WCPSS preparing more middle school students for rigorous classes
August 22, 2005 - WCPSS middle school teachers will take part in a new initiative to begin to more systematically challenge students who are performing in the academic middle to take more rigorous classes and work towards college eligibility.
 Principal Michael Holton, teacher Gary Duvall and administrator Dana Deisel Wallace say AVID will help East Garner students. |
Dana Diesel Wallace, WCPSS senior director of Middle School Education, says faculty at more than 20 WCPSS middle schools have worked over the past year taking part in training sessions for AVID which stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination.
AVID targets students in the academic middle who have the desire to go to college and the willingness to work hard. These are students who are capable of completing rigorous curriculum but are falling short of their potential. Typically, they will be the first in their families to attend college, and many are from low-income families.
Diesel Wallace says teachers will use academic instruction, tutorial support and motivational activities to help the students become academically successful role models for others. She says the groundwork will be laid in middle school to prepare these students for advanced placement and honors courses when they reach high school.
At East Garner Magnet Middle School, one of the sixth-grade teaching teams will use AVID strategies with their 90 students. East Garner teacher Gary Duvall was one of the 120 WCPSS educators who took part in a WCPSS training session on AVID this summer. Duvall will lead part of the team in an AVID elective class.
"AVID amplifies our efforts as teachers," Duvall said. "We want to pull our kids up any way we can. I like AVID's concept and believe this focused effort will help our students succeed."
"AVID is a way to teach study skills, self-determination and help students take ownership of their learning," said East Garner principal Michael Holton. "We have a core group of teachers who will lead the instruction for our AVID team and share instructional techniques and ideas with our entire faculty."
Teachers on the AVID team will be using the book "Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens" to strengthen student-teacher relationships.
"We have students who have lots of talent and intelligence," Holton said. "AVID will provide the background to help them become more successful."
The students will take part in an AVID elective classwhere they will learn organizational and study skills, work on critical thinking and asking probing questions, get academic help from peers and participate in enrichment and motivational activities that make college seem attainable. College tutors will visit East Garner two to three days a week to work with the students.
AVID curriculum encourages writing, inquiry, collaboration, and reading. There is an emphasis on writing in all subjects, with a focus on helping students to clarify and communicate their thoughts and understand material. Activities, from Cornell note taking to tutorial groups, are built around asking questions, which forces students to clarify, analyze, and synthesize material. Students are expected to challenge, help, and learn from one another.
AVID is a school wide initiative that helps to change a school's culture by showing that average students can achieve at the highest levels and attend college. The program encourages communication and sharing among teachers, counselors, and principals.
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