Preparing Students for the Future

By Jedidjah De Vries

Students today face a rapidly changing, economically challenging, technology driven world. We need to do more to prepare our students for this world.

1. Integrating Technology

Classes should use the web to supplement classroom material. At a minimum, course information should be available online. This will make it easier for students to stay on top of their school work as well as allow parents to be better informed and more involved. In many instances it is possible to use the web as a second teaching tool. A model for this is the open courseware initiative at MIT (http://ocw.mit.edu/index.html). This resource - available free to all of our students - can be an invaluable supplementary teaching tool in our college prepatory high school classes.

In order to make use of these tools we need to ensure that all students have access to the internet and are comfortable using it. This can easily be accomplished. We can give all students e-mail addresses and make sure computers are accessible in classrooms and libraries. It is great that we have computer labs which are open during school and a short while before and after, but, their hours need to be extended so students can use them for homework on a regular basis.

Basic computer skills should be an integral part of our students' education at an early age. Typing should be considered a basic skill and elementary school children need to be taught how to use the internet for research. Computers should not be considered as something extra but as something basic.

The infrastructure for these changes is already in place. What is lacking is the focused application of modern technology to help our students learn and prepare them for the technological world they face. At very little additional cost we can use the computer resources already present in our schools to enhance our children's education and prepare them for the future.

2. Preparation for College

A strong focus on higher education should be present at every level, from elementary school on up. We should teach our students, and believe ourselves, that college is for everyone, not just the gifted few. At the moment 80% of our high school graduates go to college, however only 28% of those go to a four year university. Colleges are becoming more and more competitive, with the number of applicants rising faster than the increase in available spots for most universities. We need to ensure that our students are ready to face this future and are able to compete on the highest levels. More of our students should be completing college prep courses, and ultimately every class should have as its goal the readying of our students for their future college career. Santa Barbara has the resources to be one of the top districts in the state and to send our students to the top universities in the nation. It is wonderful how many of our students are going to college, however, our goal should not just be college but competitive colleges. Councilors should be provided with the resources to help students apply to these universities.

3. Community Resources

Education should not be limited to the classroom. There are many opportunities in our community for students to learn. We should be actively reaching out to bring these opportunities to our students. This can be done in the form joint programs as well as field trips. Many teachers avoid field trips because of the hassle involved. The school district should do all it can to make field trips easier and actively encourage them. There are also a number of institutions with which joint programs would be very beneficial to our students. For example:

• The University

  We have a world class university with state-of-the-art science labs, Nobel laureate professors and a wonderful faculty which could be brought into the classroom as a supplement in many fields. Furthermore, students could be brought to the university to make use of the resources there. Not only would this aid our students' education but it would also acquaint them with the university and encourage them to continue their education once they graduate.

• Museums

  We are blessed with a number of fine museums, such as the Museum of Art and Museum of Natural History. Both could be used to supplement study in their respective fields while fostering a sense of pride in their community. We should show our students that museums are wonderful places to have fun and learn.

• Culture

  Our community has a number of amazing theatre and music groups. Their performances should be used to introduce our students to the arts. And the school board can create a working relationship with them to bring experts in their respective areas into the classroom to teach.

• Parents & Community Members

  Perhaps our greatest resource are parents and community members. Students do better when their parents are involved in their education. We cannot wait for parents to come to us, we must go to the parents and make it clear that we expect them to get involved. It is the school's responsibility to help mediate communication between parents and teachers. The Board should actively solicit community input and ideas. One way this can be done is by creating an online forum for feedback and conversation between the board and the community.

4. Budget

We should be looking for creative solutions to ensure that available funds are used effectively and efficiently to provide resources to classrooms so that our students can receive the best possible education. Whatever economic crises the school board may face the students should not be left to bare the consequences. We must ensure that teachers have the tools they need to do their job because ultimately the strength of our district lies not in how much money we spend but in our teachers. Attracting and retaining highly qualified teachers should be a priority, because not only do the educate our students, but they are their role models and mentors. No amount of money poured into a school can replace a good teacher.

We can look to technology as a way to provide teachers and students with more resources, without a significant increase in cost. Technology will also allow school to more easily share resources amongst themselves, for example by using an intranet to exchange ideas, lesson plans and even library catalogues. All of which will ease the pressure on the budget by eliminating the need to recreate the same program for each school separately. Furthermore, in the long run technology can be used to streamline bureaucracy.

The school board should reach out to the community and search for alternative sources for funding. For example, we could partner with the university to provide science facilities or with the various musical groups to provide those resources. The community has many facilities that the district should take try to take advantage of, without having to recreate them on its own. This approach would provide the programs to students while alleviating budget constraints. We should also work with the community directly, and look to them for funding. In return, the district could make available to the community many of the resources it has, such as school libraries, computer labs and facilities.

By working with others we can find ways to continue giving students the best education possible.