PBL / Linked Learning News @ SDUSD

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and start to the year! Since the last newsletter in the fall, we have witnessed teams launch projects, students engage in meaningful, real-world learning experiences, and students exhibit their work to authentic audiences. We know there is still lots of goodness to come in this second semester. Keep reading for more information on some of the good that’s happened and on the horizon!

In this newsletter you will find:

• Upcoming Events & Relevant Resources
  
• News on PBL / LL around the district
  

If you'd like to make a suggestion, would like to submit something for a future newsletter, or would like to be removed from the list of recipients, please contact Liz Perry, San Diego Unified PBL/ Linked Learning Resource Teacher, at eperry2@sandi.net

Please mark your calendars to attend next year’s PBL Institute and CCTE showcase. If you have questions pertaining to either, please email Liz Perry at eperry2@sandi.net

• PBL Institute 2018: Monday, June 18th - Friday, June 29th 2018

• CCTE Showcase: Wednesday, May 23rd 2018

To register for the PBL Institute you can use the following google form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdQnf8jNFlBWmy9V5kpprzMczYnf-b7qITROmi7pJCWxDl3Rg/viewform?usp=sf_link Registering with this link does not guarantee your participation. Rather, your request to participate will be reviewed with your admin team and confirmation will be provided by the end of April.

Point Loma Nazarene's Center for Justice and Reconciliation presents a grant-funded, facilitated, and interactive 3.5 hour curriculum (can be done all at once or in pieces) for middle and high school to help students gain awareness about Human Trafficking and its prevention. According to kNOw More, the curriculum 1) provides a realistic narrative of the progression of a high school age trafficking victim and 2) serves as an interactive device to offer youth the opportunity to play out the different choices they could make to empower themselves or potential peer victims within a human trafficking scenario. Are you considering doing a project related to human trafficking in the year to come? Consider reaching out to kNOw More to incorporate this research based, standards-aligned and interactive curriculum. http://www.abolishhumantrafficking.com/know-more-awareness-prevention-curriculum/

kNOw More has been able to bring this experience to some schools for free thanks to grant funding. If you are interested, inquire about bringing this experience to your own school.

Two great resume building experiences for high school students.

The Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice is launching a new program The Social Fabric Initiative. They are looking for high school students to volunteer their time to work on a collaborative team to creatively tackle a real-world problem of interest. Applications are due May 7th. https://www.krocsfi.org/

The Maritime Alliance is organizing a new summer experience, the Blue Economy Immersion Program, for students entering their junior year. This FREE four-day experience (Aug 6th-9th or Aug 13th-16th) will introduce students to the dynamic Blue Economy through outings to places such as The Maritime Museum and SDSU's Coastal and Marine Institute. Students will also engage in hands-on experiences and be able to engage with leaders in the field. For more information or to request an application contact Melissa Fischel at MAFischel@themaritimealliance.org

On November 30th, 2017, approximately 100 8th grade students from Standley Middle School participated in a full-day event at the Ballard Center in which students explored the relationship between place and identity. This day, organized by their teacher, Monte Carroll, kicked off the day with a presentation that helped students better understand the complexity of the relationship between place and identity. Mr. Carroll shared some of his own experiences and connected the concept to The House on Mango Street, which students are reading in class. In addition, Mr. Carroll modeled and emphasized the importance of risk-taking in the learning process, by stepping out of his own comfort zone to make this full day experience happen, and by trying new techniques to connect students more deeply to the concepts. Following the presentation, in groups of three, students interviewed an adult volunteer about their relationship to place and identity. Students were well prepared, worked collaboratively, and asked questions that were incredibly well thought out and thought provoking. Three cheers to Mr. Carroll for going the extra mile and to his students for their incredible work!

On December 14th, 2017, students from Montgomery Middle School exhibited their projects from the fall semester to peers, parents, and community members during an all day school-wide exhibition. Projects included Cancer: Now What (6th grade), The History of Linda Vista (7th grade), Natural Disasters (8th grade). While preparing for an exhibition can be a lot of work, it is an incredible learning opportunity for students and helps to increase student engagement and motivation. Thank you Montgomery Middle for making this opportunity possible for your students. Check out shareyourlearning.org to learn about how to help showcase student work.

On December 5th, 2017 a handful of San Diego Unified high school teachers attended a training with the non-profit organization Generation Citizen to explore an action civics curriculum aligned with the core components of PBL. According to Generation Citizen, “Over the course of GC’s in-class program, students choose an issue they care about, develop a focused, strategic plan to address the issue, take real action, and then reflect on their successes, challenges, and plans moving forward. Each semester culminates in a Civics Day, in which student representatives from classes in each city present their plans to other students, community members, and public officials, celebrating their work and gaining feedback to further their efforts.” The teachers in attendance will pilot this curriculum either this upcoming Spring or in the Fall. If you are interested in learning more about the organization or curriculum, you can head to their website https://generationcitizen.org/

On October 18th, 19 middle and high school teachers from around the district participated in their first day of the Leaders of Innovation program, a new professional development experience designed for teachers who are compelled to find new and better ways to meet their students’ needs. The year-long program provides supports, such as mentorship, and structure for teachers to take on innovative projects in their classrooms, at their schools sites, or in service of the district as a whole that aim to increase student engagement and improve student academic outcomes. This group of innovative teachers will present the results of the projects as well as engage in leadership development to help disseminate best practices and to encourage others to cultivate and nurture their innovative spirit. If you are interested in participating in this program in the 2018-2019 school year keep your eyes peeled for the next newsletter and an email from your administrators.

