Student-Centered Learning: Free State High Redesign

Free State High Plans Redesign

The pandemic delayed this year’s launch of four Lawrence schools’ Kansans Can School Redesign Projects. Broken Arrow, Deer eld, and Hillcrest Elementary Schools continue to work on redesign planning. Free State High piloted some changes this year and wants to begin providing more exibility in how students spend their school days next year.

“We want different results so we know we have to do something different,” said Free State High ne arts teacher Michelle Salmans, a school redesign co-pilot. “In a weird way the pandemic set us up to try out things that we were already talking and thinking about doing.”

Salmans said that the team’s plans began with a desire to build a community and culture to meet the needs of all students. Its redesign goals: balance, relevance, and habits of success.

Staff asked students about their needs. Salmans said that feedback included students wanting more breaks, less homework, and more choice and focus. Students said that they wanted more time to do homework or study, and additional career exploration, work credits, projectbased learning, and cross-curricular activities. “Wanting more choice in how their class time is spent is what students really kept coming back to,” she said.

Free State piloted this year what it called Super Flex Wednesdays, giving students options of additional homework and study time, tutoring and academic support, enrichment, and a choice in activities. Each week students set a goal and make a plan to achieve it. Salmans said that staff now want to incorporate these bene ts into every school day through exible modular ( ex mod) scheduling.

She explained that instructional needs drive the ex mod schedule. Salmans cites among its bene ts: small, medium, and large classes; breaks and study time, blocks of time for community and work experiences, longer classes for lab work, and time to make connections with others.

“Teachers can design activities based on what kind of instruction we need to provide. We get to spend more time with smaller groups of students, which is fantastic. Teachers have built-in collaboration time within the school day, so every single week we could have PLC (Professional Learning Communities), not just every other week,” said Salmans.

Principal Myron Graber added that the staff looked at different models for exing class periods. “Students would still take seven classes and teachers would still teach six of seven periods, but the schedule creates exibility. Students would have ex time for independent learning, where they could choose what they need to do; and structured learning time, when students are assigned to a speci c teacher, lab, or area,” said Graber.

After the district ensures the schedule meets required parameters, the school will seek state approval of the plan.

“If you really look at this, it comes down to students becoming the CEOs of their own learning. That’s when learning happens, and they feel that sense of self-ef cacy,” said Superintendent Dr. Anthony Lewis of Free State’s redesign.

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