America’s education system was a groundbreaking effort to help a growing nation thrive in the 19th century. Now, 200 years later, the world has changed; the horizon looks drastically different. Collectively, we need to redesign our education system to enable all of our children — and, by extension, our nation — to thrive today and tomorrow. “Horizon Three” or “H3” names the future-ready system we need, one that is grounded in equity serving learners’ individual strengths and needs as well as the common good. This series provides a glimpse of where H3 is already being designed and built. It also includes provocations about how we might fundamentally reimagine learning for the future ahead. You can learn more about the horizons framing here.
By IDEA Students
How many students graduate high school without being taught anything that could help them outside of school?
As current high school students, we want:
1. Education for the Real World
Future Focused
“6 AM alarms, stressful testing, learning things you are not going to use in the future. These are all things you will find at a regular high school; IDEA is different though. IDEA breaks the status quo by giving students the freedom to take classes related to their future careers.” – Anonymous
- 6 AM alarms, stressful testing, learning things you are not going to use in the future. These are all things you will find at a regular high school; IDEA is different though. IDEA breaks the status quo by giving students the freedom to take classes related to their future careers. One of the biggest problems with normal public schools is the failure to fully prepare students for real-world jobs. According to Mission.org, “30% of college graduates don’t feel college prepared them for the world of work.” IDEA high school is a solution to this problem, providing real-world experiences to prepare you for what’s to come. IDEA gives you freedom and opportunity with machines and technology to help you learn.
Relevant Skills
“Although it may be engineering and design-centered, these skills are not limited to those areas of work. Working with machinery can showcase how to follow instructions and to be precise with technology. Creating prototypes and experiments in physics can develop one’s knowledge on how to work with a team and how to gather data.” – Anonymous
- I’ve taken art classes that showcase the visual and digital aspects of design and creation, engineering classes that allow for experimentation of machinery and processes of production, as well as general concepts from core classes such as physics, math, and English. Although it may be engineering and design-centered, these skills are not limited to those areas of work. Working with machinery can showcase how to follow instructions and to be precise with technology. Creating prototypes and experiments in physics can develop one’s knowledge on how to work with a team and how to gather data. Creating digital designs can build on one’s confidence in using common, yet critical applications in the workforce, such as Adobe, Canva and more, while also learning how to appeal to an audience and showcase work through thumbnails and work processes. With such a wide variety of courses, I can confirm that the school provides me and the other students with skills that can be fundamental and connect to different career pathways.
Career Preparation
“Every IDEA student participates in one [internship] during their junior year. These internships not only help students explore potential career paths they may not have considered but also provide lasting industry connections.” – Evan Margel
- IDEA, as an H3 school, empowers students to explore their passions and shape their own learning journey. A prime example of this is IDEA’s internship program, which connects students with real-world internships, allowing them to gain valuable work experience. This program is particularly unique at IDEA, as only 2% of high school students nationwide complete an internship before graduation, yet every IDEA student participates in one during their junior year. These internships not only help students explore potential career paths they may not have considered but also provide lasting industry connections that could be valuable in the future. Although IDEA specializes in engineering and design, the school offers students the flexibility to take courses at SOTA and SAMI (sister H3 schools) that may align more closely with their post-graduation goals. This provides students with the chance to elevate their learning and prepare for the future, all while developing the skills needed to adapt to new environments.
2. Personalized and Flexible Education
Individualized Pathways
“We get to choose our own electives. In the first year, students get a choice between the engineering and design pathways, a choice that will let them decide on electives later on.” – Lucian Houghton
- My experience at IDEA felt different from everyone else’s. The term “everybody is different” is shown here a lot at IDEA. We get to choose our own electives. In the first year, students get a choice between the engineering and design pathways, a choice that will let them decide on electives later on. For instance, I chose the engineering pathway all the way up from my first year starting at basic engineering to my senior year working in advanced engineering. And if a student does not like a certain pathway, they can choose the other pathway at the start of each year. To make an even more personalized experience, students get an internship class during their junior year. For example, I chose an internship at my old elementary school, taking some of my P.E. teacher’s workload and helping the kids get their energy out. Eventually, I realized that it was not for me, so I decided to look for an internship that was better suited for me. It felt like most of my classes were specialized for me.
