WEST ORANGE, NJ — The West Orange High School Adaptive iSTEM — Integrative Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics — program will be featured on the Emmy Award-winning television series “Classroom Close-Up” on March 5. The class was filmed in December 2015 as part of the show’s series highlighting innovative projects in New Jersey public schools.
Now in its second year, the WOHS Adaptive iSTEM class was created and developed by West Orange High School teacher Deb Coen and technology and engineering supervisor Ryan DelGuercio. Dawn Ribeiro, director of special services for grades seven through 12, and Jodie Goldstein in WOHS special services also worked to develop the Adaptive iSTEM program.
Student participants were from the WOHS self-contained special needs class, who excitedly performed “What Makes You Beautiful” and “All in this Together” with Deb Rees of Pleasantdale School, during a screening of the segment on Feb. 29 for staff, family and administrators.
The segment centers on the group’s rollercoaster project, where students and their instructional assistants created loops and tracks to make a working rollercoaster. Throughout the course, they built upon what they learned and worked with electricity and circuit kits. The course also utilized a modified DECIDER process, developed at WOHS for technology and engineering classes. Marie Blistan, vice-president of the New Jersey Education Association, also appears in the video along with WOHS instructors.
“The students learned that it was OK to fail and try new things to find solutions,” Coen said in the video. “The students initially begin out very hesitant to try out the various activities. We start off with the structures activity, which is something fairly easy and concrete for them — although hot glue guns are new to them in many cases and there is a learning curve — and advance to the rollercoaster project, which is our culminating project. By the point we get to the rollercoasters it is so great to see how far they have come and what they understand. They really are able to understand and solve problems — both inside the classroom and using the same skills outside the classroom — with a thoughtful process. By differentiating what each student does it truly helps them be successful. With 10 kids in the class all at various levels, there are sometimes 10 different activities being done all based on the same ‘anchor’ project.”
Following the filming, Coen said, “This program has been an unbelievable success. By accommodating learning styles with hands-on projects in a less restrictive environment, we are helping to prepare our students for post education, employments and independent living.”
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