Highlands Students Address Global Goals with Local Action

Through a thoughtful project-based learning process, students identified challenges and opportunities in their school and community for which they were passionate, conducted research in Spanish and English and proposed solutions. In addition to developing their Spanish language proficiency and global awareness, students developed soft skills such as communication, collaboration and problem-solving.

 

For example, during the research phase, students demonstrated acting listening skills as they interviewed internal experts including Highlands teachers and administrators. They developed surveys and interviewed peers in Spanish and English to obtain students' perspectives on their research topic. They also interviewed external experts including Beth Kendra and Jayne Bakos of the Allegheny Valley Association of Churches (AVAC), Tarentum Friendship Garden partner Pastor Cathy Blythe, Sociology Professor Dr. Jamie McCallum of Middlebury College and AFS Volunteer Rachael Ochoa. 

 

Students developed their critical thinking, problem-solving and conflict resolution skills as they worked with their group members to use their research to propose project concepts. Finally, during the Consortium for Public Education’s poster presentation on March 9 at the Rodef Shalom Congregation in Pittsburgh, they demonstrated presentation and analytical thinking skills as they explained their projects and fielded questions in both English and Spanish from sustainability experts and teachers and students in the Pittsburgh area. 

 

One of the International Studies class groups (Imari Cleckley, Grainne Dignam, Joshua Montgomery, Beckham Ochoa) explored the basic needs that some families in our community are lacking. To implement their project, they applied for and received a $300 mini-grant from the Consortium for Public Education to purchase supplies for a spaghetti dinner for the local Family Promise House shelter and personal hygiene items for the Highlands Rams Den. Additionally, one of the CHS Spanish IV class groups (Addison Arms, Gabby Godfrey, Baylei Hazlett, Natalie Stello, Abella Valenti-Baker) organized a Spring food drive at the high school and collected over 300 items for the Rams Den and local food bank.

 

We would like to thank the teachers, administrators and community experts who informed the students’ projects. And a special thanks to the Consortium for Public Education and their partners for providing this meaningful learning experience for our students.

 

 

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