The group of seventh and eighth graders were split into six groups of ten today to take student-led tours through the tech center. I got to lead a group, and it was amazing!
The tech center features so many wonderful opportunities that juniors and seniors in high school can participate in. In the construction area, they get to build a full house that will get auctioned off later. In power sports and mechanics, students have a clientele base that they work on vehicles for.
The students really responded well to this experience. A common theme that kept coming up all day was "college credit." Students get to have a headstart on college classes while learning skills that can help them sit apart from others competing for the same jobs. They have to use their core class knowledge and transferrable skills in real-world experience.
This opportunity made flexible pathways seem all the more achievable to me. Students can participate in things that they like (first hand experience) and get college credit while simultaneously meeting standards. A big focus of the day was telling the students that, while tech students often spend the majority of their time in their field, they are still learning and using skills that transferred from traditional, core classes. A lot of times, there is a stigma surrounding students and programs with hands-on activities. When I was in high school, it was a generally accepted idea that students who were struggling in school were the ones who worked on mechanics all day, for example. Instead, this day was addressing that stigma, and helping students see the great opportunities for learning and success that this center provides them with.
It was an exciting (and exhausting) day!
P.S. I accidentally got chosen to be a "student volunteer" in one of the classes. DO I LOOK LIKE I'M IN MIDDLE SCHOOL?????
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