In late September, 9th grade students at Kearny High School’s DMD School participated in a three-day PBL 101 experience designed and facilitated in partnership with Booz Allen Hamilton. As students learned about the various layers of network security and crafted proposals for San Diego Unified’s IT Department for ensuring network safety, students learned about how PBL differs from learning experiences in a more traditional classroom. From the start of the year, students were given the opportunity to show what they are capable of achieving as well as a taste of what lies ahead at Kearny.

On November 8th, 2017, teachers from the Mission Bay Cluster’s BlueSTEM Pathway attended The BlueTECH Summit, part of BlueTECH Week hosted by the Maritime Alliance. Mission Bay High School and Pacific Beach Middle teachers heard from panelists and participated in a tech expo to learn more about the Blue Economy and to create connections for future partnerships and projects. The event was inspiring, helping teachers to connect more deeply with the work taking place in the BlueTECH sectors and to get a better sense of the workforce needs they are preparing their students to meet.

Over the summer teams of teachers came together at San Diego Unified’s two-week long Project Based Learning Institute to collaborate on designing curriculum that engages students in rigorous, real-world projects aligned to key learning targets. Last month, Kearny High School’s 9th grade Digital Media and Design students launched their semester-long project with incredibly powerful presentations about by people whose lives have been directly affected by drug and alcohol abuse. These presentations served to launch their project, “I Have a Say in My Future”, which asks students to explore the question: “How do the choices I make in today’s world help determine who I become tomorrow?” For this project, the team is partnering with SAY San Diego to create media products that help prevent the abuse of drugs and alcohol. The 11th grade team also launched their project, Project S.A.V.E. with a panel presentation by students who engaged in the project last year and the opportunity to interview a volunteer from the Midway Museum. Students will continue their work by creating digital media pieces that reflect the lives and motivation of these volunteers as well as by engaging in their own volunteer work.

An interdisciplinary team of teachers from Roosevelt Middle School designed a project during the summer PBL Institute 2017 that engaged 7th grade students in helping 6th graders navigate the transition to middle school. The team kicked off the project early in the school year by inviting in a number of adults to speak about transitions they faced in life. Then, the 7th grade students reflected on their own transition to middle school and created videos for the incoming students to help them adjust to their new environment and experience at Roosevelt.

This Fall, Share Your Learning, a part of the Deeper Learning Consortium, worked with the Kearny Cluster to organize a hands-on experience for their cluster meeting (a gathering of teachers, students, parents, administrators, and community members) to help participants experience the value of students sharing their work. Table groups were provided supplies and about 5-7 minutes to build a rollercoaster on which a marble could travel. The challenge included certain parameters, such as needing to include a drop somewhere in the rollercoaster of at least a 12 inches. Teams then shared their final products, the process they went through to build, including how the team worked and communicated together, and reflections on lessons learned. As groups shared out, it was clear that a lot of the learning was taking place in this opportunity to reflect and share with a wider audience. If you are interested in learning more or pledging (just a free process to share your commitment) to having students share their learning this year, go to shareyourlearning.org. There you will also find free resources to support

As professionals, we often have to stand in front of our work, explain our thinking, and justify our decision-making around a final product. For example, at the Linked Learning Convention 2018, I recently delivered a presentation about San Diego Unified’s PBL / Linked Learning Summer Institute. This authentic format for sharing our work and our learning requires that we effectively synthesize, communicate about, and reflect upon our work. Student defenses of learning serve that same purpose, and this year Kearny DMD and Hoover’s SABE Academy engaged students in the process. Students presented to panels of industry and community members, teachers, and students. Dressed in professional attire, they reflected on their successes and challenges by delivering well practiced presentations and fielded questions from panel members about their interdisciplinary projects. Way to go Hoover and Kearny for finding ways to authentically assess students and to provide real-world experiences for your students.

In late January, four brilliant teachers from Taft Middle School attend the PBL Leadership Academy at High Tech High. The free, 3-day event included keynote speakers Ashanti Branch and Ron Berger. The Taft teachers used the time to develop their understanding of PBL and to consider a problem of practice that they could resolve at their sites. The Taft team will be engaging in an interdisciplinary project in the fall that will engage the staff and start to fill the campus with student work. Thanks Taft for your hard work and bravery! Look forward to seeing the results of your project and effort!

Email: eperry2@sandi.net
Website: https://www.sandiegounified.org/
Phone: 2108433506