By Velarchana Santhana
Photo by Abby Burgess
Transferring schools is hard enough, but Megan Kann ’16 faced an entirely new learning environment as well. Kann attended private school Pat’s Learning Academy (PLA) from its establishment to 6th grade. The school of 12 created a nontraditional learning environment for its students. Reflecting back on her experiences, Kann cites PLA as being the source of her learning philosophy and practices.
The learning environment of PLA taught Kann the importance of collaboration and helping others.
“[PLA] was really focused on inter-age working, so older kids would work with younger kids,” Kann said.
Since several students had learning disabilities, students would help each other with their difficulties.
“I really liked to sit down with [other students] and work through math problems,” Kann said.
To Kann, this was beneficial to not only to the young students but to the older students as well.
“[Interage working] really helped older kids develop a more patient manner,” she said.
Kann also discovered her love for learning. With mixed focus discussions and student choice in subject matter, Kann became more passionate about her schooling, something that is still present despite now being in a traditional learning environment.
“[Now when I take tests] I want to learn the questions that are not on the test. I want to learn everything on the topic,” she said. Since scores and grades were not stressed at PLA, now Kann is more relaxed when approaching tests.
“Now grades don’t really scare me,’ Kann said. “I know that learning everything is more important than being able to answer the five questions on the test.”
In fact, Kann plans to become an untraditional teacher, by emulating the learning environment of PLA.
“If I had to teach in a public school, I would have the subjects that I have to cover and the lesson plan but I would [also] ask the students to choose projects that they want to do because … they are much more excited about doing [the project] and they are going to put a lot of work in it,” she said.
Most importantly, Kann hopes to share her love for learning with her future students.
“I want to teach to a student, not to a test,” she said.
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