Director benchmark research new orleans11/11/2023 ![]() They initiate the process and prove they’re ready to move forward. Students are in charge of their promotion to the next autonomy level. At Red Bridge, we group students by “autonomy level,” which is based on demonstrating proficiency in work habits like time management, goal setting, and organization. For instance, we don’t group students by grade level. ![]() Orly: We’re trying to build students’ sense of control by redesigning the structures of school that typically take that away. Rick: Could you give an example of how Red Bridge works in practice? School can help students develop self-efficacy and combat the rise we’ve seen in both these conditions. A lack of agency can also contribute to anxiety and depression. COVID showed us that students who need a teacher to tell them exactly what to do are at a disadvantage when schools close and learning moves online, whereas students who are used to self-direction can continue to make the most of their learning. Students need to know how to set goals, make plans, and follow through on those plans. First, it’s not preparing students for the world we live in. Orly: The traditional education system values compliance and efficiency over agency and deeper learning. Rick: How do you explain what makes Red Bridge distinctive? This made me want to rethink how school could be designed with student agency at the center. What I witnessed there was students building the work habits to own their success, or failures-essential skills that would last them their whole lives. Later, I moved to California and worked in a very different school setting-one that emphasized mastery-based learning, individualized pacing, and the development of executive-function skills where students were encouraged to make decisions about their learning. I worked in traditional schools where much of the student’s success was determined by the school they went to and the teacher they were assigned. Orly: After college, I joined Teach For America and taught elementary school in the District of Columbia for five years. In 2018, I left my job to work on designing a school model that would lead to this outcome, and Red Bridge opened its doors Sept. The idea behind Red Bridge is to prepare students to be leaders of their own learning, so that their success is in their own hands. While we don’t aspire to open more campuses ourselves, we do hope to create a shareable model that educators can use to create more student-driven learning environments. We have 40 students in K–5 this fall and are on track to be a K–8 school by 2026. We define student agency as “the ability to set meaningful goals and have the will and skill to achieve them.” We know our program is working when students can set and follow through on their own goals, which is a requirement to be promoted between autonomy levels. This is in contrast to the traditional model of school, which is designed around compliance. Orly: Red Bridge is a demonstration school designed to build student agency as the foundation for academic and life success.
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