Date/Time of Observation
Date: September 24, 2019
Time: 12:56pm-2:54pm
Program Location, School Site
Engineering Academy
School Site: Alisal High School in Salinas CA
Names of Teachers and Classrooms Observed
Teachers: Rasul Marisol Classroom B42
Martinez Ana Classroom 506
Description of Setting (Include School Demographics)
The engineering observation took place at the Engineering Academy of Alisal High School located in Salinas, California. This American public high school, opened in 1965, currently has about 2700 students, the majority of whom (about 98%) are of Hispanic ethnicity. The teaching staff consists of roughly 150 teachers, making for a 1:32 student: teacher ratio. The health observation, on the other hand, took place at the Health Academy of the same school. This school was the perfect candidate for these observations since it incorporates the LinkedIn Learning approach, centered on connecting learners with real-life experts in various fields.
Pathway Theme (Full Paragraph Description)
At Alisal High School, the school centers its teaching and learning exercise around promoting learners to achieve their life's aspirations. Additionally, learners are encouraged to be productive citizens in the global society by integrating the power of innovation into the school's strength in traditions. The school's mission is to ensure that every student learns and acquires knowledge that is practical in solving today's society's challenges.
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Program Design (Full Paragraph Description including an explanation of collaboration between teachers, staff, and members of the community)
The LinkedIn Learning Program design at Alisal High school is centered on connecting learners with field experts within Salinas, California. The experts work in collaboration with the teaching staff, and the community at large by offering practical physical lessons designed by teachers and marked by experts. In this particular setting, the learners are guided on simulated field experiences examined by teachers to ensure all the spectrums are covered.
Integrated Multidisciplinary Curriculum Content and Alignment (Describe all subject area disciplines involved in the linked learning program).
The LinkedIn Learning program at the school covers significant fields ranging from the healthcare industry, technology, and business. In so doing, the school focuses on packages like Business Software and Tools, the AEC Animation and Illustration, which focuses on audio and music and graphic design, as well as cloud computing in data science. Certified and seasoned experts steer all of these packages within Salinas, California.
Academic Core Courses (Include a discussion of English Language Arts CCSS in Literacy and Mathematics).
Some of the core courses offered at Alisal High School, as stipulated by the Salinas Union High School District (SUHSD) Course Manual include English Arts CCSS in Literacy. This course is particularly important in understanding the basics of the English language. Apart from mathematics, other courses offered include life Science, World History, American History, Foreign Language, and Physical Education. All of these courses are critical when it comes to holistic education in the sense that they ensure that the students are prepared adequately for the real world.
Real-world Relevance (Full Paragraph Description)
All the courses offered at Alison High, and more particularly, the LinkedIn Learning programs are very relevant in the world today. This is because they are tailored to answer the pressing issues of contemporary society. This includes governance, politics, and business. Learners must be prepared holistically to respond to the urgent needs of the world they live in, offering solutions while at it. To prepare students for the real world, the programs provide simulation or the real working experience. Thus, incorporating learned skills to practical skills to ensure that the programs remain relevant in the world market.
Project-/Problem-based Approach (Full Paragraph Description)
During the observation at the school regarding the LinkedIn Learning program, one thing that stood out was the approach the school takes in offering a problem-based approach to the learning needs of the students. This was seen more profoundly in the simulation provided in which the engineering students were given robots to build using commands. On the other hand, the health academy focuses on examining real issues on health by asking the students to examine the injuries the athlete had. This approach ensures that the learners are prepared to offer solutions by reviewing the current problems.
Work-based Learning (Full Paragraph Description)
On the other hand, through the building of the robot, and examining of the athlete's injuries, the learners are equipped with a work-based learning experience. They gain knowledge through practical training in addition to taught skills. By working as they learn, the students are also prepared on how to improvise on the real working environment. Not all the times will they apply their learned knowledge in every situation due to the dynamic nature of the workplace.
Industry Partner/s and Community Connections
The school collaborates with real-life coaches and professionals from various departments, including the healthcare industry through the local healthcare facility. From this facility, the Health academy can acquire tools and equipment they use in learning when it comes to simulated real-life experiences. Additionally, the community collaborates with the school to offer practical training lessons, especially in such areas as community health. The learners can go into the community and implement their knowledge to provide practical solutions to the pressing needs.
Technical Core
It is particularly interesting to see how much the program has invested in building the school's technical core to keep up with the advancement of technology in the real world. The building of robots, for instance, shows just how much the learning experience is focused on enlightening the learners on the level of technical expertise expected in the workplace.
