-classroom features such as their own hobbies and interests.
Elsewhere around the school, other classroom presentations offered discussions and demonstrations on robotics and shop tours, as well as Grades 10-12 course info and university applications.
The first-ever learning expo at Kenaston School certainly made an impact with parents and guests, many who wanted to see first-hand just what this new style of education was about. Based on the enthusiasm shown by students in showing off what they’ve been learning, particularly in just how they’ve been learning it, it certainly seems as if the ‘modern classroom’ of the 21st century may be becoming the new standard of education.
