Learn how two teachers at Great Path Academy in Connecticut adapted a college-level course to meet high school students' needs using resources from Defined, ensuring alignment with higher education objectives while supporting diverse learners.
Welcome to the second installment of “Bridging the Gap”. In this installment, we will explore how we utilized resources from Defined to adapt a college course to fit the specific needs of our school and how we successfully grounded our work in student success data.
While designing this course, we knew that future articulation was an essential goal. This meant that the course had to meet the course objectives laid out in the higher education curriculum. There are five major assignments that our students need to fulfill in order to be in alignment with the college-level course. Those key assignments included:
- Academic Planning
- Course Preparation
- Career Portfolio
- Diversity
- Library Assignment
Due to the diverse needs of our student population, course materials may need to be modified. Each class of students will surely contain a wide range of capabilities and interests, which will prove to be both challenging and dynamic. We decided that this course would be a graduation requirement and would be recommended to all sophomores. By enrolling all sophomores, we ensured all students had access to support prior to enrolling in college-level classes. Designing a class that was rigorous, ready for articulation, and differentiated for all student needs was quite an undertaking. Balancing these goals is the key to success.
We structure course units into predictable patterns to help students understand expectations. Each unit contains three lessons/assignments and a review session. Every few weeks, we implemented a grade check-in with their academic advisor, where students would audit their academics and make a plan to achieve academic goals.
As we developed the units and made adjustments to make them high school friendly, we found that Defined had a number of useful tools that fit seamlessly into our course. We realized that we could use small, stand-alone resources as well as larger, more comprehensive resources.
The first Defined resource that students used was "Why Are Standardized Tests Important?" This activity is an excellent way to educate students about their upcoming PSAT and to motivate them to put in their best effort.
Another Defined resource that students encountered early on was the Pathways Matching Assessment. The college-level version of this course required a similar experience, but high school students do not have access to that particular assessment, so the Defined Pathways Assessment was ideal to fill this gap. Students presented their findings and examined the value of their assessment results. This laid the groundwork for the semester; it also got them excited about what was to come. For many students, this experience helped shape their motivation for future work.
Another tool that we found immensely helpful was the bank of information about skilled labor jobs. Even in a high school designed to maximize college enrollment, not every student is destined for a four-year journey in Higher Education. We used the connection to My Next Move to facilitate research into a variety of skilled labor trades, and designed a special activity that linked them together. Not only was this experience well received by students, it helped target a specific group of students who have a tendency to be disengaged.
At this point in the course, it was evident that our students had become more invested in their work and understood that this course could help them forge their path into the future they envision.
Students presented their work several times throughout the semester and became more comfortable with public speaking as a result. We knew that this could be an opportunity to highlight the successes of the course and further develop student leaders.
There were several large projects designed for this course, and one of the highlights stemmed from a community partner here on campus: Yoli Bergstrom-Lynch, a Research & Instruction Librarian. She designed an interactive scavenger hunt activity that highlighted all of the amazing things at our library. To teach students about the resources available to them, each “team” of students had access to a Padlet and they submitted pictures to complete a scavenger hunt. For many of our students, this was their first time in any library. They learned about the catalog system, reference desk, and other resources and benefits available. This experience was supported by a mini online certification course that used a tailor-made EdPuzzle to explore intricacies of the library.
In the semester following the first cohort of students, 100% of students who enrolled in college classes after taking our College and Career Success class successfully completed the spring semester. This rate is better than the student population who did not take this course, 75% of whom successfully completed the next semester of college classes. This data illustrates that students overwhelmingly benefit from this experience.
Our students overwhelmingly benefited from this experience, but we are mindful that we were building the ship as we were sailing. There were some hiccups with technology, pacing, and block scheduling. This was a pilot course, and although we experienced our share of growing pains, we found that the resources embedded in Defined were a huge part of our overall success.
In our next installment, we’ll dive into our modifications and individualized tailoring that allowed us to better accommodate the needs of students. We’ll explore the specific tools and features from Defined that lessened the load on teachers and leveled the playing field for students.
This article is part of a series on how Great Path Academy is revolutionizing college and career readiness. Click below to read part 1:
About the Authors:
Laura Gray is an educator at Great Path Academy in Manchester, CT. During her tenure with Hartford Public Schools, she has served as a Music Educator and Teacher Leader supporting Arts and Wellness. She has been instrumental in the design and implementation of student-centered curriculum, as well as providing professional learning that supports quality teaching and learning for 19,000 students in the capital district. Working to support new teachers, Gray serves as a Mentor and Lead Facilitator in the Hartford Public Schools, and at the state level as an Evaluator for candidates pursuing certification through Connecticut’s Alternate Route to Certification.
Jennifer Sherman is a full-time faculty member in the Business and Professional Studies department at CT State Manchester. Prior to this position, she served as an educator at Great Path Academy in Manchester, CT. During her 13 years at Great Path, she led the Unified Arts Department, supported new teachers as a TEAM Mentor, developed College and Career Pathways, and spearheaded Dual Enrollment programs. Her instruction in Culinary and Baking and Pastry Arts enabled students to earn college credits through practical application in an on-site cafe. She also created and taught courses in Personal Finance and Small Business Management and is a certified Project-Based Learning coach.
