OFT head impressed with VWCS programs

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Van Wert City Schools have become an educational innovator, something that Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper discovered when she visited the district to see how its cutting-edge educational programs were doing.

What she saw in several buildings, from the high school’s project-based learning programs, to the new Early Childhood Center in the former Jefferson Elementary building to the LifeLinks Community School in the S.F. Goedde Building, impressed the veteran educator.

The New Tech High School program begun this year in VWHS’s freshman class was something Cropper said she wanted to see in operation. “It’s not something we see everywhere, so I was very interested in seeing how that model works, how the teachers are reacting to it, how the students are reacting to it,” the OFT president noted.

While local educators admitted the program has had some “growing pains” in its first year of operation, Cropper said that is to be expected. “It’s a very different type of learning; it’s a very different type of teaching,” she noted.

The OFT head also said she feels the New Tech concept will ultimately be a good choice for district students. “It’s a very, very interesting concept that I think is going to reap benefits beyond what people even expect,” Cropper added. “I think, in a few years, Van Wert is going to be bragging to people: ‘This is what our children are doing here that they’re not doing somewhere else.’”

The teachers’ union president said she talked to a group of VWHS freshmen about the New Tech program, and, while some students still had concerns about the new way of learning, they also admitted their retention of the subject matter being taught was greater than under the old educational model.

Cropper called Van Wert’s decision to incorporate the innovated teaching model for all high school students “a bold stroke”, noting that such a change, while difficult for some, can reap significant benefits down the road.

She also commended local educators for the way they have dealt with a radically different way of teaching. “These teachers have taken on a huge responsibility and a huge shift from what they’ve done in the past and they should be commended for their positive attitude,” Cropper said, adding that she was very impressed with the commitment the teachers have to the New Tech program — even holding planning meetings on Sundays.

Chuck Rollins, a high school science teacher and past president of the Van Wert Federation of Teachers, said project-based education has been a learning experience for teachers, as well as students, and has forced teachers to re-evaluate some of their assumptions from before the program started.

“We took for granted that students would have some of the skills needed for the New Tech projects, but we found we had to build in some of the ‘scaffolding’ (abilities, such as presentation skills, not needed for traditional education),” he said, adding that local teachers had to learn to teach skills they had never taught before.

Cropper said she liked the fact that New Tech puts responsibility on students, as well as teachers. “It puts responsibility on students to take control of their own learning, but also puts a lot of responsibility on teachers to meet the needs of the students,” she noted.

She also stressed, though, that no one teaching model was perfect for all of Ohio’s students, adding that she hopes state legislators provide enough flexibility down the road for innovative teaching models to be successful.

“We always advocate for our districts and communities to decide what is the best way to educate our kids,” the OFT president said.

Cropper was also impressed with the new Van Wert Early Childhood Center that opened for the first time last week. “I particularly liked the targeted time concept: grouping students based on what they need to learn,” she said, noting that she feels the concept could be valuable in helping students meet the new state third grade reading guarantee requirement.

“I like the way Van Wert is taking care of that,” Cropper said. “That was exciting to see.”

She also said she was impressed with the LifeLinks Community School and the fact that VWCS has incorporated the alternative school concept within the district, instead of having a stand-alone school.

“It’s nice to see LifeLinks under the sponsorship of the district to provide an alternative for students struggling in a traditional classroom setting,” Cropper noted.

After her first visit Thursday in the Van Wert district, the OFT president said she looking forward to future visits to see how the district’s innovative programs are progressing.
“I can’t wait to come back,” Cropper said.