Attention, technology helps at-risk students stay in school |
On Board Online • April 11, 2011
By Brian M. Butry
Communications Coordinator
With today’s accountability standards, disengaged students drag a school’s numbers down and dropouts can help school ratings improve. In this climate, how much energy should schools invest to keep problem students in school and persuade dropouts to return?
Plenty, according to administrators in the East Greenbush Central School District outside Albany. Columbia High School Principal John Sawchuk and Assistant Principal Ed Kilmartin have created a program that specifically addresses – and caters to – teenagers with high absenteeism.
In talking with students who may have already left school or are pondering it, the two administrators realized the traditional school model wasn’t working for these students. So the duo developed the “Operation Graduation” program to offer at-risk seniors a three-and-a-half hour school day in a specially designed classroom that is set apart from the general school population. The Rensselaer County school has 1,500 students.
“Believe it or not, most of the kids we have enrolled have already passed Regents exams,” said Sawchuk. “They just couldn’t get to school and couldn’t deal with everything that school entails,” he said.
The students may have family issues, need to work full time, could have mental health issues, they could be dealing with teen pregnancy or they simply don’t feel connected to school. Whatever the reason, Sawchuk felt it necessary to offer students a viable option to completely leaving school.
“We have a responsibility not to let these kids fall through the cracks,” he said.
Currently in its first full year, the idea behind the program is quite basic. Students work in a structured environment to rebuild confidence and become more motivated in their studies.
Melissa Heeg, a special education teacher who oversees the program, believes Operation Graduation is headed for success because of that simple approach.
“This is a more laid-back environment for them,” she said. “Anything we can do to get these kids excited about school is great.”
Heeg, who works full time, partners with three other part-time teachers to provide students with a customized learning plan and one-on-one attention.
The two dozen students enrolled in the program enter the building through a separate entrance, they come in and work for a few hours with the program’s dedicated teaching staff and then they can leave.
“We eliminate a lot of the distractions for them,” said Heeg. “But by taking the time and energy to connect to these kids, that’s what holds them in school.”
Once they have the connection to school, it’s up to Heeg to get them to concentrate on meeting their graduation requirement and actually receiving a diploma come June.
As one could imagine, technology plays a large role in helping these students make the most of their time in class.
Heeg and the other teachers are able to provide multiple lessons at once to the class by allowing students to use a computerized learning program called NovaNET. The program identifies areas where a student needs instruction most and adjusts coursework accordingly.
So while one group of students may be making up coursework in U.S. history, another group is solving a calculus problem while another group is busy with a chemistry lesson.
Students enrolled in the program find that the pace suits them better than a traditional class and they don’t feel awkward asking for additional help.
When the school year began back in September, 17-year-old Matthew Mosca admitted he was already thinking beyond the classroom. He wasn’t a very good student by his own admission and didn’t see the value in finishing out his senior year in high school.
Unaware that his grades and attendance record red-flagged him for inclusion in Operation Graduation, Mosca was approached by Principal Sawchuk to participate in the program. He figured he was willing to give it a chance.
"I didn’t really have any ambition,” Mosca said. “But I knew I needed help.”
In the five months he’s spent in the program so far, Mosca has found a renewed sense of purpose. He credits his new approach to school and the future with the attention he receives from teachers and the ability to learn at his own pace through NovaNET.
The computer program has helped improve his reading comprehension and note-taking skills, and he has even found himself sticking around to study well after his three-and-a-half hours in school are up.
The end result?
“Well, all my report cards have been going on the fridge,” joked Mosca, who is looking forward to graduation in June and attending community college in the fall.
But not all students who have participated in the program are headed to graduation in June.
The first six participants have already earned their diplomas. Most of the initial group were “mop up” students – those who didn’t graduate last year and needed to only clean up a few credits here and there in order to get their diploma.
In January the district held a special graduation ceremony for these students, complete with caps and gowns, a keynote speaker and the superintendent handing out diplomas.
One of the students who participated in that event actually graduated high school early – something she nearly didn’t accomplish because she was ready to leave school.
Brianna Risley, despite having a 90-plus grade point average, was dropping out. The stress and pressure she was putting on herself was too much to bear. In fact, Sawchuk was convinced she was not returning to school. But something told her to try out the program and do what she could to finish school.
“I wanted the opportunity to be successful and this helped me realize that school is important,” she said. “At first I didn’t even want to go. But I saw the students all supported each other and had a stick-with-it attitude.”
Asked if she thought the program helped put her life back on track, the 17-year-old who is busy pursuing an internship at Forbes Magazine and is looking to enroll at the Fashion Institute of Technology in the fall, didn’t hesitate with her answer.
“Definitely,” she said. “They really cared about me and made me feeling amazing. It was great to have that kind of support.”