{"id":417,"date":"2016-09-21T13:18:20","date_gmt":"2016-09-21T20:18:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/?p=417"},"modified":"2016-09-21T13:21:41","modified_gmt":"2016-09-21T20:21:41","slug":"time-is-of-the-essence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/2016\/09\/time-is-of-the-essence\/","title":{"rendered":"Time is of the Essence"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Colleen Schilly, Head of Lower School<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

At Back to School Night we shared <\/span>the exciting path that lies ahead for Hillbrook<\/span><\/a> with our new strategic plan, <\/span>Vision 2020<\/span><\/a>. One of the core initiatives of the plan is to reimagine the student experience. One of the most important decisions we make as educators on a daily basis is how we use the time available to us, and how we support students developing skills to independently, efficiently, and wisely manage their own time. As a finite resource it can be maximized\u2026or wasted. Using Vision 2020 as a lens to interpret the present and plan for the future, we know that to reimagine the student experience means we need to take a deep, thoughtful look at how our decisions around time impact the day-to-day life of a Hillbrook student.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a school setting, the most tangible manifestation of our use of time is the schedule. We are in the beginning stages of a 12+ month process to reimagine the schedule at Hillbrook. We will be using a <\/span>design thinking framework<\/span><\/a> to understand the current student experience, research practices at other forward-thinking schools, draft and test a prototype, and iterate as needed. <\/span><\/p>\n

A group of twelve faculty from different divisions, departments, content areas, and experiences have formed a committee to steer this work this year. Our first project is to build empathy around the current student experience by shadowing a class\/group for a full day. By essentially living a day-in-the-life of a student we hope to gain a detailed, personal \u201cworm\u2019s eye view\u201d of what children experience in our current schedule model. Over the coming week all grades at Hillbrook will have a faculty shadow to listen, absorb, and learn from the student\u2019s perspective. <\/span><\/p>\n

I had the opportunity to shadow 4th grade yesterday and walked away with a wealth of insight, questions, and a profound sense of appreciation for the incredible experience that children currently enjoy at Hillbrook. The day allowed me to be a collector. I collected small moments and stories of learning, exploration, and development that helped me understand more fully the magic of a day at Hillbrook. I learned….<\/span><\/p>\n