About Us

An Overview of Mission, Academic Structure and Assessment Mission:

School Without walls, a twenty-seven year old Rochester public high school is part of the city school system's Schools of Choice Program. It is also a member of the Coalition of Essential Schools. The school draws its students from the city of Rochester and surrounding suburbs to form an academic community, which fosters a learner-centered approach to education. The student population is multi-cultural and multi-racial and represents the economic and ethnic diversity found across the city, as well as an academic heterogeneous, cross-section of Rochester. However, all students and their parents desire a learner-centered style of education. The School Without walls (SWW) curriculum encourages students to explore new ideas, conduct research and evaluate information across the disciplines. SWW's vision of community, teaching and learning, school organization (e.g. scheduling, assessment, graduation requirements) and professional development are central to the school's philosophy of learning and inquiry.

SWW's approach to education assumes that the more deeply invested students are in their own learning, the more successful they will be as learners. By placing students at the center of the learning process, the school empowers them to take ownership of their own learning, thus fostering independence, persistence and self-awareness.

Academic Structure:

The SWW focus on critical thinking and problem-solving is grounded in the belief that reading, debate, writing, reflection and respect for the ideas of others are essential aspects of learning. Thus the school's focus on active learning, consideration of the controversial and the formulation and analysis of authentic questions form the basis of its views regarding curriculum process and content.

Classes at SWW are generally conducted as inter-disciplinary seminars and workshops, a format suitable for a school committed to inquiry and debate. Close cooperation among faculty and students leads to the respectful discussion of ideas as students present and defend their findings. The SWW classroom also extends well beyond the walls of the building as students participate in community service, and otherwise utilize the abundant resources of the Rochester metropolitan area.

Assessment at School Without Walls:

Assessing students' needs is an ongoing feature of SWW life and it occurs in multiple forms. Rather than a linear progression, assessment always spirals through, curriculum, pedagogy, scheduling, school organization--indeed every aspect of the school. At SWW, assessment is learner-driven rather than test focused.

It emphasizes three broad concerns:

• how the school comes to know its students and how they are doing
• how the school tells students how they are doing
• how the school assesses its effectiveness in meeting its mission.

How the school comes to know its students:

The "knowing" process begins with a student's interview for admission to the school, and orientation. Through a series of tasks that include solving logic questions, reading critically, writing persuasively, the school obtains base-line information vital for helping the student plan his or her first term. By capturing this data early, the school can ultimately assess the degree to which the time spent at SWW has actually added value to the education of a student and the school can consider its contribution to the student's intellectual maturity and determination. The student is also interviewed by a teacher and students, and spends one day attending classes. This is to insure that the student has some idea of how the school functions.

In addition to the information gathered through the interview and orientation process, the school also attempts to obtain previous transcripts and occasionally receives information from the individual responsible for sending the student (the guidance counselor, the previous school, a social worker or a probation officer). It is perhaps worth noting that such data are sometimes incomplete; frequently arriving long after the student has begun attending the school. Beyond attendance data and course pass rates, SWW's interview and orientation process is more helpful in understanding a student's life situation or individual learning style than other data.

Assessment continues once the student begins classes. Increasingly as the student settles into the routines and demands of the school, the staff comes to rely what the day-to-day performance of the student reveals; homework assignments, teacher notes from class discussions, and in-class or take-home tests, become primary assessment tools. Moreover, teachers pay particular attention to attendance, punctuality, the level and quality of participation, follow-through on assignments and initiative shown in community service placements -- all considered important indicators of a student's growth in responsibility and maturity.

Student achievement is regarded as the responsibility of the entire staff, this view is consistent with the structure of the school itself. Collaborative planning has been an integral feature of the school since its inception. The staff is thoroughly involved with all aspects of planning; curriculum, administration, student services and policy. Each week, while students participate in the School's Community Service Program, the staff meets for three hours. Each staff member may contribute to the meeting's agenda, and all concerns, from individual student's progress to and for school-wide events, to assessment of courses and special programs, to redesigning the school's teaching and learning system, are items for discussion and evaluation.

Staff meetings always include a block of time devoted to reviewing the work and behavior of individual students. While any member of staff (including student teachers who attend all staff meetings) may place a student on the review list, it is frequently the student's advisor who does so. Extended Classes, which meet 4 times per week in small groups, and individual conferences which meet bi-weekly, afford times for teachers to review specific assignments, a student's short-term and long-term goals for managing assignments and any difficulties the student may be having with classes. A good deal of time in extended classes and conferences is spent helping students manage their time and develop habits of study, as well as learning about an interdisciplinary topic. Extended class teachers or advisors, keep tract of a specific group of students, consequently, they are in the best position to be knowledgeable about their students' overall performance and can bring such information to the entire staff.

On occasion, a review of a student's work becomes the central focus of the weekly staff meeting. Through a process known as protocol, one teacher presents the work of a student and leads a discussion in which the student's class work is reviewed. The goal is to gain insight into the student's habits of study and academic performance, to discover patterns of work, in order to better understand what works and doesn't work for the student and to devise strategies leading to improved performance. Protocol is used not only with students whose performance may be problematic, but also for those who are handling the work load well. In this way, the school hopes to effectively challenge and serve each of its students.

When the need exists, the staff may introduce a new course or support strategy (during, before, or after school) which creates a structure for students to be able to work closely with teachers or tutors and focus more intently on specific skills. Lab classes, tutorials, homework lab and research days are such strategies. To gain further insight into the impact of the school's overall practices, exit interviews, conducted immediately prior to graduation, focus on a final assessment of the journey from entrance to graduation as seen through the eyes of each graduating student.

Twice a semester, the student receives narrative reports from each of their course teachers, as well as performance evaluation in community service - an experience occurring outside the school in placements arranged by the school. During student/teacher conferences, held at the end of each academic quarter, the narrative reports are reviewed. Students are asked to evaluate their academic progress, to reflect on what has been their most rewarding learning experience as well as to select which areas presented the most difficulty. With guidance from the teacher, students also develop a plan for the next quarter and assess the progress on meeting the graduation requirement. Information gathered at these individual conferences provides faculty with yet another vehicle with which to assess student growth.

Graduation-by-Demonstration:

In addition to successfully completing learner-centered classes in Math (3), Social Studies (4), English (4), Science (2), Physical Education (2), Health (.50), Art/Music (1), Foreign Language (2), Elective credits (3), the students must successfully complete several rigorous demonstrations, and portfolio presentations.

Twenty-seven years ago as a consequence of the data gathered through the various forms of assessment, the SWW staff began to question traditional methods used to determine a student's qualification for graduation. Since credit accumulation and external commencement-level testing seemed to foster anti-intellectual attitudes and reward the accumulation of random information at the expense of thoughtful knowledge application, the faculty began to debate more meaningful methods of assessing student preparation.

Over time, the school devised a systematic process of performance-based assessment. The process involves written, oral and performance products, internal examinations and external validation. Demonstrations are projects -- such as, extended writing projects, exhibitions, presentations and experiments -- that create opportunities for students to demonstrate their ability to use the higher level thinking and academic skills they have developed in course work. For successful completion of these proficiencies, students must demonstrate perseverance as well as competence and expertise. Six proficiencies: Creative Arts, Literature, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science, and the Senior Project, require course work over an extended period of time, usually two years or more. These proficiencies are grounded in course work and built upon cumulative performances in courses over the period of time students attend the school. Additional portfolios, but not necessarily demonstrations are required in Community Service, Citizenship, Career Development, and Computer Literacy.