Headmaster Bill Taylor knows that boys’ learning is optimized when they are challenged in an active, experiential learning environment. This month, Taylor announced a distinctive enhancement to the Trinity-Pawling curriculum that will broaden our students’ experience and better prepare them for college and career. With the support of a grant from the EE Ford Foundation, along with their enthusiastic approval for the program, this spring we mark the official launch of The Practicum for Civic Leadership at Trinity-Pawling.
The Practicum for Civic Leadership will be a requirement for graduation that exists in two components, challenging students to consider their passions and engage with the world in ways that will promote deeper awareness, creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication.
- Students in their junior year are assigned to learning teams which will be tasked with a real-world problem of local, national, or global relevance to solve. Students will learn collaborative, problem-solving strategies and will be assessed on how well these strategies are applied toward creative solutions. Teams will be assessed on the quality of their research, the efficacy of their proposed solution, and the effectiveness of their communication.
- Rising seniors will be asked to consider and explore an area of personal interest that falls into either a vocational or avocational realm. During their summer in between their junior and senior years, students will be asked to engage in a deep dive into their chosen area of interest. The School, working through its alumni and parent network, will identify mentors who will assist students in their exploration and experiential engagement with their chosen area of interest. In their senior year, each student will create and present an artifact that summarizes their active learning experience. Students will be assessed on their depth of study, creativity, and communication.
“The Practicum for Civic Leadership is an innovative program that will enable students to explore their intellectual engagement with the world around them in a way that allows them to gain a greater understanding of their distinctive gifts and talents,” says Taylor. “Propelled by the changes in the world of education, Trinity-Pawling is dedicated to building a culture of achievement in which expectations are high, and potential is owned by the students,” he adds.
The Practicum’s inquiry-based program will foster problem-solving skills, promote personal exploration, and augment authentic communication. As a result, graduates of Trinity-Pawling School will be better prepared to be leaders in an ever-changing world as engaged, informed citizens.