Benjamin Franklin Middle School teachers recently held a "Spring Showcase" so parents can get a glimpse at what their children are learning.
Students along with their parents filled the corridors of the East Hall at Benjamin Franklin Middle School Thursday evening. The reason for the gathering was not for teachers to discuss grades or behavior with the parents; instead it was to give the parents a chance to see for themselves just what those elective courses that students signed up for at the beginning of the year were all about.
Parents were treated to musical serenades by band members playing in the halls, drama skits in the auditorium, as well as refreshments that were prepared by he students in the Home Economics class. Parents also were able to view a gallery of art works which are hung throughout the halls of the school.
Cathy Russell, the Family and Consumer Sciences (Home economics) teacher for the sixth grade, along with other sixth grade elective course teachers, put together the Spring Showcase in order to give the students a chance to let their parents see what they were learning.
Current elective courses are much more in-depth than the courses most of us remember taking as a child. Students are now given a chance to explore whether they know it or not, possible career options. Elective courses combine all the knowledge of other courses like mathematics, English, and even history, to give students a chance to see why the courses they love to hate are so important in real life situations.
Susan Farris teaches the Scan Tek courses, which are really several courses rolled into one. Students are given hands on instruction in fields such as, Health services, automotive repair, robotics, and even Aero Space technology.
In today’s economy, courses like Scan Tek are giving students a glimpse of the current and future job market. More and more traditional manufacturing jobs are being lost to other countries due to cheap labor, so therefore the United States is fast becoming a service and technology based economy.
Some students actually improve their grades in other courses by being involved in elective instruction. One reason for this is that they learn and retain information better by taking a hands on approach more so than simply being taught in a traditional class or by hitting the books at home.
The photo gallery for this event has been posted: Set 1 - Set 2