Student Learning Outcomes (Full Paragraph Description)
The outcome of this approach is the preparation of a student body that is equipped with the necessary skills and technical know-how to answer the needs of the workplace. For instance, the outcome of the Health Academy exercise is to prepare the learners in identifying the various injuries which might not be as straightforward as the course work might point out. The result of such a training phase is to prepare students on how to improvise for better results.
Authentic Assessment (Full Paragraph Description)
The assessment process of the works done by the student is carried out by trained professionals who are, on the other hand, equipped with contemporary workplace diversity. As such, the assessment process not only checks on the learner's ability to apply the acquired knowledge to answer to a problem in the workplace. It also checks on the learner's ability to improvise so that they keep up with the advancement and dynamics in the workplace.
College and Career Readiness (Full Paragraph Description)
The LinkedIn Learning Program prepares students not only for college advancement but also for career advancement. College readiness takes place in the essence that the learners are introduced into advanced areas of study, such as practical lessons which would then be expounded on as they advance. On the other hand, the program focuses on building the various spectrums within a particular subject, which the students may narrow down to as they prepare for their professional lives. For instance, by creating the robot, engineering students can narrow in on the various departments they could major on for their careers.
Student Recruitment and Selection
The recruitment and selection process into Alisal High School and subsequently, the LinkedIn Learning program is divided into two phases; cohort scheduling and staff collaboration in the selection process. The Cohort scheduling starts with successful candidates applying for the programs offered. Candidates are taken through a rigorous process in which the teachers use classroom theory to test the student's ability. The staff then collaboratively gauge the student's performance before using the feedback gathered to enroll the students into the school's program.
Reflection: Questions to Consider
• What evidence do you see of academic and technical rigor? Explain.
Teachers work alongside learners to guide them on the various tasks allocated to them. Encouraging the learners to share their findings also ensures that the learners not only gain knowledge through the course but that they also learn from each other.
• Is learning centered on a central, career-themed issue or problem? Explain.
Yes. The tasks allocated to the students are drawn from career-related issues. For instance, the health challenge represents the dynamic nature of the healthcare industry, and the need to adopt an advanced method in solving the problem.
• Are students involved and engaged in active learning focused on real-life career interests? Explain.
Yes. They are introduced on real-life career challenges, such as the task of building the robot. This is meant to not only engage the learner's ability to the pressure of the working environment but also to extend their knowledge by incorporating what they have already learned.
• Are real-world contexts and community or workplace problems being addressed? Explain.
Yes. In the health academy challenge, for instance, the athlete does not disclose what his injury hi to the examiner. This represents the fact that in most cases, patients do not know their diseases, and it is up to the healthcare provider to figure the disease out.
• Are students engaged in solving real-world problems? Explain.
The students are actively engaged in the sense that they are left to build the robot on their own, meaning that they take full responsibility for their actions. They are given the platform to apply their skills, both learned and acquired, to solving the challenges they are faced with.
• Are students connected to internships, field-based investigations, and community explorations? Explain.
Yes. The LinkedIn Learning program connects the learners to real working environments. For instance, community exploration occurs when the students conduct community health programs geared toward making the community a clean and safe environment.
• Are students exposed to a wide variety of career-related fields? Explain.
The program offers a wide variety of career-related options in which students can advance their knowledge. These include technology, healthcare, business, and commerce, etc.
• Are students making career connections with professionals? Explain.
The students get an opportunity to make career connections with field experts. This mostly occurs during the practical training in which working professionals examine the students alongside their teachers.
• Is this program applying a variety of learning styles and effectively reaching diverse populations? Explain.
Yes. By working in groups, students can be allocated different roles which means each of them is exposed to a different challenge. This means incorporating different learning styles to answer to the needs of each student.
• Are students connecting to adult mentors and coaches from the community's industry and postsecondary partners? Explain.
Yes. This occurs through networking with a variety of professionals within the community who are in different working sectors. This gives them room to learn and be mentored by the best who offer practical lessons.
• Are students involved in performance-based exhibitions and being assessed by real-world standards of performance? Explain.
Through the challenges presented to the learners, they can be examined by real-world professionals in various fields. This means they are accessed on real-world standards of performance by the experts.
• Does this program have strong community support? Explain.
The collaboration between the school and the community demonstrates strong community support. Students are given enough room to not only apply their knowledge in the community but also to be taught by professionals from the community.