Flexible Scheduling
“A flexible schedule for students with jobs and transportation problems… If you used to have to take Ubers to school, the bus system really helps.” – Emontae Collins
- People may say IDEA gives its students too much freedom and that an open-campus school leads to disaster. They say it has grand expectations and workload, specialized career paths, and that it is a competitive environment. But IDEA offers so much more, like a flexible schedule for students with jobs and transportation problems. If you used to have to take Ubers to school, the bus system really helps. It offers an incredibly supportive staff full of industry professionals. IDEA also provides a creative environment where assignments force students to use their imagination and creativity. Most importantly, it provides a high-quality education, developing unique careers and passions.
3. Cultivating Agency
Discovering Interests
“This was when I began to understand architecture was not for me. I learned the technical side of drawing that I didn’t know about when I was in middle school drawing in my bedroom. However, this wasn’t a dream being crushed, it was an opportunity to explore my interests and make rational decisions.” – Payton Lewis
- I never really questioned the dynamic of school; it was just something I went to every morning, and it was a constant in my life. It was a routine. It wasn’t until 8th grade that I started thinking about my future and what I wanted to do, and after learning about the School of Industrial Design, Engineering and Art, I was admittedly excited since I thought architecture was my passion. But I had no understanding of what it meant to design complex blueprints and use computer software to develop things. I was given so many opportunities and experiences I never thought would be possible. Freshman and Sophomore year, students are given pre-made schedules (with electives of choice) to give all students the opportunity to explore multiple paths, careers and skills. This was when I began to understand architecture was not for me. I learned the technical side of drawing that I didn’t know about when I was in middle school drawing in my bedroom. However, this wasn’t a dream being crushed, it was an opportunity to explore my interests and make rational decisions. The ability to take interests of my own, try them out and figure it out now before I’m already in college, paying for a major I had no interest in, is a lot more important than having infinite classes about one subject.
Resilience Through Challenges
“I might hate the challenge that IDEA brings in the moment. But after it is all over, I am happy with what I accomplished and what the challenges taught me.” – Anonymous
- One of the ways IDEA has challenged me is through the elective classes. Here at IDEA, we have electives that are based on design and engineering. In the first years of school teach us the fundamentals to then go in-depth into specific topics of our choosing. One of the things I struggle with is Engineering, but I continue to love it no matter how badly I struggle in the classroom. For example, in my 3rd year Engineering class we had a project to create a water wheel that could power an electric fence and calculate the data of the energy output and input. The struggle I had during that project was making my ideas come to life. I produced a metal water turbine. So, we made the entire metal propeller and then realized that our welding skills were no match for the water, so the water leaked into the propeller which stopped it from spinning. So, we had to produce a completely new plastic water wheel halfway through the deadline. It was extremely challenging, but those challenges are what helped me learn and become a better engineer. I might hate the challenge that IDEA brings in the moment. But after it is all over, I am happy with what I accomplished and what the challenges taught me.
4. Creativity and Divergent Thinking
Fostering Innovation
“We are taught to bend a rubric, not follow its rigidness. Humans, likewise, are not made to follow a rigid rubric.” – Lachlan Smith
- Divergent, specialized teaching is more insightful for our future than the once practical, convergent, curriculum-based learning. The School of Industrial Design, Engineering, and Art (IDEA) is one that harbors this ingenious divergent teaching. We are taught to be creative with our answers. Project-based learning means we aren’t mindlessly spilling knowledge out from a textbook. We are researching an issue or topic and then creating a physical or digital product that reflects our understanding. We are taught to bend a rubric, not follow its rigidness. Humans, likewise, are not made to follow a rigid rubric. We are creative creatures built to be creative.
