Daniel Mears / The Detroit News L'Anse Creuse summer school teacher Julia Tomaro, top left, and students Sarah Rawski, front left, Kathryn Thacker, Heather Nichols and Courtney Terrell, all 11, design a book titled "Cycle" for a class project.

Students design course work
Macomb program sparks more interest

By Janet Sugameli / Special to The Detroit News

Daniel Mears / The Detroit News Kathryn Thacker, left, and Heather Nichols have made clay balls. Inside of the sun-baked spheres are memories or wishes written on small pieces of paper. The program        The pilot summer-school program sponsored by the L'Anse Creuse school district, the Macomb Intermediate School District and the Michigan Department of Education was centered around a constructivist approach to learning, which differs from the traditional method by:    * Having students work with teachers to design their curriculum.    * Having students determine their learning goals, as opposed to teachers establishing such goals for them.     Comment on this story Send this story to a friend Get Home Delivery

   CHESTERFIELD TOWNSHIP -- In a world of lectures, lesson plans and standardized tests, one new summer school class has taken a different approach.
   Students pick their topics of study, they are encouraged to explore the topic in ways that interest them, and they present their findings in a way that suits them best.
   Hosted by the L'Anse Creuse school district, the Macomb Intermediate School District and Michigan Department of Education, the pilot program offered students from throughout the county the opportunity to learn what is most interesting to them. Now the class is available throughout the state.
   Courtney Terrell, 11, came from Eastpointe each day to take part in the five-week program. She said she learned "interesting and exciting things." She also learned how to organize thoughts and ideas.
   "I think it's really cool because the teachers say there is no right or wrong answer so whatever you say or feel, they don't criticize you about it," Courtney said. "There are no boundaries and that's different than regular school."
   The program has helped her prepare for the next school year, especially when it comes to paying attention in class. "I think I'm going to be more ready for school, more prepared to learn and more focused," she said.
   The idea is to get academically advanced students, in the transition from elementary to middle school, hooked on a concept and then, working with their natural curiosity, link learning to their personal interests. For example, to ignite the students' interest in science, the group discussed how science and cooking are closely connected.
   "I gave them samples to taste about experimenting in cooking, followed by a presentation about which job each ingredient, like chemical agents, performs in a recipe," teacher Julia Tomaro said. "We made fortunes for each other, which we read during our meal. We also talked about health-smart techniques, like when to throw away the yolk of an egg and when to add extra fiber to a recipe, to make eating better for your heart."
   The pilot program is titled MiCLIMB, Clarifying Language in Michigan Benchmarks, and it centers on what educators call a constructivist teaching approach rather than the traditional teaching method.
   While traditional philosophy is focused on behaviors, such as rewards, punishment and teacher-centered instruction, the constructivist approach believes students must create their own meaning and motivation, said Michael Gielniak, the Macomb Intermediate School District's consultant for talent development.
   "There's substantial brain research that points to the constructivist model being more effective for learning. But we're really still in the experimental stage of testing this philosophy," he said.
   Sarah Rawski, 11, enjoys the hands-on part of the course, which took her from making stamps to making books and developing a play. She was one of the nearly 30 students taking part in the course.
   "(The teachers) let us vote, and they take our opinions," Sarah said. "It's fun because we learn at the same time we're doing something fun. I think a lot of kids will be jealous (they didn't attend) because they thought it would be like school."
   Tomaro and two colleagues, Christine Kuhl and Ben LaFaramboise, taught the pilot program at the Macomb Intermediate School District and they will bring what they learned back to their home districts.
   "We begin with a student-teacher dialogue that propels their learning from their place of interest," Tomaro said of the program.
   In some cases, educators lose student interest when they use the directive teaching method. "Here, the motivation is intrinsic because we ask them want they want to learn," she added.
   Gielniak said MiCLIMB is intended for teachers to use as an educational guide in researching topics and developing lessons.
   MiCLIMB was in the development phase for two years until the summer program was launched in L'Anse Creuse.
   Gielniak said the first run brought on a few bugs. "But the ability of the students to work on their own interests worked very well, and we were able to use the MiCLIMB tool to build instruction around their interests. Almost every child really enjoyed the inclusion of the arts -- dance, music, theater and visual, into the program."
   Now it's a matter of encouraging local school districts in the county to embrace the new teaching philosophy. In addition, he said every teacher in the state will receive information about the program and receive some training in it.
   Sharon Gire, vice president of the state Board of Education, said she's excited by the program.
   

Janet Sugameli is a Metro Detroit free-lance writer.