Alternative Learning

Once introduced to "Edutopia," I was excited to peruse the stories, resources, and videos it offered! My first visit yielded exactly what I wanted. We are always talking about innovative ways for students to learn and assess this learning. 12 and 13-year-old students spend weeks writing their own poetry and then performing it, using all the different elements. Global Writes, a nonprofit organization in the Bronx, provides poet coaches to work with the students, and this "slam poetry" allows students to step outside the comfort zones, interact with literature, and develop their own individual styles. I think this is exactly what schools should do. Give students the ideas, examples, and poetic devices, then let them do what feels right to them. This way teachers are not getting all the same results. Effort counts more than a "correct answer," because there is no such thing here. Students discover so much about themselves and that is a crucial part of adolescence. This poetry slam that the students participate in doesn't involve competition at all. It is simply sharing the experiences and creativity of others. I think this is one of the best ways for students to totally immerse themselves in a lesson and be proud of their work, regardless of grades. Even though this is a specific poetry program, I think that all schools are capable of mirroring this type of learning on their own.

Check out this awesome project here: http://www.edutopia.org/poetry-slam-global-writes