Hands-On Projects
“[O]ne fateful day during my sophomore year…we happened to go into Mr. Blake’s shop. Half of the hallway was taken up by a 30-foot hull. Being the curious people we are, we asked, what are you doing? Mr. Blake… told us about the Race to Alaska, where he and three others would go on a 700-mile trip…Every lunch from that day on, we would go into the shop…We worked every lunch from October to January, working with our teacher to make something bigger than all of us.” – Jack Munsey
- Later, one fateful day during my sophomore year, I was with some of my friends, and we happened to go into Mr. Blake’s shop. Half of the hallway was taken up by a 30-foot hull. Being the curious people we are, we asked, what are you doing? Mr. Blake gave us a well-deserved explanation. He told us about the Race to Alaska, where he and three others would go on a 700-mile trip to Alaska that he was preparing for. So, we all looked at each other and asked how we could help. Every lunch from that day on, we would go into the shop. Blake would draw diagrams of what he needed done that he did not have time for. We worked every lunch from October to January, working with our teacher to make something bigger than all of us. When we left for third period, he would thank us over and over for the work we were doing. At the end of the year, all of us and Blake went out on the boat to see what we had made—it was amazing.
The second half of my sophomore year, I got put into Mr. Blake’s advanced woodshop class, where we looked at the history of furniture, and in the end, we would build a full set and present it. In the second class, we were researching when Mr. Blake walked up to me and asked, plain and simple, do you want to make a boat? I said yes, and from that point on, I ran wild, making design after design, and he would give me pointers. Every single assignment in his furniture-building class was an automatic A because he knew that I was trying my best and having so much fun.
One night, we were all in a Discord call, joking about who knows what, when someone shared their screen to Craigslist to look at old, broken-down boats. We started looking all over for the cheapest of the cheap, half of what they were asking for, until one person responded. For 300 dollars, we could have our very own medium-sized general outboard motor fishing boat. So, we drove over and knocked on a door. An old man appeared, showed us the boat, and after talking about our school and our plans to fix it up and put a big motor on it, he said to just take it and send him updates on how it is doing.
5. Joyful Learning and Community Building
Memorable Experiences
“The week before you come back from summer vacation you get to go to a yearly overnight retreat where you can stay at a cabin, and you get to participate in some really cool events.” – Anonymous
- I have had a joyful experience at IDEA, as well. I understand that people might not have had the most exciting experience, but I can say that even if you had your fair share of ups and downs, I know people will have some fun and exciting moments here at IDEA. For example, the week before you come back from summer vacation you get to go to a yearly overnight retreat where you can stay at a cabin, and you get to participate in some really cool events. Some people might not like the events at camp, but with so many, it’s hard not to enjoy yourself at least a little. One certain event I know everyone from last year had a lot of fun with was the boat building contest. Students get to design and build cardboard boats for their teachers to try and row across a stretch of water, and since the school does this every year all the students get to see the massive improvement between boats from last year’s and to the current year, which always brings excitement from students. Having joyful moments can help improve students’ learning by making moments memorable and boosting morale.
Supportive Community
“Through our mentor group time, students get the chance to make connections with peers from all grade levels.” – Anonymous
- Throughout high school a lot of kids can feel like they’re alone, like there’s no one there for them. The tight-knit community of IDEA is unlike any other. Sure, things aren’t perfect, but people are more inclined to be who they are. With each year here at this school, we have become more confident in ourselves, our skills and our relationships. Without this school, we would not be the students we are today. While these skills aren’t specifically taught in a class, they are important skills to have. At IDEA, through our mentor group time students get the chance to make connections with peers from all grade levels. In the workplace skills like these are useful and necessary.
