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February 7, 2008
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February 7, 2008 |
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Editorial Immersed in learning The only downside of last week’s Water Gala, the grand finale of the Yellow Springs High School/McKinney School Water Immersion project, was that you couldn’t possibly see it all in two hours. But you could see a lot. You could see kids perform original songs and dances inspired by wetlands and streams. You could see water-inspired paintings, hear water poetry and learn about corporate control of water. You could see displays on water and disease, listen to a mock trial on water and the law, and attend a quiz bowl focused on water in Africa. You could see student-made documentaries exploring water and language, learn about water conservation, and examine a display on water and war. You also could see the enthusiasm of those young people, the pride of their parents, and feel the energy of teachers and staff. And you could see the overflowing parking lot and crowded halls of the Antioch University McGregor building, a testimony to the hundreds of kids, parents, teachers and community members who came together Wednesday night to celebrate the project’s success. Yellow Springs may be a small school system, but there seemed little doubt that this project provided a big opportunity for learning. And it happened because administrators, teachers and students took a big risk, the risk of throwing their hearts and minds into a new teacher-led creative and collaborative effort, and because the school community rose to the challenge. Kudos to all involved in the Water Immersion project, including the villagers and local businesses who offered resources, Antioch University McGregor for the facility, and the school board and superintendent for their support. Kudos to the project’s teacher organizers, who gave hundreds of hours to the project, and to all the teachers and students who ran with it. Kudos to our administrators, especially Principal John Gudgel and Vice-Principal Vickie Hitchcock, for creating an atmosphere in which the creative efforts of teachers and students flowed like, well, you know.
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