TALK TO Bedford County Schools summer learning coordinator Becky Miller for five minutes and you will understand that summer learning isn’t what it used to be. The State of Tennessee passed an initiative for education that is designed to support students needing extra assistance after more than a year of pandemic-impacted learning. The extra funding enabled school districts to address the obstacles that have made summer learning programs challenging in the past.
First and foremost, helping parents transport their children to and from the learning camp was a high priority. Bussing made that possible. Many parents needed additional childcare hours either before or after the learning camp and provisions were also made for that care. Nutrition is an important part of focus and brain development. The funding enabled schools to provide both breakfast and lunch for the students.
Teachers aspire to create exciting, engaging, and value-added curriculum. The flexibility given to teachers to generate activities and programs directly related to the educational needs of the students gave participating teachers a fresh spark of enthusiasm and creativity. The variety of activities and lessons they provided over the four-week camp are astounding. Imagine being in middle school and getting to extract DNA from a strawberry! There were presentations from local police and fire departments as well as 4-H leaders. Local businesses and other community members came together to inspire and educate the young minds of Bedford County.
Funding from the Bedford County Healing Trust Foundation Grant was orchestrated by Fredia Lusk at the Shelbyville Free Health Clinic.That funding gave students at Learning Way Academy two stimulating presentations by the Hands-On Science Center in Tullahoma.
Each day there was one hour of instruction in reading and math. One of the favorite items on the daily agenda was an hour of STREAM activities. Students would get to participate in hands-on activities utilizing Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts, and Math. Touching on multiple skills simultaneously engages the staff and students more thoroughly while deepening the experience of discovery. This generates enthusiasm for the learning process and can spark students to consider careers and benefits to education they may not have experienced.
The high school summer learning experience is structured a bit differently because it enables students to either accelerate toward graduation by earning more credit hours or to regain credit hours if they are behind. The opportunity to earn their high school diploma more quickly has motivated many high school students to participate in summer learning.
Feedback from the teachers at the end of the four weeks was that while they were all tired, they also felt invigorated and that the experience was an unqualified success. The funding for additional summer learning will continue through 2022 and perhaps beyond. Based on the experience of the students and teachers this year, they may find themselves overflowing with enthusiastic students next year. -GN
