Week 9

Welcome Back!

First off, I do apologize for not posting last Friday like I said I would. These past few weeks have been very busy as I wrote my final paper that discusses my project, as well as preparing for my final presentation. Along with this, I have finally decided on which university I will be attending in the fall. With a variety of schools to choose from, it was by no means an easy decision. I'm very thank for all of the people who helped me along this journey and I'm proud to announce that I will be a future Sun Devil at Arizona State University. For some of you, this may come as a surprise since I was very adamant on leaving out of state.

In my last post, I mentioned that I wanted to talk about a few things I wish I would have done differently throughout the course of my project. As a BASIS student myself, it has been very difficult to separate my personal feelings about the BASIS experience. I believe that if I would have done a better job at separating my personal feelings, it may have been easier to better describe the BASIS experience of others without being too concerned about using my own feelings to describe theirs. While doing this may have been difficult, many of the remarks I've received in response to my own personal feelings have expressed much appreciation. Expressing the feelings of myself as well as the feelings of other about this unique experience has given others an opportunity to see where the BASIS community can begin to improve in areas that we may be blinded toward.

Another part that has proven to be more challenging  rather than something I wish I would have changed has been, discussing sensitive information. When you begin to make criticisms about anyone or anything, it becomes difficult to express those criticisms in a manner that can serve for the greater good. You have to be understanding that not everyone will see eye to eye with you and therefore must proceed with caution when explaining information that may personally affect them.

This post isn't as long as my last ones but, I hope that you all have enjoyed the information in which I've shared with you.  As always, thanks for the support and interest in my blog!

Best,

Eli

Week 8

Welcome back!

As always, I hope everyone had another great week. For myself, this was my last week conducting interviews and gathering my last bits of information to begin working on my final paper and presentation. You can look forward to two more blog posts that end on week 10 of my project. That being said, these final few posts won't be as long as my last ones but, they will serve their purpose as merely recaps of my project including a self reflection pertaining to what I could have done better or differently throughout the course of my project. I'm somewhat sad that this project is ending because it's something that I've shown great passion for but, I'm also very relieved to know that I will soon be moving on to the next chapter of my life, as college is on the near horizon. 

For this blog post I want to focus on something I noticed this week as I thought about BASIS as an organization and not as just BASIS Ahwatukee or BASIS Washington DC. What I came to realize is that BASIS seems to grow rapidly year after year. With more and more campuses breaking ground, it makes sense why BASIS may seem to be exerting more control and offering less flexibility to it's students and faculty/administrators, which is interesting because being that we're a charter school, we have to maintain a level of flexibility in order to meet the needs of all students. This need for control is a typical situation for most organizations and companies as they  grow into large entities, and therefore is no specific fault of BASIS alone. However with this growth comes much change in the way things are handled from campus to campus, and as I mentioned in my last blog post, this growing amount of change brings forth a cold environment where this isn't much warmth. As of right now, I feel that each BASIS campus that I've stepped on, and others of which I've heard the experiences of close friends that attend them, there is a warmth that allows a positive school culture to flourish on campus, offering an environment that one may find personable and relatable. There is the satisfaction of knowing that you are part of a community that has it's own uniqueness. I personally believe that every campus should have its own unique and admirable characteristics. However, my concern is that as BASIS continues to grow,  will there be fostered in a model that attempts to instill a universal school culture that is more fitting to meet statistical requirements, at the sacrifice of having campus warmth and uniqueness?  I do believe that in order for BASIS to continue to raise the bar for American academics, there must be growth and expansion but, at what cost? As we grow into a larger organization, we have to find ways to preserve the campus uniqueness that students, their families, admin and staff find relatable. From a campus comparison of BASIS Ahwatukee and BASIS Washington DC, they both have unique ways of embracing other things. As a school like BASIS DC in the heart of our nations capital, they have to embrace from the outside and whatever comes their direction. This is a school in which has students that come from every corner of the city because it's made easily accessible with the metro system. This is also a school in which deals with one of the most highly stressful political climates in the world. Therefore, as a school they have to embrace all of these issues with a positive attitude in order to maintain campus uniqueness as well as a positive school culture. As for Ahwatukee, while we do embrace from the outside as well, I feel that we do more embracing from within. Although we also reside in a large city, I feel that we don't experience high levels of outside influence. Because of this, I believe that it's easier for Ahwatukee to maintain our school autonomy and develop ways for our school to be influential rather than being too influenced. These are both examples of many unique qualities these campuses have to offer but, as I said before, as BASIS grows on the larger scale, our campuses have to preserve their own uniqueness. However, this cultural and unique preservation cannot be devolved to merely compensate for a growing organization. Once again, these are all of my personal beliefs and concerns, none which can be supported with substantial data evidence.

