They may not be immediately noticeable to the casual observer, but changes are occurring in classrooms within the Belton School District.
The district is replacing the old 3R’s with Rigor, Relevance and Relationships. In addition, the district has added 3C’s of College, Career and Citizenship. This new focus has been generated by a study of the research from Dr. Tony Wagner with the Change Leadership Group at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education. Wagner has published his research in two books, Change Leadership: A Practical Guide to Transforming Our Schools and Closing the Global Achievement Gap. Wagner has observed hundreds of schools and formulated a theory about those that are most successful. He also interviewed corporate executives to determine what their greatest needs are in the workforce of the future.
As a result of his research, Wagner believes the skills needed by workers in the future are: creative thinking and problem solving; collaboration across networks and leading by influence; agility and adaptability; initiative and entrepreneurialism; effective oral and written communication; accessing and analyzing information; and curiosity and imagination. Wagner calls these the “seven survival skills for teens today.”
Belton administrators over the past three years have read Wagner’s books and attended several of his workshops. This summer Wagner came to Kansas City to meet with all Belton administrators for a day. Wagner shared his belief that the changes in the work force needs of the future have merged the skills required of high school graduates who plan to attend college and those planning to enter the world of work. Thus his new 3C’s of college, career, and citizenship are a way to focus teachers and parents on the seven survival skills. The focus on college is to make sure all students are prepared for this opportunity if they so desire. Belton High School is an A+ high school and graduates who complete the A+ requirements are eligible for financial assistance making college available to all. The focus on career is used to align the elective courses with the future needs which taps into student interests and increases their motivation for success. The citizenship focus is an investment in the future of our country by engaging students in the betterment of their community.
During the day with Wagner the Belton administrative team had the opportunity to ask questions and get his advice on how to plan for the future by designing curriculum and improving teaching to align with the new survival skills. One of Wagner’s suggestions was to find out how recent BHS graduates feel about their high school education. This summer focus groups of recent BHS graduates will be sharing their views about their education with the administration. Recent curriculum revisions in the district have been designed to require more of the survival skills in the course assignments, requirements and assessments. Focusing on the new survival skills, teachers are rethinking their methods of instruction.
Dr. Michael Slusher, deputy superintendent said, “This is a very exciting time to be in education. The recent economic crisis has shown us how interconnected we are with the rest of the world. Our success as a nation in the global economy will be directly related to our success in our public schools. In Belton we want to make sure our students are prepared to compete and succeed in the future.”
Some of the recent curriculum revision can be found on the Belton School District web site www.beltonschools.org under the parent link.