Meet the School Where Students Call the Shots

Students at one Wisconsin school are encouraged to create and pursue projects based on their own passions.

By Skylar L. Primm

Picture a traditional elementary school classroom, circa 2012. Students are seated in rows with their workbooks open, and the teacher stands at the head of the class with a dry erase marker. Alice learns better by doing than seeing or hearing, so she has difficulty paying attention. She gets easily overwhelmed when her distraction causes her to miss parts of the lesson.

Imagine Alice getting into trouble for not keeping up with her homework, for not sitting still, for feeling frustrated with herself and with the system of which she is part. She begins falling behind her peers, doubting herself, and is eventually placed in an Individualized Education Program.

I teach at a school that takes a very different approach with students like Alice — High Marq Environmental Charter School in Montello, Wisconsin. Twenty-eight students, grades 7 through 12, choose to enroll at High Marq to access a hands-on project-based learning curriculum and outdoor educational experiences. High Marq students generate their own project topics, moving through a structured process of proposal, research, planning, production, presentation, and reflection.

Our curriculum emphasizes the learning process and reflection over the products the students create. New students often take a semester or even a year to get accustomed to the process, since at our school, failures are just as important as successes. The best projects leverage personal relevance to draw students into higher-level thinking and an irrepressible drive for continued learning.

Once students understand the process, though, I’ve observed that they exhibit joy and passion that is too often absent from teacher-centered classrooms.

Alice came to High Marq in seventh grade, after a few rough years of elementary school. She was painfully shy and quiet, afraid to share even her name without help. Her first independent project was underwhelming. Unused to having her voice respected, she found it difficult to select a topic. At the suggestion of a parent volunteer, she settled on a survey of patterns in nature. The topic was inauthentic, she was not fully invested, and the results showed it. In the end, she crafted a satisfactory poster, but there was no substance below the surface. Her passion was missing, and so was her purpose. She was not sure why she had done the project in the first place.

Time passed, and Alice honed her skills and grew more confident. In eighth grade, she came across an article about a proposed method for cleaning up oil spills using a new absorbent material. From that seed, Alice developed a new project. Her driving question was, “How does offshore drilling work and how does it impact the environment?” It led her into an extended learning experience combining geology, environmental education, English Language Arts, and a bit of history.

She created a brochure summarizing the impacts of oil drilling on the environment, along with a two-dimensional model explaining how an oilrig works. More importantly, she found a topic that held her interest over the long haul. The project was not perfect, but it was obvious from the results that it was authentic and meaningful to Alice.

By the time she entered high school, Alice was performing at or above grade level and was recommended for dismissal from special education. In High Marq’s model of project-based learning, every student has access to an individualized curriculum, and Alice could move around at will when sitting still got to be too much for her. She no longer needed the services offered through her IEP. Now, Alice is a sophomore who speaks her mind and investigates topics as disparate as the Elvish Language and International Trade.

Properly implemented, project-based learning can have a transformational effect on teachers and students alike. Successful teachers must be open to student voice and choice and committed to rigorous, relevant learning experiences. Successful students must learn to persevere and strive for continual progress. Each new project offers both an opportunity for refinement and growth. In my time at High Marq, I have had the pleasure of watching many students like Alice develop the confidence and passion for learning that will serve them throughout their lives.

Teachers may find it strange — and a bit frightening — to take a step back and let the students drive the learning. But how can we expect students to follow their passions in life if we don’t let them practice doing it in school?

Illustration by James Lewis