RE: BUILDING ON OUR TENET FOR THE LEARNER

As an Adult Education AP of Counseling, I interact daily with high school drop-outs, now adult, who realize that they need to earn the high school diploma. In interviewing the student and reviewing the results of the placement tests (reading comp, writing, and math), and discussing "what happened" in high school I ask why they dropped-out.

A significant number of these students score moderate on the reading test, poorly in math, but have excellent writing skills painting a beautiful picture with pencil and paper.

Having taught Graphic Arts (printing) for 23 years and having been involved in the printing industry all my life, I have worked closely with gifted people, Graphic Artists and designers.

During this interview process, to those who have written so well, I ask the question, do you draw or paint, can you sing, or play an instrument. The usual answer is "YES" to one or more of my inquiries. Another "yes" is answered to the fact that school was boooooooring, so they quit, mentally, then put action to that attitude and dropped-out of high school, usually by the end of their second year.

As a counselor it is exciting to deal with this lack of direction, as employability is easy and eventually they will have high paying jobs. If I can get these students focused on learning employability skills using their gifts, then the motivation for earning the high school diploma is automatic (no high school diploma, no job).

For the not-so-gifted learners finding something within each student to get them excited about themselves and the world that they live in, and the opportunities that await them while more challenging, still yeilds positive attitudes towards their "job" of earning the high school diploma.

I believe this is the "building on our tenet for the learner" as John Vasconcellos so aptly described.

Tony Salso

P.S. I would have to plead Michael Novick's statement from yesteday, where it is impossible to keep up with our day to day responsibilities and do anything more than scan the threads.