B.C.

Student Voice
Student perspectives on the Key Elements of the B.C. education plan
March 30, 2012 Richmond, B.C.

Personalized Learning
Reactions: It seems like its almost too big to take on. Limited Resources. Flexibility is key. Works better in smaller schools. Lots of options. Challenges: Everyone has different interests. Relationship between students and counselor. Role of counselors. Not enough options. Were excited about: Pushing the boundaries of traditional education to make every students learning more effective. Constant re-invention for bettering the future. We would like: For the Action Plan to be specific and for everyone involved to be well educated about options.

Quality Teaching and Learning

Reactions: Goals not steps: details required; vague Excellent first draft. Political wording, beats around the bush. What exists? Whats changing? Consistent standard; little change Lack of detail Concern for now time frame? What measures are in place to follow-through on the evaluation of this? Challenges: Different teaching and learning styles Student involvement (assignments) What is a good assignment? Personalized accountability. Personalized learning comes from quality teaching, Teaching Teachers to be Teachers: Engaging Interactive Positive Stimulating Energy Current Passionate Making connections Questions: Can you teach someone to be like this?

Flexibility and Choice

Reactions: Curious and questioning the concept No concrete examples, too vague to picture how it will benefit students Would like to see timelines or statistics Dont we have different calendars already? Challenges: Classrooms and teacherstudent interactions are valuable. (Discussions give us different views, gain other relating knowledge...) Online classes budget cut ? Flexibility? How does that work for students needing structure? Our current system does work need to learn to use flexibility wisely. Were excited about: Should be based on capabilities and how we learn, not age! Learning individually Recognizing outside of the classroom learning like: arts,

High Standards
Reactions: Wording was confusing, vague and irrelevant. Angry Seems like old system but more difficult. Not what students need to go further. Those who dont try wont. Even harder for students who do try hard. What is teamwork? Group projects? Pyramid? Good to have group skills, also need to learn how to be self-sufficient. reform is no use anymore, it is simply improving a broken model what we need is not evolution, but a revolution in education. Motivates not just the students, but the teachers as well. Adult involvement. (Enforces all to put in time and effort.) Challenges: People need their own drive high school courses dont always help work habits are whats important, but they dont count. Higher standards make it harder on those kids who try so hard and are still struggling. Educators have to learn to teach the new curriculum effectively. If they dont know it, makes it harder/confusing. Forcing a new strategy on teachers

Learning Empowered by Technology

Reactions: Its evolution, not revolution. Were moving what kids do at home into the class. Being pushed in and tackled on not integrated. It has revolutionary potential. Many negatives: chances for this to go wrong. Challenges: Leading Spell Check Fundamental grammar and spelling is forgotten cant always rely on technology. Expensive; financial burden. Cannot majorly impact students learning. Plagiarism could become a bigger problem. What provisions are being taken to help integrate special needs kids into this plan? How do you hold interest use tech to support learning not dominate. Were excited about: Faster and easier learning and communication. More fun to learn/more engaging.

B.C. Student Voice

Student perspectives on the Key Elements of the B.C. education plan March 30, 2012

Personalized Learning

Quality Teaching and Learning

What are the ethnics behind assessing personality? Pro-D days should be discussions like this.

Flexibility and Choice

sports, science and leadership. Reflecting time regarding what we learn Learning experiences beyond the classroom. (Field trips!) Applying learning to real life. Questions: What is needed? Revising the school calendar to fit in time and quality. Is this a possibility? Why cant we learn at our own pace? Reviewing what classes are really needed. (ex: planning.) Why does our education always come second to the money? Ipads replacing text books? Integrating technology to save money on paper and ink, etc. Work on technology like Ipads or laptops. Budget: rethink how and why money is spent. More teacher support where needed.

High Standards
should be given time to learn it should have help with lesson plans, have sample exams, etc. Pretty words interesting at first until you realize your intelligence has been insulted? As if students arent trying already. We understand that theyre trying to give students the chance personalized learning but how is that going to be done?! This plan is vague! If its about where kids are going, what we want to do, and how we want to do it Tell us how. We wont do it if we cant understand it! The change that will take place in assessment activities. Some students acquire more attention. Were excited a Leadership courses High standards will ensure it will remain up-to-date. Commitment to the idea. Questions: What specific intervention strategies are available for teachers, students, and parents? Counselors-more involvement with students (create a better relationship with each student.)

Learning Empowered by Technology

Preparing students for a more realistic future (involving technology) etc. Questions: Programs for teachers to learn our technology. What about keeping traditional methods? Funding? We get internet. What about resources to use it? Students and teachers working together to choose when to use and how to use the technology.