“Carlow University philosophy professor Jim Carmine knew all along that he wanted critical thinking to be a key component of his charter school’s curriculum. He just wasn’t quite sure how to go about implementing it.
‘There had to be a way that kids not just learned stuff in the classroom, but applied it,’ Mr. Carmine said.
So he took his idea to charter school operator Imagine Schools, which serves approximately 40,000 kids in 73 charter schools across the nation.
‘I told them I want a school where you’re going to have practical application of what you learn in the classroom,’ he said. ‘I’ve been teaching kids forever. The one thing for sure — Plato makes it clear — if kids learn by playing a game, they will like to learn. So the question is, ‘How do I make it into a game where the students will learn things in the classroom and apply it?”
Imagine representatives suggested Mr. Carmine look into an innovative technique that had been developed decades earlier, but was only being used in one other Imagine-operated charter school in the country — MicroSociety.
‘I looked at the MicroSociety and I said, ‘Oh my gosh, this is better than what I [was thinking],’ ‘ he said.
And so the MicroSociety model, whose teachings had to be purchased separately from its proprietor, became a supplemental part of the curriculum. In addition to traditional classes that meet all Pennsylvania Department of Education requirements, students at the Penn Hills Charter School for Entrepreneurship will engage in a microsociety for one hour at the end of each day where they can apply what they learn in class to the real world.
‘Creative solutions to difficult problems — that is the whole idea,’ he said. ‘You’re not going to be able to convince somebody to buy a product … unless you can provide a good solution to a real problem. And that’s what the entrepreneur does.’
Developed in 1967 by New York City public elementary schoolteacher George Richmond, the MicroSociety model gives students the freedom and responsibility to make their own classroom choices rather than stressing forced conformity.
Students develop their own constitution and governing structure, set their own disciplinary code and work jobs that allow them to become contributing members of the microsociety.
As in real life, each student has a job — be it government official, peacekeeper, business owner or worker bee, explained Imagine’s northeast regional director Angelina Chiaravalloti. Students are paid for their daily work in an established “Micro” currency.
Classes turn into cities, grades becomes states and the entire school community constitutes an autonomous country. Students make all the decisions, with teachers supplying only minimal supervision and direction.
Lynda Sullivan, MicroSociety coordinator at Imagine’s MicroSociety charter school in South Vero Beach, Fla., said children of all ages and learning proficiencies excel in the Micro program.
‘It is definitely geared for your high achievers — for your gifted students, the sky is the limit,’ she said. ‘They can come up with a business that nobody else ever thought about or create a product that nobody’s thought about.’
‘And then, for your special needs kids,’ she continued, ‘it gives them something to feel very successful about. They’re going to work every day, they’re earning a salary, they’re participating. It’s very hands-on. They’re constantly engaged. Every student’s involved. It definitely makes all students feel very successful.’
The MicroSociety model strives to offer students as near a facsimile of real society as possible, and it’s always evolving. As problems present themselves, laws are written and passed to reflect the attitudes of the students.
Looking for a job? Consult the employment agency for direction, but make sure you have a resume on hand and can adequately answer interview questions.
Hoping to start your own business? Write up a plan and present it to the bank when you request a loan.
Wanting to own property someday — an entire classroom, perhaps? Make sure you invest your hard-earned cash in the bank so it can accrue interest over the summer.
And unless you want to end up being smacked with a subpoena and forced to stand trial in front of a jury of your peers, don’t dare break the law!
In her time as Micro coordinator, Ms. Sullivan said she’s seen thriving student businesses that cover every aspect of the traditional school curriculum — from a studio that features the artwork of a given student each week, to Imagine Sports, where kids hand over their cash in exchange for a little physical activity space and instruction.
Rob Kutzen, vice president of the national MicroSociety program, whose curriculum individual schools like the charter in Penn Hills must purchase, said that kids not only enjoy MicroSociety, but it also sparks academic achievement. Test score improvements — both immediate and sustained — are seen regularly in schools that employ the MicroSociety model, Mr. Kutzen said.
‘Academic achievement is the goal,’ he wrote in an email, ‘but many other 21st century skills are developed as well as a result of this highly engaging learning environment.’
The MicroSociety charter school coming to Penn Hills will open this fall in the former William Penn Elementary building on Penn School Drive with an estimated 200 students in kindergarten through second grade. Mr. Carmine said he expects the school to add a grade level each year up to eighth grade. Penn Hills residents will receive preferential enrollment.
For more on the MicroSociety model, visit microsociety.org.”