As a BC Online High School, like every other High School, we try and do the best for our students. The only way to be sure that we’re doing this is to listen to our students and take onboard what they say. The video below is not from one of our students, but what she says is very true.  Here is part of it:

“I am now accomplishing that goal. I am graduating. I should look at this as a positive experience, especially being at the top of my class. However, in retrospect, I cannot say that I am any more intelligent than my peers. I can attest that I am only the best at doing what I am told and working the system. Yet, here I stand, and I am supposed to be proud that I have completed this period of indoctrination. I will leave in the fall to go on to the next phase expected of me, in order to receive a paper document that certifies that I am capable of work. But I contest that I am a human being, a thinker, an adventurer – not a worker. A worker is someone who is trapped within repetition – a slave of the system set up before him. But now, I have successfully shown that I was the best slave. I did what I was told to the extreme. While others sat in class and doodled to later become great artists, I sat in class to take notes and become a great test-taker. While others would come to class without their homework done because they were reading about an interest of theirs, I never missed an assignment. While others were creating music and writing lyrics, I decided to do extra credit, even though I never needed it. So, I wonder, why did I even want this position? Sure, I earned it, but what will come of it? When I leave educational institutionalism, will I be successful or forever lost? I have no clue about what I want to do with my life; I have no interests because I saw every subject of study as work, and I excelled at every subject just for the purpose of excelling, not learning. And quite frankly, now I’m scared.”

She goes on to talk about how there are some teachers that help students break out of the grade based system and actually encourage learning. I agree. That’s what we try and do at SelfDesign High. We negotiate, we listen, we learn. We encourage students to follow their passion, be it math or mountain biking. Online courses have traditionally been boring and just an extension of your local High School; we try to do it differently. We give you the chance to design your own education, wherever it leads you.

The following speech was delivered by top of the class student Erica Goldson during the graduation ceremony at Coxsackie-Athens High School on June 25, 2010

Someone sent me the link to the Prezi below and thought it might be interesting. It is. We’re often kind of trapped by the curriculum of the BC Math courses; we have to make sure the students pass their exams after all! However, there has to be a better way to do things than the ‘but we’ve always done it that way’  ideology. Anyways, have a look and see what you think.

Continuing with the theme of TED videos about education. In this poignant, funny follow-up to his fabled 2006 talk, Sir Ken Robinson makes the case for a radical shift from standardized schools to personalized learning — creating conditions where kids’ natural talents can flourish. When you’ve watched the video ask yourself, what is your passion?

This coming September the grade 10 math courses change here in BC. So, with that in mind we’ve been having some long conversations about exactly how we’re going to present the 2 new grade 10 courses, Apprenticeship & Workplace Math, and  Foundation & Pre-Calc Math. As an online high school it is easier for us to think outisde the box in the presentation of our courses and make something that is truly different and inspiring. A lot of our thinking can be seen in the video below. Our new courses will be based along these ideas and we have some new and interesting ideas of our own as well. Watch this space for more information about our new online Apprenticeship & Workplace Math, and  Foundation & Pre-Calc Math courses.