ScholarShift®

What is ScholarShift®?

Beginning with the SSM Class of 2018, our educational approach for the 11th and 12th grades grew to include, in addition to the excellent college preparatory academic program we have long offered, a series of educational experiences comprised of blended classes and a parallel curriculum of learning modules. This series of experiences is part of ScholarShift.

11th and 12th grade academic classes are offered in a blended class model. This model opens up the weekly schedule so that students can engage in the opportunities ScholarShift provides alongside their traditional, classroom-based academic program. It also requires students to hone their time management skills and prepares them for the college model in which seeking extra help from professors requires planning and initiative and each day is not predetermined hour by hour.

Juniors choose from a rotating catalog of modules, many of which have been proposed by the students themselves. The modules focus on the studios and tools available in weCreate, including textile arts,digital video, 3D modeling and printing, digital audio, and graphic design. Students will have the opportunity to record and edit podcasts in our weCreate Center, design and create a 3D printed model, and make a custom embroidered sweatshirt. After completing this foundational year, seniors are invited to take advantage of the weCreate’s resources while taking initiative on a meaningful endeavor. Students might choose to engage in internships, develop significant research projects, or design other year-long experiences that explore their passions and expand their skills and talents.

To meet our academic graduation requirements, students must complete their academic coursework plus the junior year ScholarShift series of experiences. Completion of this requirement will be reflected on student transcripts along with the full array of rigorous college preparatory courses

ScholarShift Curriculum

Seniors

The parallel curriculum is designed to inspire the juniors to develop their own learning experience for their final year at SSM. Seniors are invited to complete a Senior Initiative - a self-designed educational experience - in addition to their academic courses. The modules juniors choose through the parallel curriculum should inspire a spark so that, senior year, they will extend their learning through internships in the local community, creative and innovative endeavors in our weCreate Center, significant service learning opportunities, critical inquiry and research into issues of personal and academic interest, deeper exploration of a module experience, and/or other opportunities which allow them to explore their passions and learn as they do, not as they sit.

weCreate faculty act as primary mentors for students as they develop and engage in these opportunities. During spring term of each year, juniors work on plans for senior year.

Juniors

Using the flexibility of our blended-course model, juniors complete a parallel curriculum in addition to their academic courses. The parallel curriculum is comprised of a series of three ScholarShift modules. These mini-courses introduce students to new skills and concepts that they do not normally have the chance to learn from their core classes. Facilitated by Shattuck-St. Mary’s weCreate faculty and staff, students step out of their comfort zone and learn more about themselves before they head off to college. Students choose their own path through this rich curriculum, reflect on who they are as people, as learners, and as leaders, and engage deeply with ideas and problems they see in the world today.

weCreate faculty and staff are the primary mentors for juniors as they schedule their modules for the year, and begin to imagine ideas for senior year.

Sophomores

The structure of the academic program for the sophomores remains the same as in prior years. Students take English and higher-level English as a Second Language (ESL) courses in the blended model as an introduction to this structure. Because many of our upper-level World Language and Math courses are primarily populated with juniors and seniors, some sophomores might have more than one blended class if they enroll in those courses. Teachers and advisors coach students regarding time management, self-advocacy, and engagement in the instructional opportunities blended classes present.

In preparation for ScholarShift®, we have added a service learning and health and well-being element to the sophomore-year experience

Middle Schoolers

When our Middle School students enter 10th, 11th, and 12th grade, they engage in the same set of experiences described in detail for our 10th – 12th grade students. Those experiences include:

An introduction to year-long academic classes in the blended model in 10th grade
Service learning and health and well-being curriculum in 10th grade
An academic blended model schedule in 11th and 12th grade
A parallel curriculum of three ScholarShift modules: mini-courses that introduce students to new skills and concepts that they do not normally have the chance to learn from their core classes.
Invitation to engage in a Senior Initiative: a self-designed educational experience, such as internships in the local community, creative and innovative endeavors in our weCreate Center, significant service learning opportunities, critical inquiry and research into issues of personal and academic interest, deeper exploration of a module experience, and/or other opportunities that allow them to explore their passions and learn as they do, not as they sit!

The teachers of students in grades 6-9 help students develop the academic skills and habits of mind they need to be successful, and the community life program of the Middle School emphasizes character and community. We also continually explore how to specifically prepare our Middle School students to enter the blended model and ScholarShift experience in the Upper School. To this end, all students are introduced to online educational tools such as Schoology, and students are highly encouraged to participate in weCreate courses. Students in Grades 6 and 7 engage in a term-long History Day experience, developing research papers, poster presentations, websites, and performances about a topic of their own choice. Students in Grade 8 engage an interdisciplinary unit looking at climate science in their history, science, and English classes. In addition, teachers include projects focused on student choice and voice, oral presentations, collaborations, and research as part of our students’ regular academic work.

We encourage you to reach out if you have any questions or thoughts about what your children’s educational experience at the Upper School will involve.

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