This article first appeared in the ColoradoBoulevard.net March 2021 print edition.
John Muir 2020 graduation (File Photo – @JohnMuirHS)
Twilight happens twice a day. If you miss it the first time, you’ll get a second chance. In the Pasadena Unified School District, we are giving students in their senior year a second chance to recover lost credits.
By Jennifer Hall Lee
Assistant Superintendent Juliana Reynoso said that PUSD is looking at “an intentional and relational opportunity to redeem their credit.”
Twilight is a pilot program with over 200 participating seniors, scheduled for 2021 graduation.
Lacking one or two courses, seniors may redeem course credits during the school year rather than during the traditional summer school.
This isn’t simply an online course. Teachers have seized the opportunity to train for Twilight because it requires teachers to be there for students.
Johanna Moore teaches at John Muir High School. She signed up for the training because she finds the Twilight pilot to be more meaningful. Students, who need credits, are usually “kids who may have issues with their security whether it be their self-esteem or housing issues.”
How does this pilot program work? The program will last ten weeks. A student can take up to two courses “similar to summer school.” In “small cohorts” students learn one or two courses with one teacher. Twilight is more personal than the traditional summer school.
Ms. Moore said the Twilight pilot reminds her why she became a teacher: “To make sure we bring education to those who need access.” She wants to “truly fulfill her calling as an educator.”
Covid-19 and online learning have exposed the inequities in our society. In such times a crisis opens doors to new ways of understanding. It can change us in powerful ways. The teacher and student relationship is historic. Personally, as I wade through the digital ease of online learning, I admit that I miss the face-to-face learning that is inherent in the physical classroom.
Life during a 100 year pandemic brings new challenges. Not all students are adapting to online learning, particularly students where housing insecurity and other issues have adverse effects on learning. The Twilight pilot program, according to Johanna Moore, will give the seniors, who are struggling in an online remote environment, “that personal spark that brings about engagement.”
Twilight is that second opportunity that will help our seniors graduate.
Jennifer Hall Lee is a Pasadena Unified Board Member.
> This article appeared in the ColoradoBoulevard.net March 2021 print edition.
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