Student Agency

What a great way to conclude the 2017 Trustee School Visits in School District No.46 (Sunshine Coast). Instead of reviewing a list of school goals and sitting through PowerPoint presentations describing these goals, the SD46 Board of Education created a new practice 5-years ago to visit schools within the school district to see the school goals in action. This year’s school visits concluded with the alternative schools. There are various locations on the Sunshine Coast and we visited 3 sites. I was impressed with the program/facility changes, innovation, and student engagement.

The Phoenix Program Building now houses the SPIDER online learning and the newly developing adult continuing education program. The Sunshine Building in Sechelt accommodates programs such as FLEX and pre-culinary arts program to provide unique learning environments that are safe, collaborative, and caring to foster student learning. The photo above was taken from the Heritage Building in Gibsons. Much like the Sechelt site, these middle school aged students took great pride in their learning and were not shy about it. They did not hesitate sharing their learning experiences and success. I got the low-down on how these rings were made.

I was wowed by the alternative school students’ excitement and love for learning. I loved the collaborative approach by the SD46 alternative school staff to provide learning opportunities that were personalized, creative, and meaningful. These students had choice. These students had voice. I was so proud of their sense of efficacy to engage in their learning and learning with others. This was student agency at its finest. They were in control of their learning. I walked away from the alternative schools thinking that this is what we want for all of our students in our school district.

Thank you SD46 staff and students for welcoming school trustees into your schools and classrooms this school year… including the maintenance building. I appreciated all of the student leaders and student-led tour guides. I am grateful for the teachers who shared their teaching/learning space and teaching/learning experiences with respect to BC’s Redesigned Curriculum, FreshGrade e-portfolios, and school goals. I love witnessing the shift in pedagogies, student engagement, and student agency. We are moving in the right direction. I look forward to next year’s school visits.