These fifth graders at Springfield Schools are enrolled in an Academy of Exploration, a program that focuses on science, technology, engineering and math. It is being offered in collaboration with the Springfield Discovery Center.
Springfield Public Schools (SPS) has created innovative programs for 50 eighth graders allowing them to augment their traditional classroom experience with learning of a more pragmatic nature.
The Health Sciences Academy is designed to allow health care professionals to interact with the students. In collaboration with Mercy Hospital students receive academic instruction in a specially designed state-of-the-art classroom in a hospital setting. The experience introduces these students to careers in the health care field, especially treating an aging population, about which they may have had no previous knowledge.
Our hope is that these students will be engaged in their learning in a whole new way and that they will explore new avenues to build their creativity and critical thinking when their learning is made relevant by a specific focus, explained Springfield Schools Superintendent John Jungmann. In an educational climate where we are preparing students for careers that do not yet exist, the skills to be self-starters, collaborative, creative and to be able to communicate effectively are keys to their future success
According to an education spokesperson, the Health Sciences Academy not only meets the instructional needs of students but works to address the future workforce needs of Missouris third largest city. In Springfield health care is one of the largest employment sectors, including not only Mercy but also Cox Health. It is also a job growth sector nationally, as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 3.5 million health care jobs will be created in the U.S. by 2020.
SPS unveiled two other programs as well as the Health Sciences Academy for the 2014-15 school year. They are:
- Academy of Exploration: With a focus on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), the program partners with a local science museum, Discovery Center, where fifth-grade students utilize specialized classrooms in addition to the many learning tools and exhibits within the center. The Hamels Foundation helped fund this initiative.
- Quest@Glendale High School: Based on the New Tech Network model, the school-within-a-school approach incorporates project-based learning that encourages innovation, a deeper level of understanding and promotes critical thinking in a technology-rich environment.
The failings of traditional education have hit the headlines recently. While it may be important to focus on liberal arts in creating a well-rounded person, that knowledge, critics are saying, is not enough to land a higher paying job. Besides, the Internet offers exposure to just about anything offered in the traditional classroom.
A CNN documentary, Ivory Tower that debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, will be aired at 8 p.m. CST. on Thursday, Nov. 20, 2014. It questions the cost, value and methods of America's higher education system.
Go Back |
