Community Collaboration for Learning and Change

1. Community Collaboration for Learning and Change Annabel Lucy Smith, Consultant, The American School in London www. annabelsmith.org

2. The ModelAcademic, Experiential, Collaborative www. annabelsmith.org

3. Why (now)? • Equip young people to live a good life. • Widespread emphasis on global, character, leadership. • Need to fulfill school mission / motto. • Questions of identity, individual & community; TCKs. • College Admissions. • Skills delivery – no more powerful medium. Academically challenging - Nobel Laureates. • Community-building inside school & out. • Escape the pressure of grades and academic achievement. • New model, & role models, of social entrepreneurship. • Shifting learning to new venues; technology to connect. • Reality as hook for passion & purpose: everyone does best work & likes themselves. www. annabelsmith.org

4. Key Approaches I • Combine academic and experiential learning. • Collaborate and partner. • Engage all students in global learning and the urgent issues of the day. • Mainstream all programs, make them rigorous, intentional and progressive. • Join the dots to maximize existing programs, resources and people. • Rethink community service as community learning, community interaction and community partnership. • Redefine community as an asset rather than a deficit. • Create a portfolio of sustained local and global community partnerships. www. annabelsmith.org

5. Key Approaches II • Link global and local community interaction directly to curriculum. • Create intentional shared language. • Emphasize student leadership and student voice. • Develop tools for evaluation, feedback and record-keeping. • Understand that we can do harm as well as good. • Story telling, witnessing and community mapping. • Celebrate relationships, share experiences, create publications. • Making ‘the other’ real. • Project-based, NOT counting hours. www.annabelsmith.org

6. Community Partnerships • Map your local community – who lives there, what are their stories? • Presume nothing. Ask, listen & talk. Recognize and encourage expertise in others. • Focus on people, they’re the point. • Remember you’re working with vulnerable people. • Be thoughtful and careful. Do no harm. • Use athletic model: seasons, coaches, parent evenings, emotional support; celebration. • Reflect, record, talk it out, celebrate, find the learning, evaluate. Have kids teach one another. • Develop a code of conduct. www. annabelsmith.org

7. Community Partnerships: what not to do • Believe in a single story or reinforce stereotypes.. • Take people out of their context. • Paint walls other people can paint for wages. • Wear your sunglasses, sanitize your hands, get your phone out, just hang with your friends. • Expect it to be quick or easy or to always run on time. • Do hit and run, voluntourism, tokenism or trophies. • Pay anyone or give students credit. • Apologize. www. annabelsmith.org

8. Linking to Curriculum • Dedicated tracks, electives or Foundations courses. • English / Social Studies, Science, Math, Languages, Art & Design etc. • Assembly speakers / guests to reinforce. • Storytelling & witnessing. • Germantown Academy electives. • Taft: Service Learning class, Senior Projects, Global Scholars Program. • ASL: Foundations, SL program in MS + class,electives – Global Issues, Alternatives (Experiential Education week) www. annabelsmith.org

9. Case Study 1: Taft Service Learning Elective • Community-based once a week, • classroom-based 3 times a week. • Orientation to neighborhood. • Orientation from Head of School. • Weekly briefing from social worker. • Collaboration with teachers. • Project-based triangular partnership. • with another Taft partner. • Visits from local government experts. • Regular journaling & project-based • assessment. • www. annabelsmith.org

10. Taft and Children’s Community School • “Countries plagued by civil war and the Aids epidemic in Africa seem to need our attention so much more than Children’s Community School, but in reality we cannot solve the problems of Africa or even the city of Waterbury on our own. That has been the most difficult concept to grasp: how limited we are…” Barry Clarke ‘09 • “Before class I never appreciated how important it is to take initiative. It only takes one person to start a movement. Knowing the problem is the first step toward serving, and I believe that in class we have learned the problem and are ready to find our way to help.” Julie Foote ‘09 • “Although we assisted with physical tasks, like serving meals and organizing the food storage, the biggest help was probably in just making a personal connection with people who came there for a meal. It seemed to really brighten their day to have someone acknowledge them and talk with them. A lot of these people seemed really lonely.” Sam McGoldrick ’09 www. annabelsmith.org

11. ASL MS Service Learning Program • 5th Grade Homelessness • 6th Grade Clean Water • 7th Grade Human Rights • 8th Grade Micro-Finance • www. annabelsmith.org

12. The American School in London: Community Opportunities Year 1 Pilot: • 173 Students; 9 3-season • 24 Coaches; 8 3- season • 16 Projects • 12 Partner Organizations www. annabelsmith.org

13. ASL Local Community Partners Year 1 • Kilburn Park School • The Winchester Project • Doorstep Homeless Families Shelter • Westminster Refugee Consortium • St John’s Hospice • Whizz Kidz • St John’s Wood Adventure Playground • Sparks • Solace Women’s Aid • QuintinKynaston School • Right to Play • Swiss Cottage School www. annabelsmith.org

14. ASL and The Winch Protesting 60-80% cuts “I enjoyed being able to connect with the kids and seeing them open up and start to trust me” 11th grade boy “It made me really step back and take a look outside just the ASL community” 12th grade girl www. annabelsmith.org

17. ASL and QK • Robotics • Green Cities • Cooking Club • Joint School Councils • Right to Play Basketball • Triangular with Winch – Harlem Learning Journey • Multiple points of contact “I loved getting to know QK students and being able to form my own opinions on the school.” 10th grade girl “My favorite part was creating friendships and finding an alliance between ASL and QK.” 12th grade girl www. annabelsmith.org

18. ASL, The Winch and QK Learning together in another venue: The Harlem Learning Journey • Students from 2 schools & a community centre visit New York • http://vimeo.com/33226212

19. How do we know if it’s working?(Where’s the learning & change?) • Ask. • Have a plan. • Collectively, identify: goals, reasonable timeframe, success criteria. • Develop appropriate tools for assessment – digital passport, experiential cv, Senior Projects. • Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate: regular feedback from all participants. • Organize data, share & celebrate. • Make changes & adapt. • Recognize young people & community members as experts. • Track impacts in other venues. www. annabelsmith.org

20. In Short.. • Audit • Join the dots. • Talk with community leaders, identify potential, mutually-beneficial partnerships & projects. • Pilot. • Expand to the willing. • No need for huge up-front spending. • Move towards tipping point – create opportunities to share this work – publication, film, testimony. • Bring parents in early, get everyone together, partners, students, coaches, parents. • Participants become advocates; peer learning. • Develop school signature approaches & partnerships. www. annabelsmith.org

21. Terence: “Nothing human is foreign to me” www. annabelsmith.org