Changing ‘high school graduate’ definition
High school graduation is a pivotal mile marker in the journey of an individual. From the first day of kindergarten through senior year, all students and their families look forward to the day they will move their tassel and toss their cap in celebration.
It is a moment in time that, traditionally, has represented a culmination of attending school regularly, earning required credits and passing standardized tests. The question is, does meeting the academic requirements to graduate and being awarded a highschool diploma automatically imply our students have acquired the skills needed to achieve lifelong success? What other skills, technical or interpersonal, could be incorporated into our K-12 learning process to ensure sustained success for our graduates?
We at Huber Heights City Schools hoped to answer these questions when we began collaborating on a new strategic plan with Battelle for Kids in 2020. Despite some mild interruptions due to the ongoing pandemic, a design team of students, staff, parents and community members worked ambitiously this past fall to develop our “Portrait of a Warrior.”
We discussed the dreams that our community has for our young people and researched what our children need to contribute and compete in this rapidly changing and complex world. In the end, the portrait design team identified six competencies we would like to see our young adults acquire by graduation: collaboration, communication, empathy, perseverance, problem solving and critical thinking.
These competencies will not replace academic content and subject-based knowledge in our classrooms; instead, they will be intentionally incorporated into lessons and activities. For example, problem solving might be taught by inviting local decision makers and business leaders into the classroom to present students with a real-world problem, such as improving pedestrian safety in high-traffic areas.
In addition to math and social studies content knowledge, students working in teams would develop collaboration, communication and critical thinking skills throughout the process. To go one step further, the students might be asked to express in an essay how it might feel to walk along busy roads regularly, further developing their writing and empathy skills.
Or, students might be asked to draw or design a device that increases pedestrian protection. Such a task would not only engage natural-born artists and engineers, but also develop perseverance as students work through various design drafts or prototypes.
Ultimately, the goal is for our students to learn beyond the limits of textbooks and tests. Instead of rote memorization, students will develop a deeper understanding of how subject-based knowledge is applied globally. This, we hope, will develop high school graduates who not only become tomorrow’s leaders, innovators and change agents, but also succeed socially, emotionally and intellectually.
Moving forward, district administration and a newly-formed strategic planning team, aided by Battelle for Kids, will work to align district objectives and curriculum with the “Portrait of a Warrior” so that all students have the opportunity to be fluent in the six competencies by graduation.
We intend to finalize our strategic plan by the end of this school year and look forward to using it as a tool to transform what it means to be a Warrior.