6. Empathy and Emotional Growth
Embracing Human Development
“I would try to disrupt the class by doing stuff that I thought was funny to get attention, when in reality I was just being disruptive. Having teachers who help guide you and fellow students or friends that you see daily can help develop a good sense of responsibility, integrity, competence and so much more. “ – Anonymous
- From my personal experience, school helps kids figure out what is appropriate and what’s not as they get older. When I first came to IDEA, I was very shy and when trying to fit in and find my place I said something that was controversial. When my friends heard what I had said they told me off because that was not ok. That action of having someone I respect, and love tell me what I did was wrong, that social aspect made me not want to do it again, and I never did. As a student who used to be a class clown, I would try to disrupt the class by doing stuff that I thought was funny to get attention, when in reality I was just being disruptive. Having teachers who help guide you and fellow students or friends that you see daily can help develop a good sense of responsibility, integrity, competence and so much more. As for what the students do after, let’s talk about how we can help them still act socially appropriately even after becoming adults.
Embracing Difference
“We don’t need to be churning out depressed artists and disheartened mathematicians, forcing neurodivergent people to feel like there’s something wrong with them because they can’t follow a strict system that doesn’t care if it leaves them behind.” – Peyton Gollob
- I’ve struggled with Delayed Sleep Wake Phase Disorder and severe OCD that make school extremely difficult. The teachers here have never given up on me. They always point me in the right direction no matter how much school I’ve missed, and I always have a place to go if I get overwhelmed. I literally have an accommodation where I can play bass! I don’t think I would’ve gotten this rich of an experience from a regular school.
I think it’s so important that education is individualized and personalized. No single teaching method is going to work for every kid, and every student deserves to have their needs met the way I’ve had here at IDEA. Everyone is so creative and curious. They have the coolest hobbies, and you could listen to them talk about their interests and passions all day. We don’t need to be churning out depressed artists and disheartened mathematicians, forcing neurodivergent people to feel like there’s something wrong with them because they can’t follow a strict system that doesn’t care if it leaves them behind.
A Day in the Life
This day in the life as an IDEA student video was developed and edited by Evan Margel and acted by Payton Lewis.
In Conclusion
Education is supposed to be the foundation for freedom. If we can break through the barriers of ingenuity and innovation, we can do anything. Humans are built to do more than follow rubrics, and as such we must make our own based on our own expectations. We have ample experience of walking into a classroom and doing something that we never had done before. Creating models, designing posters, directing videos, and class discussions take place of the solitary readings of textbooks. We don’t take hours rewriting information benchmarking previous knowledge. We spend hours creating something new that we can be proud of. We learn about opportunities for our futures, and we chase them. IDEA gives us direction; it’s up to us where we go next.
All of the words above are those of IDEA students.
Participating IDEA Students Are: Grace Woodard, Kiet V Nguyen, Kamil Avila-Martin, Evan M. Margel, Michael C. Oleary, Emontae L. Collins, Kieren O’Neill, Carl Lonergan, Lucian Houghton, Emmett Kelly, Carvion Aaron, Ryan Meas, Selena Preciado, Max Rice, Sam Trujillo, Lachlan Smith, and others (who preferred to stay anonymous).
This blog series is sponsored by LearnerStudio, a non-profit organization accelerating progress towards a future of learning where young people are inspired and prepared to thrive in the Age of AI – as individuals, in careers, in their communities and our democracy. Curation of this series is led by Sujata Bhatt, founder of Incubate Learning, which is focused on reconnecting humans to their love of learning and creating.
The post 6 Characteristics of an Education that Students Want appeared first on Getting Smart.
America’s education system was a groundbreaking effort to help a growing nation thrive in the 19th century. Now, 200 years later, the world has changed; the horizon looks drastically different. Collectively, we need to redesign our education system to enable all of our children — and, by extension, our nation — to thrive today and
The post 6 Characteristics of an Education that Students Want appeared first on Getting Smart. Learner-Centered, New Pathways, accelerated pathways, agency, credentials, H3, new learning models, student voice Getting Smart
