ACADEMICS

INNOVATION THE MPCS APPROACH TO LEARNING

The ongoing construction of the Murray Innovation Center addition to the high school is visible when driving past the campus. This new building will provide amazing space for students and teachers to learn together and to innovate. If you look anywhere in education today, the words innovate and innovation are prominently displayed.

For some in education, innovation is a fashionable trend. For others, INNOVATION ENSURES STUDENTS ARE PREPARED FOR JOBS IN A WORLD OF WORK WHERE SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, ARTS, AND MATHEMATICS (STEAM) ARE DOMINANT.

BY DR. TIM WIENS, HEAD OF SCHOOL

At MPCS, we have taken a different approach to innovation and STEM/STEAM – and education as a whole. We do not do anything because it is today’s latest fad. We seek to employ that which is tried and true, along with new perspectives, as we examine life through the broad lens of a Christian liberal arts education. The liberal arts have always employed mathematics and science as integral components of an education that develops well-rounded students who will flourish in whatever world they engage in and in whatever age they exist. We see this as timeless education.

As such, innovation is examined, taught, and pursued as the practice of finding solutions to the problems faced in the world and as a means of thinking and learning that will transform hearts, minds, institutions, and culture. If the point of innovation is to make better, we seek to think differently, to act differently, and to learn in such a manner as to transform –to make all of life better for the glory of God. We believe innovation rests on a deep understanding of the created order, acquired through a robust commitment to the liberal arts. This perspective on innovation, therefore, reaches further than just STEM into the arts, the humanities, world language, and into every area that is studied by our students and taught by our faculty.

At MPCS, innovation is not simply something that happens by chance. We do not simply innovate or change for the sake of change. Tradition and history are important. The aforementioned “tried and true” have worked in education and in schools for thousands of years for a reason. We honor tradition and seek to continue past practices that prepare our students for a rapidly-changing world, but we do so while also honoring new and varied approaches to learning. Why don’t most of us drive an Edsel or Model T.? Because new and innovative

in Education

INNOVATION

approaches to car building have shown us that we can drive faster, more efficient, environmentally friendly, and more attractive vehicles today.

If history has shown us anything, it is that as we grow, we must adapt to the world around us. Consequently, we welcome creative thinking and exploration. We welcome innovation. We believe innovation needs to be a state of mind for our students. Therefore, we seek to educate learners who will be agents of positive change – not for the sake of change itself, but to improve upon that which they have been called to steward. Similarly, we seek to enable faculty to foster within themselves this same spirit of continuous improvement.

The impetus for this is that we have been called to bring glory, honor, and praise to the name of the Lord Most High. AS WE LEARN, AS WE EXPLORE, AS WE CREATE, AS WE INNOVATE, WE DO SO BECAUSE WE HAVE BEEN CALLED AS PEOPLE BY OUR CREATOR, MADE IN HIS IMAGE, TO EMULATE HIM AND DEMONSTRATE TO THE WORLD THE GREATNESS

OF OUR GOD. Innovation enables us to better do so as we reach out to a world looking for answers (the Answer) to the questions that have mystified us for thousands of years.

And, that is what MPCS seeks to foster through its STEAM instruction – the inspiration of creative, resilient, adaptive, and critical thinking minds. And, all to the glory of our God! W

INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO THE CHALLENGES OF

learning in a pandemic

BY DR. DEBORAH DAVIS, LOWER SCHOOL HEAD

RISING ABOVE ADVERSITY, MPCS INNOVATES TO MEET THE CHALLENGES OF LEARNING IN A PANDEMIC. LIKE SCHOOLS ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND AROUND THE WORLD, MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN SCHOOL WAS THRUST INTO ONLINE LEARNING – SOMETHING WE NEVER DREAMED WE WOULD NEED, MUCH LESS FOR MORE THAN A YEAR.

AAt the onset of the COVID pandemic in the spring of 2020, virtual learning expanded from an initial two weeks to a full two months. All the while, MPCS leadership was looking ahead to 2020-2021, praying for a return to school as usual but planning for multiple scenarios. While meaningful learning experiences took place last spring – including science experiments, Bible and guidance lessons, reading groups, PE, leadership and exploratory classes, weekly chapels, and nightly lower school story times – MPCS kept as its top priority for a safe return to on-campus learning. When August 2020 arrived, faculty and staff were back on campus with students – though this year certainly promised to be different from years past. Teachers rearranged classrooms to maximize physical distancing, created individual student supply kits, and rethought structures and procedures. roughout the year, they were determined to do whatever it took to keep students in our classrooms. Ever the “lead-learners,” teachers also worked diligently to learn how to simultaneously teach students in the classroom and online. We have been committed to teaching all of our students, whether on campus or virtual. e makeup of students within the classroom changed daily, based on COVID protocols. But, the one thing that has never wavered is our level of commitment. Teachers and paraprofessionals have done an incredible job managing two learning environments. Online learners “moved” down the halls via tripods for their next class, joined in group projects, and participated in special events like the homecoming parade.

Although this year has been different for students, the journey of learning and growth never ceased. We have all adapted to new routines and procedures. ough we spread out in classrooms and at lunch, we were together. ough we were not together for division-wide chapels, we still had weekly chapel. ough classes did not have recess together, we still found space to play. ough parents could not join us in the classroom, they still “Zoomed” in as mystery readers. ough we wore masks in the hallways, we were still in our buildings. ough our classrooms looked different, we were still together. is school year has included a lot of praying, planning, learning, and growing, but it has all been worth the effort to stay focused on what truly matters, our students. W

STAYING FOCUSED ON WHAT TRULY MATTERS: OUR STUDENTS