North Shore Roundtable Reflections

Question: Who taught you to ride a bike?

Did you go to school for that? Was the teacher certified? Did they hold some credentials of any kind? Were they interested in your performance? Did they hold your handlebars for a time and then slowly let go as your balance improved?

Perhaps you did go to school for that, but chances are you were taught informally and perhaps even learned a few things from a peer.

Much of the world around us can be explored by us sharing what we know with others and Out-of-School time can provide that chance to learn new skills or practice using the knowledge all those hours of formal education are supposed to provide.

With the winter chill upon us, our North Shore Roundtable groups met at the North Shore Community College in Danvers. Situated in a "smart classroom" of the college, our group explored project-based learning and learned one approach created specifically for Out-of-School time. Along with a semi-formal presentation, there were hands-on activities: we explored projects as learners ourselves by experimenting with cans of cola, with apples, with our own interests - making observations, assumptions, and finally just plunging in and learning the old way by doing.

Out-of-School Time is a wonderful environment to explore the world around us. Not because of MCAS testing or 21st century learning skills needs, or because policy makers say we are falling behind the rest of the world in our knowledge of science, technology, engineering, and math, but for because the world around us is a mystery to young people and it is fun for us to explore it together.

Having taught project-based learning for close to 10 years in various after-school programs, presenting it at National Association of Afterschool conferences as well as regional gatherings in the northeast, it is a wonder why this practice is not central to our programming rather than an aside or something we would do if only our other issues would just be fixed once and for all. I often wonder, unless we're going to do something fun and engaging, why should Johnny connect to our program? Can we not teach differently?

The room was filled with a great many experienced people ranging between 3 months in the field of Out-of-School Time to 25 years. 76% provided some direct service, 81% supervised staff, yet only 20% provided or led training in their program. There was an overall satisfaction of 90% for the event.

The activities and handouts were few, and intentionally so. Outside of the method described, the practice has to be done one staff person, one group, and one project at a time with a simple set of tools that need modification by each program to fit local needs and capacity. It is important for more programs to see that building competent program staff is the same as learning the bicycle - we learn it first, so we may pass it on to others, holding their balance until they seem to have gotten the hang of it, allowing them the chance to take what we have shown them and building on it for themselves.

In the coming weeks BOSTnet will be posting the training slides and discussion and helping more programs integrate a type of learning into their program that supports their unique developmental setting.