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Learning Through Meaningful Work
by B. J. Wise
A group of students works busily at an espresso stand, taking orders and preparing coffee drinks for parents and teachers as a parent volunteer supervises their efforts. Down the hall another group of children eagerly waits for their opportunity to purchase school supplies and nutritional snacks at the student-run store. At the same time a nine year-old boy briskly walks from computer to computer, turning on the computer network and noting any boot errors that occur as computer screens come to life. It is 9:00 A.M. at Silver Ridge Elementary in Silverdale, Washington and students are busy throughout the building working at school businesses, assisting the custodian in preparing for the day and completing a variety of tasks that contribute to the life of the school. You are observing Silver Ridge's "Meaningful Work" program in action.
Every school has a small core of students whose basic needs for attention, nurturing and competence cannot be met by the large group approach required in most public school classrooms. What the staff at Silver Ridge realized soon after opening in 1990 was that until the needs of these students were met it would be difficult to have a caring, consistent environment without disruptions from attention-getting students. With the help of the school counselor, the principal and teachers set about creating a series of proactive programs aimed at meeting the needs of these students so that they would not need to act out in the classroom. Modified and improved over the years, these programs have proven highly effective.
A whole-school project
Most of us can remember as students vying for the privilege of cleaning erasers or taking a message to the office. These small jobs brought a break in routine, showed that the teacher trusted us and made us feel important. Meaningful work is based upon the belief that students who misbehave often are lacking a sense of meaning and power in their schooling experience. When these basic needs are met, student misbehavior is decreased or eliminated.
The program is very simple but has proved to be highly effective with very needy children. Students are assigned small jobs that take no more than 20 minutes each day. These jobs are always supervised by an adult and are assigned at a time that the classroom teacher picks as being non-disruptive to the student's class work. If school work is missed, students must arrange to make up assignments. Volume III of the Administrator's Desk Reference of Behavior Management lists over 100 separate job descriptions for student workers, including school flag raiser, answering machine message recorder, school cafeteria worker, preschool assistant and school fire drill assistant.
The program serves children deemed at-risk for school failure by the school faculty as well as serving many typical students. Job openings are posted in the school lobby on a regular basis and any child can apply to the program. (At-risk students are invited to apply by the school counselor, their teacher or the principal).
A variety of school businesses can be formed to create meaningful work opportunities for students. In addition to the school store and espresso businesses, a school popcorn business is overseen by parents and includes some students with serious disabilities as workers. A local bank has partnered with the school, creating a savings bank staffed by students which operates for two hours each week. Recently, students opened a jewelry business called "Chain Link" which sells student-made jewelry in the $1.00 - $3.00 price range at school events. Students also run a profit-making recycling business which pays for an hour of a Meaningful Work coordinator's time to organize the program each day.
In actuality, supervisors of the Meaningful Work program are mentors to the students in the program. Parent volunteers act as supervisors as do school personnel. The school custodian works with crews of students to maintain the building and students assist the building computer specialist in cleaning and maintaining technology. The librarian uses children to operate the library and even the school principal has a student assigned to her as an assistant.
There is no monetary compensation for student workers. Any profits from businesses go to the student body treasury and the student council decides upon expenditures. Students profit personally, however, by improving their communication and relationship skills. The school counselor holds regular "staff meetings" with students, using problems that come up in work situations to teach students to relate appropriately to peers. During these meetings students discuss problems they have encountered on the job and set goals for improving work behaviors. The spill over into classroom behavior is immediate and obvious. Students build positive relationships with adults, learn to communicate more effectively with peers and improve their self esteem as they add to the life of the school.
The Meaningful Work Program has expanded to every elementary school in the Central Kitsap School District and has been introduced in schools throughout Washington, Texas, Ohio, Iowa and Oklahoma during the last two years. Part of its appeal is that the program can be as small or large as a building wishes it to be and it can be virtually cost-free.
B. J. Wise has collaborated with consultant Dr. Randall Sprick, principal Kim Marcum, and school counselor Mike Haykin in creating The School Administrator's Desk Reference of Behavior Management, available from Sopris West Publishing of Longmont, Colorado. This three volume set designed for school principals explains the Meaningful Work program in detail as well as many ideas for how elementary and middle schools can implement a consistent, proactive, and positive approach to behavior management and discipline.
Copyright © October 1998 New Horizons for Learning, all rights reserved.
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