SAANICHNEWS NEWS
ENTERTAINMENT
In the home stretch
When the music’s over
After a busy four years of construction, Uptown’s building phase is nearly complete. Page A3
The struggling Vancouver Island Music Awards is on the brink of playing its swan song. Page A11
Friday, August 17, 2012
Gray Rothnie
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Victoria independent school first in Canada to adopt curriculum focused on science literacy
Dangerous intersection in Saanich to finally see upgrades
Natalie North
Kyle Slavin
Powering school on science, math News staff
This past spring, students in Grades 2 and 3 at Elizabeth Buckley School in Victoria sprouted seeds as part of their study of plants. But instead of memorizing passages from a textbook before watering their seeds, the students formed hypotheses on how the plants might develop and eliminated possibilities through class discussion along the way. “We recognize that the kids learn very well in a hands-on kind of way,” said Roberta MacDonald, principal of Elizabeth Buckley School, an independent school that will become the first STEM school in the country this September. STEM – for science, technology, engineering and mathematics – schools began cropping up across the U.S. during the past two decades and operate on the idea that literacy in each of these subject areas is as important as the development of language skills. Elizabeth Buckley will officially adopt STEM next month, but the school has long since implemented some of the teaching methods, which favour experiential learning over memorization. “We all recognize that literacy is very important, yet there are kids who feel they’re not very good at science and math, and write that off, saying ‘I’m just not a science person,’ or ‘I’m just not a math
person.’” The phenomenon seems to be accepted, particularly with girls around the middle school years, said MacDonald, also an Elizabeth Buckley parent. “But what if your child came to you and said: ‘I’m just not a language person,’ would we accept that?” The school began 25 years ago for students with hearing impairment, but today it serves all students, whether they’re typical, special needs or gifted. “It’s not necessarily that our kids are different, but we want our kids to see ‘different’ differently than when we were raised,” said Laurie Waye, Elizabeth Buckley parent and co-chair of its board of directors. MacDonald, the former director of Science Venture, a STEM outreach program Sharon Tiffin/News staff at the University of Victoria, Nine-year-old Luke Shimizu uses a magnifying glass to have a closer had run science camps and look at a leaf with education assistant Kate MacDonald at the Elizabeth wanted to find a way to meet Buckley School. The school is the first in Canada to adopt a curriculum an un-met need in science focused on literacy in science, technology, engineering and math. education. Subjects aren’t taught in cards for various animals and eleunaddressed by the public sector. isolation, rather in hands-on activi- ments of the ecosystem. Greater Victoria Board of Educaties that foster discussion and critLessons on astronomy and First tion chairperson Peg Orcherton ical thinking, MacDonald said. Nation heritage have been taught said part of the difficulties within Music, physical education and by local experts, partnerships the public education is to maintain math, for example, are taught school hopes to build into the and upgrade technology under through a game of clapping and future. tight budgetary restrictions. moving to rhythms. MacDonald is involved in develPLEASE SEE: Science, art and language are oping guidelines for digital literacy STEM teaching, Page A15 covered when kids create trading – something Waye feels went
News staff
Mere hours before crews began upgrades to the intersection of Sayward Road and the Pat Bay Highway, B.C.’s transportation minister stood at the dangerous corner to announce a $3-million plan to improve safety. The first step, which started Wednesday night, involved the installation of a flashing “congestion ahead” sign on the highway, south of Cordova Bay Road. The sign is expected to be up and running by the end of next week. “This is (an intersection) that has affected many families in this area in not a very positive manner,” said Transportation Minister Blair Lekstrom. Pat Bay and Sayward is one of the most dangerous intersections in the province, having seen more than 338 crashes since 2007. A community group was formed last year, involving local and provincial politicians, community members, B.C. Transit and the Ministry of Transportation, to come up with shortand medium-term solutions to the issues at the intersection. Those changes, supplied by the working group, are what Lekstrom announced. PLEASE SEE: Stretch of highway, Page A15
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