Hello fellow bloggers!

Today, my EDCI 336 class had the opportunity to visit the Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry located in Downtown Victoria. Upon arrival, I had no idea what to expect. My first thought was that I thought it was odd having a school in the heart of downtown. Can students just go off to the mall during lunch? Is it dangerous to be in an area where some dangerous affaires take place? I am not sure.

My peers and I sat down in a classroom and we listened to principle Jeff Hopkins explain how the school works. Basically, the 96 students at this school learn at their own pace, learn whatever they want to learn, whenever they want to learn it. Learning is taught mostly through self-guided inquiry projects and is supported by the teachers. There is no set schedule, routine, or structure. It is all up to the individual student to decide what his/her week will look like and what they will accomplish. Students can choose to work collaboratively, individually, and with or without teacher help.

My first thought when Jeff was explaining the school system was “what about if students want to go in the Sciences for Post Secondary Education, how do they learn Chemistry 12 or Physics 12 to get themselves ready for University level science courses through self-guided inquiry projects?” Jeff Hopkins answered my question by stating that the learning in the school in not strictly taught through self-guided inquiry projects. There are time slots where students can choose to go to certain “sessions” such as Math, physics, or any necessary academic class needed to graduate high school. This now made much more sense to me and reassured me that the students attending PSII are learning information needed for some post secondary schools.

I really enjoyed this visit. It really opened my eyes as to how learning can be done. It does not have to always be done the standard way where teachers stand in front of the classroom and students simply sit and listen. It can be engaging, self-drawn, and interesting. Although I do thing PSII is not flawless, I do believe it allows for students to make their learning journey their own unique journey and as a teacher, there is no better feeling than that. In my future classrooms, I definately want to incorporate self-guided inquiry projects into my teaching.

See you guys next week!

LOBO