Oak Hill Middle School is adopting a new learning model that gives students more control over their education. The Empowerment Collaborative is partnering with the school to introduce student-led, project-based learning that connects classroom lessons to real-world projects benefiting the school and community.
“Our schools have to become more modern, more engaging, and students need to be invested in their own learning,” said Project Director Kathy D’Antoni. “Change the role of the teacher from the person who delivers everything to a facilitator, and the student becomes the impetus, and they become accountable for their learning.”
The initiative, now active in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky, uses hands-on projects to teach core subjects. “Projects that help build their school, the work they’re learning becomes meaningful, has a purpose to it,” D’Antoni said.
One example came from Oak Hill’s Student Empowerment Team, where a seventh-grade quilt project combined math, science, and history. “We did math to help measure the pieces. We did science to help glue and create the patch, and ELA to help for the history of quilts… and we ended up selling it and raising money for the the seventh grade field trip,” said student Ava Lively.
Barry Crist with the State Leadership Team said the goal is to keep students engaged. “It makes students want to come to school. It makes them want to be a part of their education,” he said.
For more information on the Empowerment Collaborative, visit https://empowerdistricts.com/
