Two weeks ago, ISM’s Deans e-List buzzed with some questions on elective requirements and offerings. As you learn more about the talents of your students and faculty to prepare programs for the next academic year, now is the perfect time to consider adding dynamic new electives.
Beyond broadening academic options and providing specific instruction occasionally lacking in broader survey courses, new electives can greatly increase your private-independent school’s public visibility and marketability to future families—especially when you consider that some schools have decreased their elective offerings since the economic downturn. Electives can also make content fresh and renew student engagement, allowing you to fulfill your school’s academic mission beyond your core curriculum.
At the same time, expanding your elective courses requires more thought than seeing one school offering yoga and wanting your own in-house guru. New electives should be mission-appropriate, fall within the capabilities of your school’s resources, and not conflict with primary course configurations in the next academic year.
Mission Appropriateness
It’s easy to envy other private-independent schools’ elective course offerings. Who wouldn't enjoy special classes like those of Midland School’s Experiential Learning program. Previous courses included “Water: California’s Liquid Gold," a class focused on water shortages in the arid Western United States, and “Foal Training,” an eight-week elective during which students trained colts and foals from local ranches.
But, Midland School is located in a rural, relatively undeveloped area; its mission is to “[teach] the value of … self-reliance, simplicity, responsibility to community and the environment, and love for the outdoors.” How appropriate for your school would similar programs be? If your school’s mission focuses on training its students to tackle 21st century career opportunities, an elective course in introductory computer programming may be more suitable.
Resource Availability
Midland School also used what was available to create unique and attractive elective courses. In the middle of ranch country, it forged partnerships with the locals to create courses that had immediate impact on participants.
When electives are planned this way, new ones don’t necessarily require all-new faculty or facilities. An urban school with a vibrant art program might introduce its students to “Artistic Vandalism” as they observe the graffiti that surrounds them. Does your school already support a music program? Sing at the local senior living center and turn it into a volunteer experience to deepen your students’ appreciation for the joy their work can bring to others.
Remember that offering a dramatically different elective outside your repertoire may require significant enhancements, like specialized meeting spaces (e.g., labs or stages) and new teachers with unique areas of expertise. Those sorts of upgrades will require financial support and driven dedication from your entire educational community, so begin your financial planning now for “dream” electives down the road.
Scheduling Availability
New electives will bring more heartache than joy if you fail to plan—and so plan to fail! Ensure that you set aside adequate meeting time specifically to address additional electives and how they may impact your schedule next fall. Not only will there be increased need for available meeting space, but also demands on teacher-mentors. If you plan to start a class on first aid and CPR training but there’s only one certified instructor on staff, that will place demanding new priorities on your scheduler. If necessary, consider dropping older, less mission-appropriate electives to free up resources and faculty to adequately support new courses.
The Vice President and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at St. Lawrence University, Jeff Rickey, says that electives are important as part of a holistic college admission process as they “hint about the student’s interests and may validate other parts of the student’s application.” At the same time, Admission Officers consider electives after examining the rigor and grades of purely academic courses. This insight shows us that, while important, electives should not come at the cost of foundational subjects like science, language arts, and foreign languages.
Electives are a chance for private-independent schools and their students to customize their education to pursue mission-appropriate interests beyond the boundaries of a traditional core curriculum. With a thoughtful plan accounting for relevancy, resources, and scheduling concerns, your school can take its elective offerings to the next level.
For help crafting a schedule that teachers, students, and parents alike will benefit from, attend our Scheduling Without Conflict workshop
in Stowe, Vermont, on June 22-28, 2014!
Additional ISM resources:
ISM Monthly Update for School Heads Vol. 9 No. 9 Vertical Time Gives Students In-Depth Experience
ISM Monthly Update for Division Heads Vol. 10 No. 3 Speaking of Scheduling…
ISM Monthly Update for School Heads Vol. 9 No. 4 The Pressure on High School Students to Build Their Resume…Whose Best Interest Is It?
Additional ISM resources for Gold Consortium members:
I&P Vol. 34 No. 10 Price, Product, Process: Competing Within Your Market Platform
I&P Vol. 30 No. 1 The Symptoms of a Toxic Schedule—And the Remedy
I&P Vol. 33 No. 4 Beyond Advanced Placement: Mission and Educational Excellence
