Paper Work based Assignments

So, today I allowed my first student to do his work solely on Paperwork (which they still have to hand in digitally).  Before some of you get too excited, please understand that there are exceptions and consequences to every decision (which I will list below).  Also, this compromise is temporary. 

This year, our whole school (CNMS) has moved to a Correspondence Based learning system.  The reason we moved in this direction was due to a major problem with attendance within our High School and Adult Ed programs.  In our previous policies, if people missed more than 10 days of class, they were forced to quit (or fail) that class.  They then could not continue in their studies until the following semester.

In the Correspondence Based system, attendance is not the main issue.  The work is the main issue.  So for example, if someone completes 3 lessons in English, and then go get a job somewhere for 2 months, they can easily just come back to school and start work on lesson 4.  This opens the doors for students to take charge of their own learning (and pace of learning).  Those that want to push ahead can do so with a little bit of hard work.  Those who have "life issues" come up no longer will be penalized for missing class (and lose all their work).

So, we began searching for correspondence work to pass on to our students.  However, the world of correspondence work is rapidly changing as well.  Almost all the post-secondary and high-school institutions out there that offer correspondence work NO LONGER will offer it in a paper based format.  It is almost all online....everywhere!  We were fortunate to find other institutions old copies of course work that will work for us.  We have also started to move this work online as well.

I cannot predict the future at Big Island Lake, but I do know that this technological change is inevitable.  It has already happened all around us in the Correspondence Based system.  Being able to master this technology will open doors for our students to further not just their high school, but also their post-secondary education.  

Now with all that being said, we're also in a transition period.  So this year, after spending 2 weeks working on the Online Based system, if an adult student is STILL determined to work solely with paperwork, they will be allowed to do so (as long as they hand it in in a digital format, which is easy to learn).  Also, anyone who is determined to do everything by paperwork will not qualify for the Adult 30 PAA Computers class.  They will have to complete another class instead (this option is limited to either Economics 30 or Entrepreneurship 30).  

Although some people might not be interested in it, technology in education is here to stay - and to grow.  I encourage everyone to embrace this change sooner rather than later, but I understand if some people would like to 'take some extra time' in embracing this as well.

Feel free to come talk to me about this further if you'd like, and feel free to come join our Adult Ed class at any time during the year.  You don't have to wait for "next semester", you can do it now!

I look forward to hearing from many of you!