WINTERBORO – School administrators and teachers across the country are looking for ways to keep students engaged in the learning process, and businesses are struggling to find employees qualified to work in a changing work environment.The Talladega County School System and Winterboro High School are hoping they have found the answer to both problems with the new tech high school model they hope to begin next school year.
Ted Fujimoto, president of Landmark Consulting Group based in California, presented leaders from the county’s education and business worlds a preview of what WHS could look like next fall under this new tech high school education system.
Superintendent Dr. Suzanne Lacey said, “I think the most exciting thing for me and the staff at Winterboro is what this can do for our students. They’re the most important part of this equation.
“All of us adults will have roles that we’ll have to do and it will be a challenge and it will be difficult, but at the very end, when that student graduates from Winterboro and is successful in going to college or the workforce or whatever and has the foundation for 21st century learning skills, I think that’s the most exciting thing about the whole process.”
Lacey said there are still some hurdles to jump before the school system can bring in Landmark Consulting to implement the new tech high school program, but she believes the school system is moving in that direction.
Fujimoto said the new tech high school is designed especially to help students in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.
The program started in California and has spread to several other states, including New York, Indiana and Texas. He said there are 42 new tech high schools across the nation. Should Winterboro begin a new tech high school program, it would be one of the first in the state.
“What we are as a new tech foundation is a school-development organization. We don’t run or operate the school, that’s what your community does. It’s your school,” Fujimoto said. “We help you with development. We help get you started. We help get your teachers trained, your staff trained, your community leaders and administrators trained to support this type of school.”
The 21st century learning style focuses on problem solving and reasoning as well as students working in teams to accomplish an assignment. Technology is a major part of the program, too, and each student would be using his or her own computer station.
Fujimoto said the learning method is meant to keep students engaged in learning because they all have to work together to complete a project. It also helps students develop self-confidence and communication skills when they have to present their ideas to their group or teacher, according to Fujimoto.
He said in California the program has improved student test scores in schools in affluent neighborhoods and neighborhoods where poverty is prevalent and in urban and rural settings.
