Cecelie Wizenfeld has been actively involved in the Jewish school system as a teacher and administrator for over thirty years. She holds a Master of Arts Degree in Education from Pepperdine University in Los Angeles. This “action research project” was initiated as part of the 2008-2009 Lookstein Principals’ Program for Jewish Day School Educational Leaders.
Shalhevet, a co-ed, Modern Orthodox day school in Los Angeles, is founded on the model of Lawrence Kohlberg’s philosophy of moral development fused with Jewish morals and ethical values. In our high school we offer our student body a democratic “Just Community” in which to learn and grow. We ultimately want our students to learn techniques that will direct them towards clear and thoughtful decision making in real life moral and ethical dilemmas while being guided by Jewish values. In this process students learn to think, listen, articulate, publicly speak, develop confidence and grow in a mature and respectful environment. One vital way Shalhevet brings this philosophy to life is through a weekly public forum, called Town Hall, which develops and enhances these skills. In our high school Town Hall meetings, students actively participate in moral and ethical dilemma discussions that focus on topics ranging from the governance of our school to contemporary controversial issues in the political and ethical arenas. Through active participation, students acquire leadership skills for future participation in their communities, synagogues, organizations and school boards, to name a few.
The problem
Adhering with the school’s philosophy, our middle school set aside time for their version of a Town Hall meeting, once a week. Several years ago, attempts were made to hold moral dilemmas discussions using age appropriate topics. Students were given the opportunity to work on their ideas for change in school policies. Mimicking the high school, middle schoolers even made announcements in the assembly. The problems with all of these clear and noble attempts to re-create Shalhevet’s high school version of Town Hall were that the moral dilemmas did not inspire the intended outcomes. School policy discussions usually turned into field trips or special occasions planning sessions. Announcements were reduced to giving birthday greetings to a fellow student or teacher. Clearly, the Town Hall forum was not working in the manner in which it was intended.
Moral and ethical development, higher level thinking, and democratic process, are among the primary purposes of this process. Clearly the middle school Town Hall forum missed the mark. After the overall assessment from middle school staff, they unanimously concluded that the Town Halls ultimately came to be a waste of valuable teaching time. Change proved necessary if the middle school wished to continue with this activity.
Extensive and endless outcomes ensue from a theoretical Town Hall forum. The invaluable tool of critical thinking, alone, develops within the moral dilemma discussions. This growth and development proves the ultimate goal.
The plan
To get to the fundamental ideals of moral and ethical growth and development, we needed to return to the basics. Much like a damaged piece of antique furniture, we stripped off all of the proverbial old paint to the original piece. My Action Research Project took on just that mission. My aim was to create a boot camp – training ground for our middle school students. The students would learn about and practice the way in which to participate in a Town Hall forum with the specific purpose of gaining a better understanding of what a Just Community and Democratic society are, and how they defines us as members of the Shalhevet community. Specific goals were put into place for both middle schools students, and staff who participated as well. A major learning process began.
Student goals
- enhancing listening skills, articulation skills, public speaking skills, participation skills, and note taking skills,
- developing critical thinking, organizational skills, respect for others’ opinions in a public forum,
- teaching students how to make a proposal for change in school policy and how to present a proposal to a school community.
Teacher goals
- learning how to facilitate an effective town hall forum without taking the lead away from the students,
- understanding how to respectfully mentor a student run agenda committee by listening to all ideas openly,
- participating with students in developing school policy proposals,
- practicing how to lead effective moral dilemma discussions in the classroom,
- incorporating a Judaic/Torah perspective into the moral dilemma.
Putting the plan into motion, the entire middle school student body, staff and administrators got together almost every Wednesday for approximately 40 minutes. These 40 minutes designated the Town Hall forum. Three out of the nine middle school teachers formed a committee to work with me on implementing the project. They became the future teachers/facilitators of the Town Hall meetings as well as the mentors of the student agenda committee. Additionally, they became the individuals who carried on the process into year two. In order to achieve our student goals we broke our year into three distinct sections. The first few months of school focused on increasing the above mentioned students’ skills. Additionally, we broke down Town Hall into its most basic explanations and components, as that of moral dilemma discussions, school policy discussions, and appropriate announcements. We, too, touched upon different forms of government as well as the democratic process, demonstrated through such activities as giving students the opportunity to vote on their Student Agenda committee members. During the second part of year one, we formed our Student Agenda committee and slowly guided the students towards leading discussions. Each week the committee focused on leading a discussion on a moral dilemma, proposal or policy. In the final part of the year, the Student Agenda committee pulled all the components together to form an actual Town Hall forum, conducted in the manner originally intended for such a forum.
