McCormick Middle School Principal Thad Gittens weaved among circular tables in a crowded lunchroom, high-fiving sixth-graders during the first day of class. He said this first day of school is the smoothest he has seen in his career.

McCormick is a new Hays CISD middle school that opened Aug. 22. District leaders hope new ideas implemented at McCormick, including unconventional instruction methods and building design, will lead to improved outcomes for the school’s students. If the McCormick experiment proves successful, some of the practices could expand to the district’s other campuses.

“[Traditionally], we think that the teacher is supposed to be that primary source and be the dispenser of knowledge and information,” Gittens said. “Those days are over.”

The instructional method employed at McCormick emphasizes giving students freedom in how they learn and demonstrate to teachers that they have mastered the material in class.

“The big idea is really centered around creating a nontraditional instructional environment in which we build and enhance learners’ self-direction, independence and interdependence,” he said.

The vocabulary used at McCormick reflects the teaching method. Teachers are called “facilitators,” and students are called “learners,” HCISD Superintendent Michael McKie said.

“If you talk the talk, it’s easier to walk the walk,” HCISD spokesperson Tim Savoy said. “It also lets the kids know that this environment is different than other schools.”

Much like the Montessori method of education, children at McCormick are allowed to move around and not be confined to sitting in a desk for eight hours a day, McKie said. McCormick’s classrooms are furnished with small stools with a moveable base, intended for kids who have trouble sitting still during class. And instead of one central library, McCormick has several smaller libraries across campus with books available to read and check out so students are not limited to one place to obtain their reading materials.

Learner-centered instruction

McCormick faculty aim to teach the way that children learn, McKie said.

“[The school] truly is learner-centered. That’s what we strive for,” said Nicole Gibson, a facilitator at McCormick. “We want the learners to be the ones thinking through things, hands-on doing work.”

The desks' triangular shape allows kids to easily fit together and collaborate on assignments, Principal Thad Gittens said.[/caption]

Gibson teaches sixth-grade social studies, eighth-grade English and language arts, and coaches seventh-grade girls volleyball, basketball and track. This is her first year of teaching.

“When I met Mr. Gittens, I was automatically drawn to this district because of what he was trying to implement, especially with the facilitator role,” she said. “It’s something that I believe in.”

The facilitator role allows students to be more active in their education. Teachers are there to help create a framework that allows students to discover knowledge themselves, Gibson said.

“If the students are just sitting there watching me, it doesn’t stick in their minds as well,” she said. “Being a part of this inquiry-based school is so different and gives the kids some ownership of the work they’re doing because they’re creating something. They’re not just taking notes to pass a test.”

Some children have had to adjust to the new system after falling into bad habits, including cramming before each test, Gibson said. Other students have a hard time working with their peers. But preparation and collaboration are some of the most important social skills for post-secondary success, she said.

“They’ll get into little arguments,” she said of her class. “They have to work through that problem on their own. That’s a problem that they might not normally face in a regular classroom, so they’re gaining those skills at an earlier age.”

"Being a part of this inquiry-based school is so different and gives the kids some ownership of the work they’re doing because they’re creating something. They’re not just taking notes to pass a test."

—Nicole Gibson, McCormick Middle School facilitator

Encouraging collaboration

The design of the school is intended to encourage collaboration. Wider, furnished hallways, accessible common spaces and desks that can be easily pushed together create an environment in which students can work and solve problems together, Gittens said.

Many classrooms in the new school are equipped with slick-surface shelving that doubles as dry-erase boards, and students are encouraged to use markers to write on their desk. The district purchased triangle-shaped desks so students can put them together to form groups. The desks are designed in a way that  encourages students to move throughout the classroom and collaborate.

Allowing children the freedom to learn from their own experiences has come with some growing pains, Gibson said.

“I think they’re really enjoying it,” she said. “Some of them are still adjusting to the differences, but from what I’ve noticed, the kids really appreciate that their ability is being acknowledged, because they’re really smart.”

Hallways at McCormick feature furniture and whiteboards to encourage kids to work together even outside of the classroom.[/caption]

Technology has changed the way students interact with each other and the world around them, Gibson said. While growing up, if she had a question about something, she would ask her mom. Today, she said kids can just search for answers on their smartphone.

“If we teach them how to responsibly use technology, it can be their best friend and get them places they never could have imagined 10 years ago,” Gibson said.

Seeking best practices

Eventually, some of McCormick’s innovative methods could be utilized at other HCISD schools, McKie said.

The best practices that could be spread to other campuses will be assessed a number of different ways—from leadership discussions to teachers sharing with each other, Savoy said via e-mail.

One of the school's libraries, located between hallways, fosters an open learning environment.[/caption]

“High scores will serve as one measure that the overall approach is working,” he said. “However, we will share everything that works well, from individual lesson plans and classroom activities that teachers find most engaging for students, to methods that improve attendance to how well the new approach to the library works.”

The district has planned collaborative events and meetings so different departments can share their experiences and thoughts on the McCormick methods.

“We are all interested in how well the campus does across the board,” Savoy said.

Gibson said she believes students all over the district could benefit from the model, but it could take some time. Even at McCormick, faculty and staff want to proceed carefully.

“We’re taking it with baby steps,” she said.