Topic 2 – High Tech High Analyzed Through a Physics & Math Lens

keirathompson

High Tech High is a public school in which students work on projects to be showcased rather than traditional learning methods like reading, writing, and practicing arithmetic. The projects tend to combine subject areas; one example is a functional gear set-up that represents trends in the rise and fall of civilizations.

When watching the documentary, “Most Likely to Succeed” I thought that it was a great experiment on different ways to teach and learn. Students build soft-skills that are required in real life while absorbing content knowledge in applicable ways to pique interest in different subject areas, perhaps this method is better for what our society requires today, less regurgitation (because the internet does that) and more critical thinking and soft skills. The issue that I see comes from integration of schools like this into society, I think of it as a paradox. If we started slowly tearing down current school systems and replacing them with High Tech Highs then universities will have to change because students will be coming into first year with vastly different knowledge on topics, but if we replace universities first, then many professors would run out of time for their research – and in my experience many already shove teaching onto a back burner.

Anther issue is the lack of a one size fits all solution, there will always be students who do not like what is currently being done so perhaps giving a choice to students would help those who fall through the cracks in the current education system. For example, if I was a student at High Tech High I would have loved the engineering projects, but my stress-levels would be through the roof when it comes to the lack of explicit learning. I would be in that group of math students from the documentary who were concerned about their performance on the standardized tests and therefore my chances at getting into university. Currently, I would be very interested in the statistics on how students from High Tech High did on the SATs, ACTs, etc. and how they did in their first year of university in math and science classes, I do not think that I would be surprised if their grades were higher, lower, or average, but it does interest me how those students handle the transition from inquiry based learning to content memorization in a short period of time. On the other hand, my partner Jesse struggled in school, not because he couldn’t grasp the material but because the material was boring and did not challenge him. If he had the opportunity to go to a school like High Tech High then he may have finished high school with his peers rather than opting to finish online so he could focus on his interests. The videos below show a project similar to those that were shown in the film that I worked on as a part of a physics course, they highlight my experience finishing an inquiry project as an assignment and Jesse’s learning throughout the process as well.

One of the first attempts to create a working Van De Graaf generator for a Nuclear Physics course. My brother and boyfriend are seen helping me get it to work. I really enjoyed the outcome of this project, however it was the most stressful assignment I have ever done for a class in my education journey; which is maybe why it stands out, and maybe a good thing.
After a month of building, testing, and rebuilding, this was the final result. It was very satisfying to witness the tiny lightning bolts that were created by a machine that I built (as a part of a group and with help from family & friends). Jesse enjoyed this project more than I did, he learned more about particle accelerators and electronegativity then he ever would have in a traditional class.

I also think that there are obstacles when educators attempt to implement changes in pedagogy, there is a time delay in every policy change these days and it really hurts educators who want to make a difference. The issue with the time delay is that there are multiple steps that students take in their learning journey, they start in elementary, move to middle, then high school, and optionally university or college, and when implementing change you have to start somewhere, so where do you start? It goes back to the paradox I mentioned before, a change somewhere requires change everywhere else. There is also push back from other educators, usually older ones that have been doing something one way their entire lives and would be forced to change their ways – it’s like if you learned how to add 3-digit numbers using the vertical method and then someone said no, we do it this way instead, it would be difficult to adjust to the new, acceptable methods.

In conclusion, I love the idea of a school like High Tech High, however, the practicality in todays society seems quite low. If I could change things with the wave of my hand, then I would add these high schools to every district and give students and families a choice. I am always interested in other peoples experiences in high school, how would you have done as a student at High Tech High? Or perhaps there is another method of teaching and learning that would be more beneficial to students?

VIDEO LINK: Most Likely To Succeed (High Tech High)