Preparing students for the future means giving them agency now

In a discussion led by Corey Scholes, director of Education for the Kauffman Foundation, panelists delved into what they are seeing that works to equip students with the tools they need to be citizens of the future. Some highlights:

“I believe students should be fully active agents in problem solving for the future So, I was really inspired (by an) article that came out about the high school students that are leading protests across New York City, fighting for integration and I wonder how do we cultivate that kind of mindset and promote that kind of confidence in problem solving some of our societies biggest issues at an earlier age.”

— Katie Boody, CEO, LEANLAB Education

“At Purdue Polytechnic High School, we introduce design challenges things that really give the students a chance to really dive into something big, for example, how do you feed 9 billion people of the planet by the year 2050? … Well, there is a whole bunch of stuff you have to know and figure out to do that … So, it really changes how we approach the core academics and everything else…”

— Scott Bess, head of school, Purdue Polytechnic High School

“We use a term, ‘developing assessment capable learners,’ and the assessment piece is not tests. … So, part of the foundation is that (when students) start this academy model as freshmen, is some personal goal setting that they’re reviewing, but then the conversation is, ‘OK, how do you get there? What skills do you already have, what do you need to focus on?’, and then it is a partnership and a relationship with the educator in that content or that area of their life because it is not limited to academic goal setting; it is personal goal setting, and even activities outside of the classroom but are associated with school.”

— Stacey Yurkovich, director of academies, Belton High School