Flexibility, Opportunity, and Adaptability

Applying lessons of the past and present to forward the future of academics at CA

The world of education is ever evolving. The way students were taught 10, 20, or 30 years ago is not the same as the way education is provided now. Uniformly spaced rows of seats, chalkboards, and textbooks have been replaced with modular seating, individual laptops, and digital whiteboards.

In fact, today’s classroom even looks different to that of six years ago—the same year that 1794 Magazine’s reimagined design debuted. In the winter of 2015, the Education Issue of 1794 Magazine highlighted what was then present-day CA and the history of CA’s academic program, looking back at former Headmaster Arthur Sheriff’s influence on the school, and reflecting on Cheshire’s founding father, Samuel Seabury.

What remains steadfast in Cheshire Academy’s mission, no matter the generation, decade, or year, is its focus on being a student-centered school. Endorsed by Sheriff, student-centered education is grounded in five essential components, according to the Education Issue: “flexibility of organization, opportunity for self-expression, healthful activity, persistent discipline, and friendship between teacher and student.”

“The student-centered education model introduced by former Headmaster Arthur N. Sheriff in the 1920s is not only practiced at Cheshire Academy, it is woven deeply into the culture of the school and remains its foundation for teaching,” the issue reads. “...The depth of the commitment to student-centered education at the Academy is illustrated by this statement from Arthur Sheriff, who said, ‘We are willing to make use of any educational method, whatever its novelty, which has shown its capacity for improving the quality of our work’ with students.”

Today, Cheshire Academy has navigated the world of modern-day education through a year in which a pandemic has ravaged communities across the globe. With vaccines being rolled out, it is hoped that a return to normalcy is soon for schools in the United States. CA, too, is looking forward to that future, where all students will have the opportunity to once again sit together in the classroom, in the Gideon Welles Dining Commons, Harwood Student Center, in the Arthur Sheriff Field House, on the fields outside, and in their dorms.

History and Social Science teacher Butch Rogers guided a discussion during his 9th-grade Honors U.S. History course.

With that optimistic view on the horizon, faculty and staff have been hard at work researching and planning the future of academics at Cheshire Academy. Driven by the need for a creative hybrid schedule during the pandemic, the focus has been to operate under a college-like model, with students seeing longer blocks of free time and longer blocks of class time, while still providing a personalized, supportive environment that lets students build up their readiness for college-like independence, according to Assistant Head of School for Academic Affairs Rachel Wright.

“The more we are able to lean into the strengths, flexibility, adaptability, and the pacing of a college schedule, the more we can actually live up to being college preparatory, while still remembering that we are a high school,” added Marc Aronson, dean of curriculum.

Visual arts teacher Karleen Kubat demonstrated a drawing technique to both in-person and remote students using Zoom.

Feedback from students about this academic year included genuine expressions of gratitude for teachers letting them be themselves and express themselves in the classroom. Faculty have commented that students have appreciated a more flexible schedule during the day that allows them to focus deeply on their work. “The students have been able to apply their creativity to the work that they’re being asked to do, particularly our younger students, so that was good to hear from quite a few of them,” Aronson said.

During the 2021-2022 academic year, the school will pilot new initiatives that will open opportunities within the existing program, according to Wright. More individual pathways will be made available to explore the curriculum, which is being enhanced with many new offerings and unique assessments. Time spent with students in the classroom will be even more meaningful than in years past. It’s something the school’s academic leadership has learned from educating during a pandemic. “With the precious time that we have with the students, we need to make sure every moment we spend teaching them can be maximized by having it be something they need to learn, want to learn, and can open up opportunities for the future.”

There will also be a shift away from homework in the traditional sense, Aronson added. Homework instead will be viewed as opportunities for students to meaningfully further their learning. In the classroom, there will continue to be multiple opportunities for success on assessments, including retakes and revisions, as well as different modes for assessments, including collaborative and individual projects, lots of writing, and a hefty dose of presentation and public speaking. Teachers and students will be able to choose how to assess using multiple formats, including essays, development of portfolios, videos, animation, or even having the students develop their own lesson plans.

Phase one of the school’s future program commences in the fall, with major changes that include a new schedule; an increase in student choice, number and variety of offered courses, and deeper integration of curricula within courses; an increased emphasis on reflection, collaboration, social-emotional learning, intrinsic motivation, and the relevance of courses to students’ lives; a set of new interdisciplinary, team-taught seminars in the 9th grade; and philosophical changes to assessments and homework. Cheshire Academy, in a sense, is breaking away from the old world into the new and, with it, bringing the most sacred elements of a CA experience with it. College preparation, relationship building, personalized support, utilizing campus spaces, and building character and confidence through the arts, athletics, and dorm life—all of this will continue, while other things, such as homework, over-scheduling, and a one-size-fits-all assessment will be changed. With these plans in the school’s sight, this is truly an exciting time to be teaching and learning at Cheshire Academy.