Menzo: Next phase is making teaching ‘authentic’

As published in the Record Journal, Monday January 21, 2013

By Eric Vo
Record-Journal staff
(203) 317-2235
evo@record-journal.com
Twitter: @ericvoRJ

WALLINGFORD - As the school district heads into the fourth year of its strategic plan, School Superintendent Salvatore Menzo said the district has made significant progress and is now focusing on changing the way students are taught.

“The big takeaway is that there has been significant growth in each area of the strategic plan,” Menzo said.

In the area of community outreach, Menzo said the biggest accomplishments are an email notification and automated phone announcement system, as well as the power school parent portal. The portal gives parents access to students’ grades and other data. In the area of technology, every middle school classroom now has a ceiling-mounted projector. Library computer programs have been replaced and each school has a computer lab. Building maintenance has also been a priority, with asbestos having been removed at eight schools.

Menzo also pointed to positive behavior support programs and anti bullying measures. The final area, curriculum and instruction, is the main focus.

“The most significant work in our strategic plan right now, which I’m proud to say and glad to say, is in the area of curriculum and instruction,” Menzo said.

The district is rewriting the entire curriculum to emphasize hands-on learning over traditional lecture based classes.

With the new curriculum, instead of simply putting down an answer to a math problem, students will have to show their work. Menzo said students will have to work more in groups and “demonstrate their knowledge, rather than simply regurgitate it.”

“It’s more explaining the work ... explaining your reasoning and thinking,” he said.

Board of Education Chairwoman Roxane McKay said she believes in different styles of teaching because each student learns from different methods.

“It’s a very positive direction to move in,” McKay said. “The reality is, as human beings, people can learn in a variety of ways. Being more open minded to delivering information can only be a positive.”

A lot of the new curriculum has already started in the elementary and middle schools. A new way of teaching also means revising courses offered.

“We’re looking at a course catalog and saying, ‘OK, what courses do we really want to offer?’ A lot of our students know how to use Microsoft Word, so we’ve retired those courses and put in courses like web design for businesses,” Menzo said. “We tried to increase the rigor and increase the relevancy of what we’re teaching. We want to make it authentic.”

With a new method of learning and new courses, he hopes students will become more well-rounded individuals.

“They’ll have all the 21st century skills — they’ll be critical thinkers, problem solvers and good communicators,” he said.