BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
Academy part of skills education
With knowledge doubling at an exponential speed, educators admit there’s a great deal of irony in watching the system grapple with the need to innovate rapidly.
Schools should be at the cutting edge when it comes to responding to a changing world, said Paul Picard, director of education for the Windsor-Essex Catholic School Board.
“In reality, it’s difficult to effect change and enhance creativity in a system that is so highly structured. Education is actually a conservative institution, though we promote ourselves as dynamic.”
In Picard’s opinion, promoting creativity and flexibility are the biggest challenge educators face.
“We need to develop a whole new kind of student for this environment,” Picard said.
“What’s going to be important in the future is being able to selfmanage, being able to time manage and manage information. We have to find a way to have discerning learners, critical thinkers .... Schools have to be flexible vehicles to promote opportunities for students, not be rigid institutions that exclude movement.”
One of the most popular and rapidly expanding areas of innovation in education is in experiential learning. High school students now have a choice of programs like specialist high skills majors, dual credits that count toward postsecondary education and co-op education.
Since 2006-07, the specialist high skills majors program has grown from about 600 students to 48,000 in Ontario.
Locally, the Greater Essex County District School Board will have more than 1,200 students in 56 specialist high skills majors programs this year. The Catholic board will have over 440 students in 20 programs.
The Catholic board is unveiling two major high school programs this fall: a science, technology, engineering and math academy at Holy Names and a construction academy at St. Joseph’s. The academies are aimed at correcting the mismatch between the skills of graduating students and the skills that are in demand in the job market.
The science, technology, engineering and math program will involve the University of Windsor and St. Clair College. The two post-secondary institutions will supply instructors and mentors, as well as invite students onto their campuses for some hands-on experiences.
“This program is unique in North America in that it embeds our students in the classroom,” said Chris Houser, dean of the science at the University of Windsor. “They will serve as mentors, give high school students a chance to talk to a university student. It’ll help those middle-of-the-road students have a chance to see themselves as possible scientists. More experiential learning is a huge part of the future in education.”
The long-term plan is to give students who complete the four-year science, technology, engineering and math program university credits for their work, he said.
Houser also envisions high school students participating in the university’s foreign research trips, such as his annual trip to Costa Rica.
Jonathon Azzopardi, chair of the Canadian Association of Mould Makers, said industry welcomes more partnerships with schools.
“We’re trying to create opportunities for ourselves to get into high schools and get in front of kids,” said Azzopardi, president of Laval International.
“The integration of high schools, post-secondary (institutions) and industry in education has tremendous potential. It’s common in other countries like Brazil and Germany.”
Increasingly, the private sector is providing resources to support programs. The Windsor Construction Association plans to hold a golf tournament to help raise funds to buy materials for student projects in the construction academy. The Canadian Masonry Centre created a textbook for the masonry program at Brennan Secondary School.
“Engaging with education is critical for us in my opinion,” said Jim Lyons, executive director of the Windsor Construction Association. “We need recruits. Not everyone is going to be a doctor or professional. We’ve got a lot of work available and soon we’ll have a (the Gordie Howe International) bridge to build.”
The local public board’s e-STEAM program, which launches this fall at Tecumseh Vista, is another initiative involving the university — along with the EPI-Centre, Hackforge, the WEtech Alliance, Workforce WindsorEssex and the WindsorEssex Small Business Centre.
The program, which is believed to be the first of its kind in Ontario, focuses on entrepreneurship in the areas of science, technology, engineering, the arts and math.
It will include classroom credits, experiential learning opportunities, collaborative projects, an entrepreneurial centre, field trips, partnerships in the community and scholarships.
Tecumseh Vista teacher Emily Li Causi said students will get a certificate of special recognition along with their high school diploma for completing the different aspects of the program, which include community hours and tackling challenges to solve problems presented to them. “Students focus on grades, the end product,” Li Causi said. “This program won’t do that. It’ll be more about the process because that’s what entrepreneurship involves. You can’t be afraid to fail. It’s try, pivot, try again. That’s how you nurture an entrepreneurial spirit.”
The selection of innovative programs isn’t just aimed at industry.
The public board’s Leamington District Secondary School has developed a stellar environmental program that has hosted an international conference on Lake Erie algae blooms and has drawn the attention of both the Ministry of Education and federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna.
These innovative approaches and programs are increasingly reshaping education.
Even the traditional classroom is being redesigned, as was done with E.J. Lajeunesse Secondary School’s unveiling of a classroom of the future last spring. With group tables, workspaces at windows, artwork and bright paint colours, plants and computer stations, it looks more like the office environment students will eventually find when employed. The French Catholic board hopes to reproduce many of the features as it updates classrooms.
“It’s an exciting time to be an educator,” said public board superintendent Clara Howitt. “Nothing is static. That’s the challenge, to create conditions that energize students to be successful when they graduate.”
That means exploring new approaches through pilot projects, such as the year-long Makerspace study being launched this fall at Prince Edward Elementary School.
The study, which is being done in association with the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education,
You can’t be afraid to fail. It’s try, pivot, try again. That’s how you nurture an entrepreneurial spirit.
will look at how students create, innovate and explore using different materials to make things in group settings.
Three teachers at the school will also receive specialized professional development to support the $35,000 study.
Hughes said the concept is particularly adaptive for use in robotics, coding and 3-D printing.