Unpacking a successful high school design approach—Linked Learning

In March of this year, Barr’s Education Program announced new strategies for advancing a new vision of secondary education in New England. As part of this work, and as an extension of the Foundation’s commitment to learning in partnership with others, from time to time we will sponsor opportunities for stakeholders across our region to explore new ideas together. One example came earlier this week—a webinar on the topic of Linked Learning.

Why did we choose this topic? Across New England a growing number of districts are seeking knowledge or gaining experience with approaches that advance student success in high school and preparation for college and career. And several leaders in our region have expressed interest in knowing more about Linked Learning.

Linked Learning is a successful approach to education that is based on the idea that students work harder and dream bigger if their education is relevant to them. It integrates multiple components, including rigorous academics that meet college-ready standards with quality career-technical education. Linked Learning is a large-scale, innovative high school approach being implemented in a growing number of urban, suburban, and rural communities in California and other states across the country.

Linked Learning is a successful approach to education that is based on the idea that students work harder and dream bigger if their education is relevant to them.

This webinar covered an overview of Linked Learning’s four core components, as well as evaluation data that speaks to the effectiveness of the approach and critical on-the-ground perspectives from educational leaders who are implementing Linked Learning in their communities. The information was presented by a fantastic panel:

• Paul Hirsch, principal of the STEM Academy of Hollywood
• Gary Hoachlander, president of ConnectEd: The California Center for College and Career
• Hilary McLean, executive vice president of the Linked Learning Alliance
• John Snavely, superintendent of the Porterville Unified School District in California’s Central Valley
• Anne Stanton, executive director of Future Ready Venture at NAF

We invite you to explore the webinar recording and PowerPoint presentation below, in addition to the following resources that were mentioned during the conversation:

• Linked Learning in Motion infographic
• Linked Learning District Initiative Sixth-Year Evaluation: executive summary and full report
• Essential Elements of High Quality Linked Learning Pathways and rubric

Download the PowerPoint Presentation

Thank you to everyone who participated in this learning opportunity. We are excited to continue engaging with the education community on topics that will help connect more students to success. If you have suggestions for future topics, we would love to hear from you. You may tweet me suggestions (@jennycurtin) or leave them in the comments section below.