PEL Fellows Present Integrated Studies Courses

Charlotte Kaftan-Luckerman
Every year since 2011, CSW has been proud to host Progressive Education Lab (PEL) fellows who live and teach on campus for two mods, with guidance and mentoring from veteran educators. This year’s fellows were Ruth Bagley, Matt Linden, Sarah Nelson, and Arielle Drisko '12. As part of their training, the fellows were tasked with creating and designing a class integrating multiple departments and fields of learning, drawing on a progressive pedagogy. They presented their work to the community in late November.

Every year since 2011, CSW has been proud to host Progressive Education Lab (PEL) fellows who live and teach on campus for two mods, with guidance and mentoring from veteran educators. This year’s fellows were Ruth Bagley, Matt Linden, Sarah Nelson, and Arielle Drisko '12. As part of their training, the fellows were tasked with creating and designing a class integrating multiple departments and fields of learning, drawing on a progressive pedagogy. They presented their work to the community in late November.

Sarah created a course called: Mindfulness: An Exploration through Writing and Science. In the course, she aims to “deconstruct mindfulness and provide students with an introduction to different mindfulness practices,” using different forms of writing as a way to reflect on the work the students do in the class.

Ruth chose to design a course on mathematics looking at how numbers are connected and influenced by each culture. “There are many ways to count and view the world mathematically,” she explains, “and the choice of which number system to use is heavily influenced by cultural and sociopolitical factors.”

Matt’s class, A Patchwork Language: Exploring the English Language’s Origins and History, is a mixture of language and history. Its aim is to examine how “languages change with the history we write using it.” The course also looks to “give students the tools to make sense of where the words we speak come from, how far they’ve come to get here, and where they’re going.”

Arielle’s course, The Big Picture: Arth Through the Lenses of History, Science, and Culture, “explores how art, science, history, and culture intersect and influence one another.” At the end of the course, students make their own artwork showing what they have learned.

CSW thanks Sarah, Ruth, Matt, and Arielle for all that they have contributed to the community over the past two mods, and we wish them the best of luck on the next step of their journey.

To follow the work of the PEL fellows, visit their blog at https://progressiveeducationlab.wordpress.com.

Watch the video below to hear final thoughts from each of the fellows as they say goodbye to CSW!
 

The Cambridge School of Weston is a progressive high school for day and boarding students in grades 9–12 and PG. CSW's mission is to provide a progressive education that emphasizes deep learning, meaningful relationships, and a dynamic program that inspires students to discover who they are and what their contribution is to their school, their community and the world.