Photo courtesy Goshen Local Schools.
Goshen High School has been running a class for high school students that nurtures the next generation of educators. If a student thinks they might have interest in pursuing education after high school, they can sign up for Project More as an elective. Project More is a program that pairs high school students with teachers at Spaulding Elementary or the Middle School to support them in their classrooms. This initiative not only enriches the educational experience for both students and teachers but also paves the way for future educators to discover their passion.
Project More hinges on the power of mentorship. High school students who aspire to become educators are matched with teachers who welcome their enthusiasm and fresh perspectives. Teachers appreciate the help in their classrooms, but even more than that, younger students look forward to having the mentorship of high school students in their classrooms.
High school students get to stay in the same classroom for a semester, so they are able to gain experience in the field of education, but also build a mentorship relationship with the teacher they observe and work closely with. We have started to see high school students repeat the class year after year and request the same teacher because of the valuable experience they had.
This is a model that allows students to go into classrooms and see the daily ins and outs of the teaching profession. It enables students who have attended both elementary and middle school here at Goshen, to go back and play a supportive role in their favorite classrooms. Attached below is a picture of Project More students leading a reading group in a middle school teacher’s classroom. The teacher said the following: “This afternoon the project more students assigned to my classroom held a reading circle with our 7th & 8th grade students. They are doing great!