Wait...wha? School change? Really?(part 2)

#SchoolTransformation

By Carmela Jones, MNS

“I didn’t succumb to the stereotype that science wasn’t for girls.” -Sally Ride

The population benefitting most in Jim Stankevitz's physics elective class at Wheaton Warrenville South High School was the girls. They loved the collaborative nature of learning and the absence of a cutthroat culture. Originally, in that first Physics Modeling class, there was a total of 2 girls, out of 24 total students, 8% female. The following year more students signed up. So much so that he requested his colleague and good friend, who was a certified physics teacher, teach a second section alongside his. That colleague attended a Modeling Workshop shortly thereafter in Wisconsin. Since that colleague also taught Astronomy & Geology, he “modelized” his other classes as well. What of the female enrollment in physics? During Jim's last year at Wheaton, the physics classes became overrun by excited, engaged young-women making up 60% of the enrollment.

Later Jim and his colleague caught the ear of their administrator and convinced the school leadership to allow them to conduct district Modeling Workshops during the summer for all disciplines. It wasn’t easy because the school would need to “turn on” cooling and electricity during typically closed months. Money had to be budgeted for air conditioning and lights. In subsequent years, teachers at the school began to convert their traditional lessons into the MI format. Teachers have signs in their classroom that announce: "I am a Modeling Teacher." Those two leaders really got it done. Soon they were opening those workshops to surrounding districts, such as in Naperville and Aurora. Phil Culcasi, Jim’s former student at Marist High who became another colleague at Wheaton, also eventually joined them facilitating the chemistry modeling workshops.

Jim and Phil calculated how many teachers these workshops impacted through MI pedagogy training over years. They offered 26 workshops totaling 500 teachers. Jim hopes, like many modelers, that MI becomes institutionalized at the university level so that more teachers going into the front lines will be prepared to facilitate their students’ authentic learning. He believes it’s a tough nut to crack and a hard road ahead, but he also believes we must keep trying. Despite his retirement, which he has looked forward to and earned, he still desires to be deeply involved in spreading the MI pedagogy like he has done as the AMTA President.

His career has spanned over 42 years. In that time, he reinvented himself, for the better he would say, through the modeling pedagogy. He mentored both a former student, Phil Culscasi (as mentioned earlier), to become a chemistry modeling pioneer and another millennial, pre-service teacher, Matthew Scheffler, who implemented MI from the beginning of his career, to continue the work begun at Wheaton. Both Phil and Matt are determined to carry the modeling torch passed on to them. Jim also introduced and supported hundreds of educators to follow his example. In the meantime, he continues to influence students, colleagues, and mentees. If you peeked into his classroom, you would not have heard him “telling” students anything. Instead you would have heard Jim asking: “So, what do YOU think?”

Read greater detail about the role of the supportive administration in this example by exploring Michael E; Thomas' Ph.D. thesis linked in the References section below; it's housed on the Modeling Legacy website.

References:

2018 interviews with James Stankevitz, Philip Culcasi, and Matthew Scheffler at Wheaton Warrenville South High School.

Thomas, M. E. (2017). A condensation of Modeling Instruction in High School Science: The Role of School Leadership. In Modeling Legacy website. Retrieved from http://modeling.asu.edu/thesis/MikeThomas-SchoolLdrship-ModlInstr.pdf

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If you are a Modeling teacher, share your story by sending it to the email listed. If you know a great Modeling teacher, encourage them to send their story to the email listed. cjones.stemprofessionals@gmail.com.

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