April 17, 2019
Dear Parents and Guardians,
A couple of weeks ago,
The New York Times
ran
an article titled “High School Doesn’t Have to Be Boring”
by
Jal Mehta and Sarah Fine
.
While the title doesn’t have much to do with Taft, the ideas Mehta and Fine convey about what makes for an engaging high school experience describe Taft in nearly every way.
For example, “Instead of feeling like training grounds or holding pens, they felt like design studios or research laboratories: lively, productive places where teachers and students engaged together in consequential work.”
The article notes that, “Teachers need both more freedom and more support. They need longer class periods, opportunities for collaboration and teaching loads small enough to allow them to form real relationships with students . . . Finally, teachers need parents who ask, ‘What is my child curious about?’ rather than ‘How did she do on the test?’”
Taft, in so many ways, fits all that this article describes, right down to our parents and your support for your children and our students. As a community of learners, Taft faculty members strive to model lifelong learning. As important, the faculty is continually looking for new and effective ways to help our students learn. The article ends with a note, “What we need to do is to trigger [students’] instinct to contribute.” If that is the goal, Taft students contribute in so many ways and Taft enables and aids that good work.
We have but a few weeks left in the school year. We have a lot to do and our students, your children, stand to gain a great deal from our mutual efforts. As ever, I appreciate any and all feedback and have a great day.
All the best,
