Welcome to the July edition of Learning Unboxed. As many of you know, we tend to take the month of July off, but we have heard from our loyal listeners that you would love content during your summer vacation. So we have crafted a set of four episodes to run during the July holiday that are all about exploring student agency. For those working to make a meaningful shift in your classrooms, schools, and communities, the most crucial place to start is making the decision to shift from a teacher-led ecosystem to one that is student-led. But this shift can be daunting. So join us as we explore four examples of student-centered learning that demonstrate what's possible.

We know that the modern school wasn’t designed for education and that it’s woefully inadequate at meeting the needs of today’s students and the work environment of the future. So much so that small tweaks aren’t enough to fix it — it has to be redesigned completely.

Nathan Gorsch, Founding Principal of Village High School in Academy School District 20 in Colorado Springs. Like us at the PAST Foundation, Nathan recognized that our current model of education — the factory model — did not suit kids well, and so he sought out to reinvent high school with the idea of rebuilding it from the ground up. Joining him is Katie Flanagan, a teacher at Village High School, as well as Kate Bennett and Kenny Dufalt, two students attending the school.

We dive into what Village High School is, why it’s a unique hybrid model, and why those out there thinking of transformative education should consider some of the components of that hybrid model.

To learn more, visit: pastfoundation.org

We unbox:

• The student experience as an impetus for innovation 
• Why students are drawn to Village High School
• The concerns and pain points of a non-traditional education
• Scaling this model of education for the future

Resources:

• Learn more: village.asd20.org
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/nathan-gorsch-759b287a

Produced by Nova Media