Center for Innovation Wows Board with Design Thinking and Game Based Learning Initiatives

What makes the Scarsdale educational experience so exceptional? There are many elements that comprise Scarsdale's success and the recent addition of the Scarsdale Center for Innovation (CFI) is an important ingredient. Within the CFI construct are incredible examples of our district's administrative leadership, passion and engagement of our teachers and collaboration among all the various parties required to make innovative changes within a public school district.

At the November 17 Board of Education work session, Lynne Shain, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction/Co-Director, The Center for Innovation and Jerry Crisci, Director of Technology/Co-Director, The Center for Innovation presented a progress report highlighting several CFI projects that have had impact in the classroom.

CFI was founded three years ago with the following mission statement:

In order to be better prepared for the future, Scarsdale graduates must:
• Think critically and creatively in order to solve complex, non-standard problems
• Understand their role in an interdependent world
• Use evolving technologies for research, communication, and innovation

The Center is focused on reimagining education for all students. It is empowered to develop, nurture, and provide feedback for innovative ideas relating to teaching and learning. The Center links educators throughout the community to develop, test and implement, and evaluate innovative ideas and methodologies in order to imagine a future that has yet to be invented. By focusing on large-scale educational change and partnering with members of our community, CFI intends to demonstrate how public education can be transformed to prepare students for the future.

CFI projects are being implemented in all grades and schools throughout Scarsdale. One of the examples presented on Monday evening was the use of "game-based learning" at the Middle School. Research shows that play stimulates the tenacity and persistence required for effective learning. Games give players permission to take risks that would not be permitted in a traditional academic setting, and inspire students to create, share, mix, modify, curate, critique, and comment on content to which they might otherwise be indifferent. Game-based learning includes group work, interaction and a high degree of student engagement. This approach was contrasted against the idea of a teacher standing in front the classroom providing information. SMS Librarian Sharon Waskow and SMS Social Studies Teacher Meghan Troy led the members of the Board of Education through a lesson that was used in class this year. The BOE members were tasked with finding the meaning of a political cartoon from the Civil War. They were broken down into teams and given the rules of play. Individual players were given playing pieces for wagering on their ideas as well as limited veto powers in case of disagreement. Board members were fully engaged and the audience could easily picture how a group of 7th graders would be very excited to explore history in this fashion.

Christine Boyer a fifth grade teacher at Heathcote, presented another example of innovative teaching. She talked about the concept of Design Thinking (rudimentary definition: design-specific thought processes that designers apply during the process of designing) and applied it to her class rocketry module. Many parents who have had a child attend fifth grade in Scarsdale will remember the rocketry lesson and launch fondly as it is considered a highlight of the fiifth grade year. In the past, students were given very specific instructions about how to build the rocket and each student came to school with an identical rocket. Instead, Ms. Boyer provided students with design parameters so that the rockets would launch, but let the students use their creativity to make them. No two rockets were alike. Another change was that instead of just one launch where some rockets worked better than others, students had the opportunity to evaluate the results of the initial launch and make modifications for improved outcomes at a second launch. Finally, the students created animated books to document their processes. Ms. Boyer wrote "These books represent their learning, not only of rocketry, but of non-fiction narrative writing, the writing process, design thinking and Google presentations." Click here to see the student's books:

A third example of innovation was provided in a short video of Edgewood kindergarten school students learning about circuits with music and art. If you do not watch any other piece of the presentation, find three minutes to watch this inspiring video! Go to the Board of Education Video-on-Demand site and watch at 0:49:41 "A Short Maker Movie" at :49:41 minutes.

Other schools districts in the U.S. and abroad are using Scarsdale as a model for creating their own Centers for Innovation. Shain and Crisci stated that they are inundated with tour requests from other schools.

The Board of Education members and audience were impressed by the passion and creativity on display. It was evident that CTI sets Scarsdale apart as a leader in educational innovation.