CCSD59 Students Accept Challenge from Superintendent
What story can be told that explains why CCSD59 is one of the best districts in the nation?
That question was at the heart of a challenge issued by Superintendent Dr. Art Fessler to students in the Talent Development Program (TDP) at all elementary schools throughout the district. What makes our district stand out? Whose story would you like to tell to show the world why you’re proud to be a part of CCSD59?
TDP is a program which offers students with advanced academic needs in grades 3 – 5 content and curriculum beyond the general education classroom offerings. Students are identified for the program based on academic achievement, ability, and classroom performance and remain in the program for three years. This model offers students with similar academic abilities and social and emotional needs the important opportunity to work together several times a week.
The students in each TDP class chose their own theme in answer to Dr. Fessler’s question, “How can I tell an interesting story that helps people understand why CCSD59 is one of the best in the nation?”
Students selected a topic and researched as needed to ultimately create a presentation they felt was the best vehicle for telling their story. The learning opportunities afforded through the project were many, including how to choose what story to tell, how to give and receive constructive feedback, how to best connect with an audience, how to edit and improve their work, and what format to use to present their final story.
“In one student’s reflection statement, the student indicated that they felt they really learned there are countless ways to tell the same story,” said Teacher Janet Chang. “That was deep.”
Teachers arranged for a “training day” for all students participating in this challenge. The CCSD59 Communications Department and Christopher Placek from the Daily Herald collectively presented to the students on photography, storytelling, and general journalism strategies as part of this Project Based Learning (PBL) assignment.
PBL is a teaching method where students work for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an engaging and complex question, problem, or challenge. A key aspect of this method is having an authentic audience, so Dr. Fessler announced to students that a few students would have their projects displayed on the CCSD59 website. This means the student presentations chosen would have their work seen by anyone who visits the website from anywhere in the world.
“I was impressed by my students’ inner drive to accept Dr. Fessler’s challenge and create a product with integrity,” said Meghan Landry, one of the teachers involved with this project.
The topics and presentations submitted were as varied and interesting as the students themselves. Stories about the CCSD59 community included senior help centers, pet rescues, local small businesses and outreach programs, parent involvement, and even a local school crossing guard were captured by the students and told through their own unique viewpoints.
After student voting determined which projects to submit, Dr. Fessler reviewed all 35 entries and said it was very difficult to select winners from all the outstanding entries for display on the CCSD59 website. The four projects chosen by Dr. Fessler are:
Olivia Britto, Third Grader at Brentwood – Girls Empowerment Group Helps Girls
Olivia Henkelman, Third Grader at Byrd – PBL Theater
Bilal Ibrahim, Third Grader at Frost – Super Readers
Ana Vega, Fourth Grader at John Jay – Mr. Rich
Of his assignment as judge of all the entries, Dr. Fessler said that reviewing the entries for this challenge gave him the opportunity to view firsthand how creative the students could be and how seriously they took the challenge.
“It was obvious from the quality of all the entries that the students put a great deal of time, energy, and thought into the topics they chose, how to gather the information, how to tell the story, and how to connect to the audience. They didn’t just accept the challenge, they absolutely dominated it. Through their productions, it was evident that the students were proud of their school community and really enjoyed sharing their stories with their classmates and the rest of the world. Each story clearly conveyed the message that CCSD59 is one of the best school districts and school communities in the nation.”
Enjoyed having students share their work with our Board & especially loved seeing the pride in the parent faces. pic.twitter.com/eExmpIbnLM
— Tom Luedloff (@TomLuedloff) June 14, 2016
