Resources
Testimonials
- "It has been a spectacular experience. I hope that our stories may help to create a better environment for students and educators alike."
Yiely Ho, student, Templeton High School - "I always believed in listening to the voices of students and now these voices have a platform. Let them echo across our nation."
Bleema Getz, teacher, Bloor Collegiate Institute
Imagine a School... DVD User's Guide
What would schooling look like if we got it right for adolescent learners?
- Notes from the Producer and Artistic Director
- Responses from actors and videographers
- A guide to using the DVD to stimulate rich conversations among members of your educational community or the broader school community
Ten key student messages
1. The important thing about teachers is that they teach.
The cry for interesting, open-ended, relevant imaginative teaching is one of the key messages. In all three cities there was frustration about teachers who simply told students to open their textbooks and “do the work.”
There is acknowledgement that, in some cases, the “good” teachers did all the interesting stuff with the smart kids and the average students were given very little stimulating, exciting, dynamic curriculum to tackle.
Students who have difficulties need to be taught by skilled teachers who have an understanding of learning difficulties and are equipped with strategies to unlock learning potential.
2. Allow us to make mistakes.
School should be a place of experimentation where mistakes are expected and not penalized. In the documentary, Kailin talks about how “mistakes” in school have huge repercussions and how failure is not something that is seen as a natural part of the learning experience.
3. Don’t overwhelm us.
Students feel overwhelmed by the amount of assignments they are expected to do and wish that teachers conferred with their colleagues to balance the workload. If the pressures of school subject demands become too much, some students think seriously about quitting school.
4. Extra-curricular activities are important.
Students all agree that extra-curricular activities were an essential part of the high school experience and wished that teachers would be recognized publicly for the time and effort that they devote to students outside the classroom.
5. Respect us.
In the documentary Making the Play, Kevin reminds us that teachers are not “nobles” and underlines the need for teachers to create respectful classroom environments where all voices are heard and power struggles are minimized. Julio had already been in six different high schools in three years. He tells us that it was only when the administration and teachers saw beyond his reputation and gave him a chance that he began to succeed.
6. Make evaluation procedures transparent.
The students often talked about being confused about why they got the marks that they did. They were discouraged by the lack of creativity that was allowed in response to assignments and wanted more leeway in deciding how best to represent what they were learning. In the Minister for Exams, Sudi represents all those students who cannot pass the tests---and the life-long repercussions of those who fail exams.
7. Don’t make assumptions about us without getting to know us on a personal level.
Students who were immigrants want their teachers to know how difficult the transition to their new country had been and to acknowledge that experience. In the scene A day in the life of a working teenager, Rikki and Leroy present a two-voice poem to tell their story about the need to work to keep food on the table and a smile on the faces of their siblings.
8. We are vulnerable.
Students tell stories of pregnancy, thoughts of suicide, how difficult it is to make friends, how the curriculum is very challenging for some and how often - when it all gets too much they just feel like quitting.
9. Teachers make all of the difference.
Students shared story after story of teachers who went the extra mile, who believed in them and their potential and made positive futures possible. Because of their guidance and teaching students succeed academically and socially.
10. We want to succeed.
All of the students recognize that half the battle is finding the motivation to succeed. In the scene The Monument to Success, students communicate their desire to succeed despite the difficulties they face.