A pilot program at Carroll County High School will give students real world experience and equip them with skills needed to succeed in the workforce.
Project Based Learning (PBL) is a concept in which students identify a need or problem, collaborate on how to solve the problem and present their findings. It is a long-term project that is led by the students, but they will be supervised by their teachers and assisted by Jeff Fremin, the district’s new school community liaison.
The initial PBL group includes 58 seniors who will be divided into groups of six during their math and English classes. Their projects will incorporate skills learned in those two classes, such as writing a proposal for a project or measuring for supplies. Each quarter they will select a new plan.
The beginning projects will be on the CCHS campus, such as working on the Hall of Fame outside the gymnasium or a beautification project around the pond behind the baseball field.
“They will take something that could be a problem and turn it into an opportunity,” Fremin said. “We look for ways students can be high school heroes and turn something that is a problem into a positive.”
The students will be in class Monday through Thursday and will use Friday as their work day. They will be monitored through the You Science program by uploading photos and written reflections on their project.
Carroll County Schools Superintendent Casey Jaynes said stakeholders in the community have indicated it is important for our students to participate in this type of learning. “We will be partnering with local business and industry to explore new pathway offerings based on our community needs and then providing real world experiences for our students in order to create a world class workforce,” Jaynes added.
CCHS Principal Amy Sutter said she is excited about the program and its potential. “Eventually we want the community to reach out to us with ideas and needs,” she said.
These same skills will be taught to the younger students throughout the year by all of their teachers, Sutter explained, thereby giving them a jump on development of the skills needed to complete a PBL project.
“Our goal is that next year all students are doing this,” Sutter said, noting that a number of CCHS students already engage in this type of learning through iLEAD, JCTC or the Area Technology Center.
CCHS students utilized the PBL concept this year in criminal justice classes when they participated in a crash simulation by investigating the accident scene and an STLP team who created a recipe for dog treats and a business plan for selling them so the concept is not entirely new to CCHS. The approach is just a little different this year.
Students are finding their strengths and being given opportunities to build on those through PBL. “We’re finding what our students are interested in, but hopefully also benefiting our community,” Sutter said. “This is not just about getting out of class.”
During 2024 it’s possible the students will venture off campus to work on their projects, but that’s part of the learning process. “We want students to believe they can really make a difference in the community,” Fremin said.