SOUTH DEERFIELD – Frontier Regional High School will build upon last year’s introduction of 12 Advanced Placement courses. Over 220 students in the 2015-2016 academic year took these exams, a way to earn college credits.
Around 81 percent scored a 3 or higher, according to Frontier Regional High School Principal Darius Modestow. The school will add an AP computer science course in 2016-2017.
The school will keep a focus on social justice, which includes a series of student forums begun last year. Modestow said the subject is appropriate for the times. The social justice topics will revolve around civil discourse and inclusion. A core group of student leaders and faculty led the forums and social justice programs. The program will expand to the overall student population.
The high school’s music department added the History of Rock and Roll and World Percussion to its course offerings.
The district will continue to expand opportunities for professional development, Modestow said, setting aside 25 days for it. Students will be released an hour or so early on professional development days.
“We’re going to be working on different student needs, including inquiry-based instruction,” he said. “We’re also modifying our science courses to the 201 science standards, which were adopted by the state.”
He expects more integration of technology in classrooms across the district. Teachers and students mostly used the affordable Google Chromebooks and associated software. Several districts in the region went a similar route in 2015-2016.
Over the summer, the district completed a wireless network structure. Gone are the days of overstuffed binders, dusty chalkboards and notes scrawled on pieces of lined paper. “We now have a 100 percent wireless classrooms. We’re just about at a one-to-one ratio for students,” he said. Besides the Chromebooks, which retail for under $300, computers are available at stations in classrooms and school libraries.
Modestow said the emphasis was on improving the wireless infrastructure in the middle school. A majority of assignments and projects will be performed on the Chromebooks. “Now those same students who are entering the high school are getting the same support,” he said. “It’s beginning to end, from the seventh grade to the 12th grade here.” He added that the wireless infrastructure in schools is strong enough to add devices and technology without sacrificing speed. “That’s what we changed in the last year or so,” Modestow said. In the past, the wireless coverage was spotty.
Discussions on use of technology in the classroom revolve around a one-to-one or teachers controlled models. The one-to-one model is based on students owning or leasing the device, which they carry with them throughout the school day.
Five professional development days in 2015-2016 focused on technology and how it enhances classroom learning, he said. “The teachers were learning, applying and coming back and learning more,” Modestow said.
Teachers learned how to implement Google Classroom, a widely used platform developed by the search engine giant.
“It’s the idea of ongoing professional development instead of the one-shot deal,” he said. “The technology is kind of easy.”
The middle school continues to make the transition process less angst-filled for students and parents, he said. The school works in particular with students who are having difficulty with the academic milestone.
The middle school holds an ice cream social for students transferring from one of four elementary schools in the district. The whole incoming class is invited along with parents. The students tour the building and get to know each other.
“It’s come a long way from years ago when kids were terrified that first day of school. They were afraid to open their locker or get lost,” he said.
At Whately Elementary School Principal Peter Crisafulli said results will be unveiled from a climate survey the school’s Climate Committee conducted last year.
The school’s theme for 2016-2017 will be “Each One of Us is Responsible for Creating a Culture of Positivity and Kindness..”
“Our School Council will also focus their efforts on this Climate initiative as well as a districtwide initiative around meeting the needs of diverse learners through Differentiated Instruction that works,” he said.
Staff and teachers will work on building a Responsive Classroom, introduce a monthly All-Star School meeting, which will include sing-alongs and student/staff driven agendas.
“We will continue to offer Art, Music, Physical Education, String and Band Instrument Instruction and Organic Gardening on our campus. And we also have a very healthy lunch program with an amazing salad bar and homemade soups,” said Crisafulli.