Results
In analyzing our efforts, we found that students increased their ability to listen, participate and articulate in front of a group. Critical thinking skills grew, though distinct differences existed among the responses and levels of maturity within discussions between 5th/6th graders and 7th/8th graders. Additionally, students felt the accomplishments of making school policy proposals being put into place and utilized for the remainder of the school year. Current 9th graders who graduated from our middle school expressed a keener awareness and confidence to participate in our high school Town Halls. After surveying the students to measure our efforts, we found an overall better understanding and appreciation of the Town Hall process. Our assemblies became much more organized and thoughtful in comparison to the past years of middle school Town Hall assemblies.
Off to a good start, at the close of the year, Shalhevet Middle School developed a clear understanding of the cornerstone of our school philosophy. Though we accomplished much in year one, our boot camp – training sessions were not quite over yet!
We used what we learned and grew from that. We enacted several structural changes that proved effective. Change often presents a challenge, however, students continued to seek it as the Town Hall staff leaders found themselves in their own dilemma. Students began voicing their opinions against more change to what they considered their Right of passage as middle school students participating in weekly assemblies. Teachers prevailed though, and those changes further sharpened the skills and goals of our mission.
A second phase
First and foremost, my role has changed from fixer/developer to that of mentor/advisor to those staff members who now carry the torch to continue the learning process into this current year. Secondly, we split the middle school into two grade level groups. Group One, 7th and 8th graders, hold their own Town Hall forums throughout the year while our Group Two, 5th and 6th graders, join in once every several weeks, as they continue to learn the basics of participating in a moral dilemma discussions geared towards their age and stage of development. They currently hold moral dilemma discussions in the classroom. Thirdly, assemblies now happen every three weeks instead of every week, making those meeting times a more valuable learning experience without detracting from necessary teaching time.
In efforts to create momentum for the entire mission, as we approach the final months of the current school year, 7th and 8th graders have earned the right to hold their meetings primarily in the Bet Midrash, where our high school meets. So, too, the 5th and 6th graders, who previously met in their classrooms, now conduct meetings in the middle school Library, the primary middle school assembly room.
Sessions continue to infuse our students with lots of targeted vocabulary like upstanders and bystanders to increase moral conscience. Additionally, they define the attributes and responsibilities of a community, building up to the understanding of a Just Community. Lastly, and probably the hardest goal to achieve due to its intricate level of understanding, together, the Judaic and general studies teachers aim to incorporate Judaic and Torah values into the Town Hall forums to develop a deeper and more meaningful moral dilemma discussion.
Ultimately, students’ awareness has elevated in their contributions to the class, the school, the outside community and the world at large. As a contribution to the different communities, all of the middle school students participate in hesed projects throughout the school year. As students work on their community building techniques, they naturally put together all of the components we initially identified as issues for change. They realize the goals set forth at the beginning of the project. The level of our Town Hall forums, overall, has been elevated to new heights and levels. To quote those that running Town Hall forums today, “our teachers are left inspired and speechless each week and the students should feel very proud!” Just less than two years later our mission has proven to be a success, yet we continually strive to achieve new heights!
Reflections
found the Action Research process to be similar to beginning a routine of diet and exercise. This method provides that same sense of discipline in thoughtful preparation towards a thorough completion. I am again in another “action research’ project developing and early childhood center that will incorporate pieces of two different educational philosophers, as its mission. The tools that I have learned in my original project are invaluable to me in my current endeavor. The skills that I acquired, including organization, projected process, goals and intended outcomes are a driving force in helping me navigate through my current project. I am forever grateful for the training that I received in clarifying, organizing and implementing my thoughts into actions.