Centering Student Experience & Knowledge in School Transformation
Historically, the systems and structures of school have been built and reinforced without the input of students, its largest group of stakeholders. Decisions about their education are made for them. Most often, adults decide what students read, what they study, and what they create to demonstrate their learning. While this approach works for some, others do not feel connected to school at all; they do not feel at home there. At Essex High School, there are a large number of these students for whom school does not work well. They do not find their classes engaging, they do not understand the purpose of school, and they frequently find themselves in trouble. Their voices are disregarded by those who stand by the meritocratic ideal that hard work pays off for any student willing to engage. This project challenges this position with the belief that centering the voices of students for whom school does not work well in transformation efforts is the key to making school better for all students.
In the initial phase of the project, we have used objective criteria to identify students for whom school does not work well and invited them to participate in small group workshops and interviews to discuss what has and has not worked for them in their schooling. Among other topics, these students engaged in identifying and discussing what they believe the purpose of school to be and whether it is meeting these goals. They also explored what makes a class good or bad for a student, and, most importantly, how school and classes make them feel, because improving how students feel at school and in classes must be at the heart of school transformation.
During the second phase of the project, we will continue to work together with these students to identify actionable items that they want to bring to school and district administration with the goal of transforming the systems and structures that do not work for all students. Through this, we hope to make Essex High School an institution that works better for every student.
