Flight School
High School Credit Recovery program (for invited high school students)
Manchester School District
Grade level/Age Range of Students in Program: High school students who are over-age and under-credited.
Primary Student Needs Program is Designed to Address
This 3.5 week program was designed for over-age and under-credited students. Forty-five students were selected based on quality of application components, student credit need, and evidence of potential student success in the program. Flight School's design is interdisciplinary, project-based, and mastery-based. Philosophically, the objective of the program was to re-engage students who were previously disengaged or disconnected from school.
While at FLIGHT, students are continuously reminded of their purpose. This program, as shown in the students “Flight Plan”, is about them doing something for themselves and their Future. It’s about Learning, it’s about Imagining a different path for themselves and their learning. They will be reminded of their short- and long-term Goals. They will be expected to be Here, both physically and mentally, and they will be challenged to Trust themselves, the adults, and their peers.
Students were divided into 3 cohorts of 14 students. The purpose behind using a cohort model was to quickly establish relationships amongst the students within the group. The school day ran from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm, and students took 2 classes per day. In each class, students could work toward demonstrating mastery of power standards in 2-3 different content areas via Project Based Learning (with embedded small group tutoring support).
Most Innovative or Successful Elements of the Program
- Inquiry driven learning.
- Project based learning.
- Mastery based grading.
- Culturally relevant learning.
- High levels of support staff.
- Adults making authentic relationships with the students.
- Developing a sense of belonging through team building.
- Immediate and continuous feedback.
- A strict attendance policy with follow up from adults in the program.
Co-teaching - In Flight School, teachers of different disciplines co-taught. In our Data Science class, for example, students can earn a social studies credit, a math credit, and a half-credit in tech ed. They also had a CCSU NextGen intern, our auditorium/tech supervisor, and two community partners teaching in and/or supporting this program.
How Are the Outcomes of the Program Measured
- Attendance – 98%
- Survey of students – 93% of students reported they will attend school at a high rate in the following school year and their grades will improve.
- Credits earned - Students were evaluated based on mastery of content specific skills, not completion of work. Of the 42 students who completed the program, only 2 did not earn all 8 credits. This means 95% of the students earned all 8 credits.
Program Contact
Amanda Navarra, Innovation and Research Strategist, Flight Program development
Amanda.Navarra@mpspride.org
Michelle Rivera, Flight Site Coordinator & Bryan McCain, Program Implementation