Students feel the focus of their education needs to be concerned less with their test scores and memorizing information. Students are looking for genuine learning. Learning that prioritizes making time for students to approach their teachers, to discuss topics with classmates, and to learn things in a deep way.
“When you get out of high school, some people don’t have people to help them get into a college or apply for this financial aid. That’s one reason why they just work. I always felt like if … a lot of these kids had those opportunities to know how to do these things, their lives would be easier. I always thought those should be classes that should be the first thing because by 16 everybody here should have a permit because that’s the age you’re supposed to get it.”
— Focus Group Report
“A lot of the times the arts are what help kids push through school. A lot of the times, a lot of the arts, they don’t get recognition for doing anything good. In a way, I feel like if they got recognition it motivates the kids. At least I’m doing good in some area, so that motivates them to maybe push through in another area. It’s like more academic because it’s like if they’re doing good in this then maybe they might get some recognition for that too.” — Focus Group Report
“We really don’t have too many classes that teach to our lives. I think last year at the beginning of ninth grade, we did like two days of learning about taxes and interest and then we haven’t learned about anything like that since. One of the things that I feel like they can change doing things more that we can connect to and that we’re going through. It’s like in 10th grade we’re 10th graders looking to get a job, looking for their permit and do other things like that.” — Focus Group Report
“I can tell teachers like this care because when they incorporate outside skills into our class, they’re setting us up to be more responsible adults.” — Corine
“When I turn in my work, I can tell if my teachers have put effort into looking over it. I get underwhelmed when they don’t give me feedback on how to do better, even if I know that I was confused by some of the material.” — Omari
“When I go in her class, then she has all this energy ready to teach and she actually gets into the books you read and sometimes she’ll act stuff out. It really helps. I don’t know about everybody else, but it really helps me get into it, get interested and know what we’re talking about and discussing and learning about.” — Focus Group Report
“Standardized testing is a significant source of stress for us and takes away from our learning experience by forcing teachers to “teach to the test.” In classes without standardized testing, the curriculum has been more flexible and has focused on learning goals that better suit our needs. The narrow focus of standardized tests stifles creativity and flexibility.” — Haverhill High School VIP Report
“The focus seems to be mostly on tests and memorizing information. These classes don’t seem to prioritize making time for students to approach our teachers, to discuss topics with our classmates, and to learn things in a deep way. It feels like we are being asked to soak up as much information as we can and repeat it on the test, but then it is OK if we forget about it the rest of the day.” — Jonathan
“They’ll literally take the first quarter of the entire year, for a freshman will be how to pass the MCAS…it’s not just learning the curriculum, but it’s also like they literally force you to pass because [our school] doesn’t have good MCAS scores. They don’t want us to be good. They want to make it look good.”
— Focus Group Report
“I feel it [graduation] should go off of grades, not MCAS scores. Kids do really good in class, but they just do really bad on tests. Tests aren’t everyone’s thing, so I feel like MCAS scores aren’t good for kids to even make it any further than a high school degree.” — Focus Group Report
“I don’t know. That’s how I feel when I get a rejection like, ‘Your grades are good. Your GPA is high. You’re involved in all these sports but just because your test score wasn’t high we can’t accept you.’ It’s just like why does my future have to be dependent on a number? I don’t know. I don’t know. It’s just like I’m so much more than that. It’s just like I feel like they don’t look at it like that.” — Focus Group Report
This website is dedicated to the valuable lessons we can learn from students’ own experiences about how to create better schools. Decisions about schooling are often made without listening deeply to students themselves. But students are in the best position to understand what they need in order to do well in school.
A collaboration of the Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative (TLPI), Harvard Law School and Massachusetts Advocates for Children (MAC). LEARN MORE
Haverhill VIP: The workload can be crushing and stressful
“The workload can be crushing and stressful, which interferes with our ability to engage with and really learn the material. When the workload is lighter, it is easier not only to plan and manage, but also to learn. We get to actually think about what we are being taught. When the workload gets to be excessive, we just have to get it done.” — Haverhill High School VIP Report
Focus Group: Test scores don’t matter
“I feel like graduation rates and test scores and stuff like that, they don’t even matter…you can be cheating your whole way through high school and you’d still graduate. I feel like what really matters in school is if you’re learning. I feel like in school I don’t go to school to learn. That’s actually ridiculous that I go to school every day to pass. I feel like the school should be graded on how the students are doing.” — Focus Group Report
Omari: Doing the work to understand it
“I feel like there is a difference between doing the work just to do it and doing the work to understand it, and I know that I get more out of classes when my teachers focus on the latter. Having adults like these support me makes me more invested in my learning which also helps me better understand the material itself.” — Omari
Jonathan: Genuine Learning
“This second type of achievement is the version I think we should be aiming for. I like to call this genuine learning, learning you can hold on to. And this is why safe and supportive schools are so important. With safety, cooperation and community – rather than just memorization – all of our students will learn and achieve so much more.” — Jonathan