High school educational model to be presented at forum

By: KELLY JOSEPHSEN kjosephsen@islandernews.com. Published in The Islander May 14, 2009

The Key Biscayne Education Task Force has listened to the experts regarding the ideal educational model for a local charter high school; now they want to hear from the public.

The task force has scheduled its Community Forum for 6:30 p.m. next Tuesday, May 19, in the Community Room at the Key Biscayne police/administration building. Charles Viscito, task force facilitator, said the group will present its proposed educational model for a Key Biscayne charter high school on the 19th, and then listen to feedback from the public.

The event follows a Professional Forum May 5, in which a dozen educators and other relevant experts weighed in on the group's ideas. (note from hs4kb: see presentation here)

"Our group was able to obtain valuable feedback on our proposed educational model, specifically relating to recommendations on the levels of courses that we should offer, school start time, optimal teacher allocations and services for special education students," Viscito noted.

According to Viscito, the professionals called the task force's proposed model — a mix of hands-on "project-based learning" and traditional classroom sessions, plus the im­plementation of added-value programs like International Baccalaureate courses — both in­novative and achievable.

Viscito said the "well-rounded" group in­cluded Graciela Aguado, academic director for the Montessori Institute of Broward; Claudia Basso, IB counselor, Goral Gables High School; Michael Bell, retired administrator, Miami-Dade County Public School Choice/Parental Options; Kay Brown, direc­tor of curriculum, Doctors Charter School in Miami Shores; Sylvia Cuesta, IB coordinator, Coral Gables High; Dr. Ronda Fuchs, clinical psychologist; Dr. Margaret Haun, lead teacher and director of admissions, MAST Academy; Laura Miller, director of admissions, St. Christopher's Montessori School; Dr. Michael Rizzo, child psychologist, Child Provider Specialists; Vicky Rivera, college counselor, Ransom Everglades; Andy Weiss, lead teacher, Scholars Academy Miami Beach High School; and Dr. Gwen Wurm, pediatrician and director of the Division of Community Pediatrics for the University of Miami.

The experts and task force members honed in on several specific issues, according to Viscito.

For one thing, task force members were un­decided whether to offer an IB-only curriculum for grades 11 and 12, or to also include standard-track courses. Viscito said the ex­perts were clear in their opinion: "The feed­back we got on that issue is that we should heavily consider offering a standard option, because our intent is that we're going to cre­ate a municipal charter school for all the chil­dren in the community, without an entrance requirement," he explained.

Therefore, at the Community Forum, the task force will propose a model that relies heavily on IB classes, but does also include standard-track offerings.

Meanwhile, "enrichment electives," courses in music, sports, theater, etc. which students can take based on their specific interests, also generated a lot of discussion.

Viscito said the panelists liked the fact that the electives can include project-based learning and extra-curricular activities. For example, a student who chooses music as their enrichment elective might supplement their studies by taking instrument lessons at the Key Biscayne Community Center.

That leads to community involvement, he said, as well as self-driven education.

Viscito added most students would have their enrichment elective period at the end of the day.

However, in discussions about the school day schedule during the Professional Forum, it became clear some flexibility might he in order.

Task force members, at the advice of the experts, want the school day to start between 9 and 9:30 a.m., as research suggests high school-aged students do better with a later start.

However, they also want to align them­selves on some level with the Miami-Dade County Public School District's schedule, in which classes start around 7:30 a.m., to allow local students to take advantage of inter­scholastic sports at larger public schools in the County.

To accommodate that, Viscito said, the task force will likely suggest students who play sports at other schools start their day earlier by shifting their enrichment elective to an earlier first period.

Meanwhile, on another scheduling note, task force members continue to review the school lunch period. They'll likely suggest offering 40-60 minutes for lunch, but are still investigating the possibility of some degree of an "open campus" that lets teens visit local businesses for lunch.

Viscito said they'll have a specific recommendation ready in time for the Community Forum.

Another issue that will remain somewhat up in the air until next week's event is whether to start the school with just 9th grade or with both 9th and 10th grades.

"We still need some further discussion on that particular issue," Viscito said. "We haven't come to a conclusion, but we'll make a recommendation at the Community Forum."

In general, he added, the task force will continue reviewing the feedback from its pro­fessional panelists in-depth and will make modifications to the proposed educational model accordingly.

Then, all that will be up for discussion with the public Tuesday. Viscito said he is hoping for a good turnout, as the task force wants to make sure the school reflects the desires of the public.

Indeed, task tierce members have already considered the views of parents and students.

Viscito noted members used an online sur­vey to find out what Key Biscayne residents would like to see out of a local high school.

Some of the highlights include evidence of the strong desire for IB classes among both parents and students, as well as the preference for blending classroom lessons with project-based learning opportunities, in which stu­dents meet educational benchmarks via hands-on field work.

The survey also suggests interest in a wide range of fields of study: foreign languages and international studies top the list, followed by engineering and computer technology, vi­sual arts and business management, politics and citizenship, environmental and marine sciences, performing arts and biomedical students. Culinary arts brought up the rear in terms of interest.

Outside the classroom, survey participants placed importance on intramural or club sports.

Meanwhile, while IB is one example of a popular "value-added" program, respondents also gave high marks to options like Ad­vanced Placement classes and dual enroll­ment. In general, parents and students also want a college-prep curriculum with foreign language requirements.

Full results of the survey are available on the task force's website at www.hs4kb.com.

Eventually, those results — along with the feedback from the Professional Forum and Community Forum — will be presented to the Village Council, Viscito said.

He expects the task force will be ready to report in June, about the same time Village Manager Chip Iglesias is scheduled to pro­vide his analysis on a budget for the high school.

What happens at that point is anyone's guess.

However, Viscito said his group will make it clear the school is indeed a doable project.

"We believe our model is definitely viable and feasible," he said. "We think we can create a high school that definitely can compete with any of the public schools, and more than likely competes with any of the private schools."

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