ECTOR COUNTY, Texas —
It was the first day of school for many kids across West Texas on Monday, Aug. 12.
For Ector County ISD, it also meant that one school in Odessa has now officially transitioned to project-based learning for pre-K through 2nd grade within the district’s "New Tech Network."
At Gale Pond Alamo Elementary School, the first day of school also served as a step towards a new way of learning.
“It’s some groundwork up front – we've got to get them familiar with some vocabulary and just kind of the collaborative part of working together – but, once we feel like we’ve got that solid then we’ll start," said Elisha Sessions, principal of Gale Pond Alamo Elementary.
As a "Choice School" in ECISD, a shift to project-based learning was wanted by parents at Gale Pond Alamo Elementary.
“Taking some of those core TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills) in specific areas and building them together and melding them together so that they can hit multiple TEKS through a project instead of just waiting for TEKS to naturally space themselves out throughout the year," Sessions said.
Gale Pond Alamo Elementary has been a magnet campus with a focus on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), and that focus remains through this change.
“The kids will spend several weeks working on projects that will help them learn those very specific domains," said Dr. Scott Muri, superintendent of ECISD. "Rather than learning subjects in isolation, this helps students realize that the world in which we live is actually interconnected and we’ll get to do that starting really here at this school [in] pre-K."
Dr. Muri said this is the district’s first elementary school to implement project-based learning.
It will serve as a feeder school to New Tech Middle School in the years to come once the campus is built, and ultimately to New Tech Odessa as well.
Third through 5th grade will implement project-based learning at the start of the 2025 school year.
“I think when we build those skills – those project-based learning skills -- at the early ages, those will certainly carry through and allow kids to be even more successful at really the middle school and the high school environment, so we’re excited about that," Dr. Muri said.
Excitement on day one behind this new opportunity for students.
“We did some site visits around the Austin area, and just seeing those kids go through the program it doesn’t look like school. It looks very much like kind of summer camp just because the kids are up and talking and moving more than just sitting at a desk doing work,” Sessions said.