Visible Learning in the High School

Mike Malone, High School Principal

CHEMUN, Discovery Days, Science in Action, Mobile App Development, Celebration of Learning, IB CAS and AP Statistics projects—what do all of these have in common? All of them are visible demonstrations of HS students’ learning in action. What else do they have in common? All of the above are driven by student voice and choice.

Whether it is in club or activity, such as CHEMUN, in classes such as Science in Action, in semester events such as Discovery Days and Celebrations of Learning, or in our IB CAS and AP Statistic classes, students are meeting the Mission through their choices and with their voices. Throughout the School, AISC students decide their focus for exploration and learning and growth, and then make their learning and impact visible to the community. This is our mission in action.

Our student-run Model United Nations, CHEMUN (short for Chennai-MUN) had its 16th edition this November, with over 600 students and 30 schools participating, in-person and virtually, from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India and South, Southeast and West Asia and East Africa. Students demonstrated their learning in twelve UN committees on topics such as genome editing, urban air pollution and the Smart Cities initiative in India, supporting the rights of migrant workers, all under the theme of divergence and cohesion.

Discovery Days are student- and staff-led opportunities to follow passions, explore interests and discover new things during a full school day. Student clubs and groups sponsored activities such as robotics, animation coding, mindfulness, mehendi and zentangle.

In High School classes, students choose, explore, and share their learning. In Mobile App Development, AISC students developed and shared (and won the MIT Appathon!) their mobile app on waste and energy. In Science in Action, students explored, designed, built, and presented eco-coolers, reusing materials to support zerocarbon cooling systems.

In our Celebration of Learning, students volunteered to share their learning in all academic departments. Students demonstrated Camp Craft in Adventure Activities class, shared basic Spanish conversation skills and tips, explained the power and equations of continuous compounding in math, the history and current impact of poetry as protest in English 10, and their academic research into the ethics of nanotechnology in our Capstone course—among 20+ demonstrations. Parents, peers, and teachers celebrated with them.

In IB CAS presentations, students share their design thinking, implementation and learnings from their month-long service projects, including teaching archery, creating the first MS MUN at AISC, and the “Me You Don’t See” identity initiative for HS students and staff.

In AP Statistics, students demonstrated their interests and learning on topics such as, “How do affirmations impact quiz performance,” “How do affirmations/criticisms impact brainstorming,” and “How does the presence of a supervisor in a classroom impact student concentration?”

In all of the above and throughout the High School, students are meeting the AISC Mission— demonstrating courage and confidence, creativity and compassion as they make their unique contributions in our diverse and dynamic world. AISC students, individually, on teams, and as a community constantly make choices, take deep dives, apply, and share their learning as they develop their abilities to impact our world.