by Senator John Legg
As summer comes to a close and school doors get ready to open, one needs to simply walk into our classrooms to see how much has changed and continues to change in Florida’s educational system. The “one-room school house” is obsolete. The demands of the economy and the challenges that face our state and nation require new skills. Today students must learn not only the three R’s but also master the five C’s: creativity, content, customization, collaboration, and character.
Now, more than ever, our students need to utilize their creativity. The rigid, traditional methods of problem solving are insufficient. Today’s economy requires an ability to process and understand multiple variables. Students must be able to respond to new and unique problems facing our vibrant, rapidly changing communities. They must ask probing questions, consider options, investigate, test ideas, fail, learn, adapt, try again, and succeed.
Content matters, and it must be rigorous. More will be expected from our students as they pursue higher education or careers. No longer are classmates merely competing with one another. They are now being compared to their peers statewide, across the county, and around the globe. As Florida moves to elevate standards, it is essential that rigor be heighten in our classrooms. Content must be mastered by students in order to be competitive.
Collaboration is also essential, not just in the classroom but in the workplace. The days of listening to the “sage on the stage” has come and gone. Today’s students must work to identify problems, formulate solutions, build consensus and discover … together.
In all aspects of our lives we prosper as a result of customization, and achievement in learning is no different.
Across Tampa Bay the benefits and success of customization in education is evident. In Hillsborough, single-gender schools have prospered in areas where low achievement was the norm. Technology-focused schools, arts-themed academies, and medical and business industry certification programs have all been developed to nurture students’ inquisitive interests. Pasco County is soon to be home to a STEM-focused, aeronautic regional academy, the first of its kind. Special needs students will flourish at the new Pepin Academy, a celebrated charter school with a customized approach. Pinellas’ collegiate high school partnerships with St. Petersburg State College, veterinarian sciences schools, a graphic arts academy, and engineer-themed schools are the inspiration for what is now a statewide strategy.
These are just some of the latest innovations along with options for virtual education, themed-based schools, magnet, charter, and other opportunities that can be molded to students’ unique learning needs.
At the center of a student’s success we repeatedly find strong character. Instilled by our families and reinforced in a nurturing environment, values, determination, and self-worth fortify students, enabling them to conquer new challenges.
As the bell rings and classes begin, together let’s support our schools as they strive to be that customized environment, providing rigorous content, unleashing creativity, building collaboration, and cultivating passion.
State Senator John Legg is a Florida teacher with more than 10 years of classroom teaching experience. He is also a school administrator and the current chairman of the Senate Education Committee.
