Future Ready: Inspiring Leadership in Middle School
We agree that we got into education not only to teach, but to make a positive impact in our students’ lives. What we didn’t expect was how transformative the experience would be for ourselves. While the COVID-19 pandemic has brought many challenges to this year, the new schedule allowed us to include Leadership and Learning Strategies within the Middle School curriculum. This course focuses on developing students’ organizational strategies, self-advocacy, communication, and confidence to lead - all skills that we felt would benefit from a more explicit focus, to help prepare students for their transition to Upper School.
As new associate faculty at Crescent, we are honoured and thrilled for the opportunity to help students grow academically while encouraging them to become better citizens. In the first half of the course, the students explore practical skills such as note-taking, formal email etiquette and “SMART” goal setting. They also reflect on their individual learning style to understand ways to approach their courses and overcome perceived barriers. In the latter four weeks, we focus on leadership and introduce students to positive role models, such as Crescent alumnus Ryley Mehta ‘16, and current Head Boy Tega Ajise. Both of these young men shared stories about leadership experiences in their lives, and encouraged students to speak up about what they believe in and promote change within their community. Our hope is that they recognize unique qualities within themselves and identify that small actions create everyday heroes.
While developing the Leadership and Learning Strategies course, we were concerned with students’ potential lack of interest in these fundamental topics. We could not have been more off the mark! As we find ourselves halfway through the year and having taught six cohorts so far, we are blown away by the level of engagement and the extent to which students have gone to reflect on and implement these skills in their daily routines. Each cohort of students has brought a unique dynamic and insight into our discussions, broadening our own perspectives and allowing us to grow as educators. We can’t wait to see how the next six cohorts will react to the course.
While our first year at Crescent has been anything but normal, we are excited to see how the boys will lean on their values to overcome challenges in their future. We know they will go on to make Crescent and the world around them a better place.
