Next year, a new academic program called Fusion will give participating students a more self-paced learning style and potential opportunities for internships.
Classes that are designated Fusion will still have teachers, but a big component of those courses will be student-paced work on Canvas. The program will be based in the library.
“Teachers start class with instruction, but then they can give kids a chance to go off to Fusion to finish on their own. If kids are struggling, they stay in class with a live teacher,” Assistant Principal Brandon Whitfield said. “A kid could do a whole week’s worth of math in one day if they understand the subject.”
“Our goal is to reinvent what high school is,” Whitfield said.
How many sections of courses are designated as Fusion classes will depend on how many students are interested in each course and in the Fusion program. During the program’s first year, the primary focus will be on English and history classes for juniors and seniors.
“After this sort of trial year, we are hoping to have all subjects as an option for the program,” Whitfield said.
The program does not focus only on academically strong students. Whitfield believes that it will benefit kids who may not love the current style of learning. The goal of the program is to make school appealing to every type of student.
“It is worth having the program as an option for students who might have a lower GPA, because their style of learning may not be working with the traditional ‘eight classes a day’ schedule,” Whitfield said.
Student internships will also be part of the program. In previous years, seniors have been required to complete one internship before they graduate. Now, juniors and seniors could have the opportunity to intern at multiple workplaces.
Administrators are planning a lunch in the upcoming weeks with different companies where students will be able to intern. The goal of the internships is to give students a better idea of what they might want to do as a career.
“We want fewer kids to leave high school with no idea what they want to do in the professional world, so they can save money and time,” Whitfield said.
History teacher Adam Foote was part of the group of teachers that went to Mayfield High School in Ohio in February to see a similar program in action. He thinks Baldwin’s Fusion program can help students build time management skills, leadership, and conflict resolution.
“I think we’re doing it because it truly is going to benefit students and their ability to learn and their ability to gather some skills they may not have had previously,” Foote said.
Whitfield was also impressed by what he saw at Mayfield High School.
“One group of kids we talked to were athletes. The program made it easier for them to get most of their work done before a game day, so they could take that day easier,” Whitfield said.
Junior Alexandra Iwaniuk likes that aspect of the program.
“I will be able to finish all my work before the day is over, so I won’t have to do anything at home. I think it will improve my mindset for the game,” Iwaniuk said.
Other students have mixed feelings about it.
“I like the idea of a more free schedule, but I also think I like the structure during my school day,” junior Cassidy Tortoreti said.
Tortoreti is also skeptical about how the program may take some time away from the social aspect of the day.
“Class is more fun sometimes when you have a lot of your friends in it. I just don’t want to have a lot of days where I don’t see my friends,” Tortoreti said.
Junior Reese Temme sees both potential sides to the program.
“I am part of many clubs throughout the school year, so being able to have more free time during my day will help me be able to contribute more time to each club while still focusing on academics,” Temme said. “I’m not sure if working so much on my own will work, because sometimes it’s easy to get off task when focusing on multiple things.”
