The SHIFT Blog

We were sent to High Tech High and the Deeper Learning Conference with questions, and we brought back a heap of answers. You can read our on the ground impression here after Day 1 , Day 2 and Day 3 of the conference. Before we headed to the conference we also asked others who had seen the documentary “ Most Likely to Succeed ” to provide us with their own questions.  We tried as best we could to answer them, splitting the work up between our Principal Nicholas Varricchio and ourselves.  You can read our answers here . If you haven’t seen the film, and would like to, you can still see the film here . And of course, if what you’ve read about our visit sparks new questions, feel free to leave us something in the comments

Over the past year, many Halton teachers have been given the opportunity to watch the documentary Most Likely to Succeed.  Some of us watched it at evening screenings at various schools. Some schools screened the film during their Professional Development days.  Others have been given the opportunity to watch the film on their own. If you haven’t seen it yet, Most Likely to Succeed follows a group of Grade Nine students as they attend their first year school at High Tech High, a school that focuses on Project Based Learning in San Diego. The Staircase to Nowhere Project If you teach in the Halton District School Board, you can find instructions on how to watch the full documentary here .  If you don’t work for our board, there are ways to screen a copy in your school or board.  It’s worth it! We have lots of questions about how High Tech High delivers its curriculum.  We are fortunate to be attend the Deeper Learning Conference at the...

Last Thursday evening, I travelled to Milton District High School for their showing of the documentary Most Likely To Succeed .  If you haven’t seen it, check out the trailer b efore you read any further.  I’ll wait here until you finish.   Done?  Pretty cool, huh? . The screening I saw was put on in collaboration with the school and their school council and it was my first opportunity to view the film.  I’m currently reading Tony Wagner and Ted Dintersmith’s book , on which the film is based, so it was a timely event for me. High time for a rethink on the model. The film makes the argument that our school system is built on an outdated structure designed in the 19th century, during the beginning of the industrial age. It places greatest value on knowledge acquisition and standardization of education. The Committee  of 10 made decisions like the division of subjects, and at what age students would start to cover different subjects and content...