By Margaret Hopper
In a recent interview with Stout Principal David Lougee, he insisted that two ideas be sent to the community: great things were happening at the elementary school, and also, his door is always open for people who want to know more about what is being done and for getting better information about questions they may have.
Lougee says the most important thing teachers do, and only they can do it, is give kids the tools and materials they need to do a good job of learning, and the support and confidence that they are loved and appreciated while they try to learn. A child's mistakes are appropriate, and kids learn from them. Teachers help them through the process. It is important to give students the right curriculum to make the processes fit the experience, and to make it all work together.
He said Stout has an excellent staff at this time, and he couldn't ask for a better one. The kids are motivated to learn, especially when they know all the adults are helping, hoping and expecting the best for them. The encouragement students get at school is personal and genuine, and their response is improving constantly. The state rated Stout a B grade, up from the year before.
The challenges are there. In the past, the equipment just wasn't there. One factor was the computers. They were limited and outdated. But in this past year, he has watched Ben Potts and the technology department make great strides with laptops, iPads and other upgrades. There is more equipment and it is better. He says he is amazed at the progress in a very brief time, and he is happy that Stout is next in line for bandwidth expansion.
Stout has an after-school program and about 124 of the nearly 400 students have chosen to be a part of it. In the past, students showed great urgency to get to the computer equipment, as there wasn't nearly enough of it, even though it wasn't the greatest. As the budget permits, they are getting more, and each classroom has more, too.
A new development for the after-school program is drama. It is competing successfully with the computer interest. Apparently the kids hadn't been exposed to it, and they are coming up with something to present at the school carnival on the 27th. They hope to raise enough money with the project to be able to buy a play that they can put on in the future. The interest is there and the kids work hard, he says.
Another element Lougee says the school needed was the interest of the parents. An early effort that turned out well was Donuts for Dads, because he knew that getting the fathers to come and show interest was very important for the kids. The moms responded to Muffins for Moms, too, but dads often didn't know how much they were needed. Now there is a PAC; Parents' Advisory Council, for Stout. At first he set the pace and did more of the work, but parents have stepped up and taken offices, showing they can help in the decision making the school needs. It is grassroots and it is good for everyone. Attendance is picking up.
When this reporter entered the building, she noticed big WELCOME letters on a wall of the reception area, and every person she met said something brief and smiled as she walked to the office. This didn't "just happen." She knows now that every person in the school has decided to be a personal representative telling the community that Stout Elementary is making changes and wants the community to know it is on the way up. No one told this reporter, but she saw it.
And the students know it, too. Teachers and support staff are watching the kids to see who does something special for someone else. Lougee had some certificates all filled out, naming the child and the considerate act they will be thanked for, at a later date. The good things people do will be rewarded in some way. Stout is celebrating success.
Some of the little perks extend to visitors and parents. One group of parents attended to see their children win awards. By the time they walked out, they saw themselves and their children on the video board near the office, certain proof that someone is watching and saying thanks for the good things in a very personal way.
But the best may be that the curriculum is changing to allow teachers and students to have more direction in the learning process. Lougee says that is still Phase I, with plans for better things to come. Something he saw in an in-service training at San Diego, called Project Based Learning, gives the structure for freeing up students to make decisions about ideas they create and carry out, themselves. Phase I is about getting the tools and skills ready, preparing students for the choices.
Phase II has to do with introducing the vision and the know-how to the teachers who will look at a whole new set of ways to teach children, and, says Lougee, they will have to have time to see the big picture and become comfortable with it. It is a whole new way of setting up the lessons and expected results.
Phase III will be the implementation effort. Older students will have the opportunity to make a plan, do the research and come up with a very special solution to a real problem the child sees. The product will be very creative and develop the higher thinking skills as the child works the ideas through. Leadership, persuasion, visual presentations, many things will be possible in ways only the child can imagine and bring into being. Younger students will be developing their ideas and skills in many areas.
Can children really do things this complex and individual? Lougee thinks they can. It will take solid foundations for skills development and time and insight to get there, but he thinks students so challenged will be the pride of any community. They will undertake projects that can turn them into leaders and thinkers of a high order. This is the essence of education—ability, responsibility, and a stake in making society better.
Meanwhile, the principal says his real job is to keep every child safe and to make sure that they actually feel safe in the school setting. The other job is to help teachers find ways to bring better learning experiences to each child. The limitations need to be removed, the opportunities shown, so kids will dare to excel in the work, some of which they will personalize and create on their own. Many new, untried things can happen here in Silver City. Lougee wants to see just how far kids can go, and remember, his door is open. He will talk with the community.