As always, have a wonderful weekend!

Best, 

Eli 

Week 7

Welcome Back!

I hope you all had another great week, and Happy Friday! As I approach this final stretch of my project, I want to thank all of you for being dedicated followers of my posts over the course of the past two months. Your comments of encouragement have been greatly appreciated, and I hope everyone has a successful two months of school before Summer Break--I know...how exciting is that?! 

In this weeks post, I want to focus on an important aspect to have on campus in order to maintain a positive school culture. That is, there must always remain a sense of community. While on campus this week, this was something that I payed close attention to, especially while at last weekends annual school picnic. Even though I've been at BASIS Ahwatukee since it's doors first opened, I've seen things develop and changer over time that have allowed for a definite sense of community at our school. Having a sense of community is a feeling that has to be felt personally and isn't instilled overnight. The Eric Institute of Education Sciences released a study that stated that in order for students to have a sense of campus community, there must be a strive to build a community that (1) offers an environment where self expression is accepted and respected, (2) students and faculty are engaged in learning and teaching, (3) fosters positive relationships among ethnic and cultural groups through programs and student activities, (4) celebrates traditions and heritage of the institution, and (5) provides assistance to students when they feel lonely or depressed. One way in which both the Ahwatukee and DC campus address the first part (1), is by allowing their students to a certain degree, express themselves in an appropriate manner. The BASIS DC Gay Straight Alliance and the BASIS Ahwatukee Spectrums Club for LGBT+ and Allies, are both examples of programs in place that allow students a Safe Space for open self expression on campus (if you aren't familiar with Safe Space, click on the Safe Space link). As for (3), this is something that I've stressed the importance of throughout the course of my project. Even after talking with students and faculty from both campuses, BASIS as a whole tends to value the importance of positive relationships developing on campus. Especially those among a variety of ethnic and cultural groups prevalent of campus. Living in this current world has proven, at least for some ethnic and cultural groups, almost no chance of ever getting along. However, when you set foot on a BASIS campus and experience positive interactions between groups of people, where history has proven these groups to be in constant conflict, you are met with the challenge of how to maintain that positive engagement, and at times, you're given that chance to witness with your own eyes, one of the many beauties of life.  Along with this, two slightly differing forms of an International Night take place on both campuses. This is an opportunity for the school community to come out once a year, and experience a taste of the many cultures at that specific BASIS campus. There's always a variety of food, activities, informational presentation boards, and sometimes even music and dancing, where everyone gets the opportunity to experience a small portion of the culture of someone else who lives life from a slightly different angle. There is also the presence of a Leadership Club on both campuses. This is a student driven club in charge of planning school dances, spirit weeks, and organizing holiday grams along with a variety of other school activities. This gives students that chance to make the school their own and offer an appealing opportunity to students and faculty, as well as their families to get involved in. There are so many ways the different aspects of developing a sense of community are met by both of these not so vastly differing campuses. But, because I don't want you to read though a 1000 word blog post, I will leave you with what I have, and I look forward to presenting my last bits of information and findings over the course of these short and fast-coming few weeks. As always, thanks again for stopping by and have an amazing weekend!

Best, 

Eli 

Week 6

Hello Everyone!

As always, I hope you've all had a great week! This week  has definitely been a busy one, as I conducted many interviews and student surveys. All in all, this week has made for a great opportunity to learn more about my school, BASIS Ahwatukee, and see how the experience has been for both students and faculty. For the purpose of this blog, I want to share some insight I received from my interviewees and how they believe the culture of BASIS Ahwatukee has allowed for their success.

The idea that "academic success" is seen as a good thing and not a bad thing was one of the interesting conversations in my interviews. It was something that I had never put much thought in until now. This was especially after I made a connection to a discussion I had with a student at BASIS Washington DC. The fact that BASIS offers a safe environment to those who excel academically, where they aren't teased and made fun of for being intelligent and having a desire to learn, goes to show how much we value the importance of a positive school culture. Even more interestingly, the interviewee went on to say that from the very beginning of the school opening, there has always been a bilateral encouragement and willingness to help one another achieve their goals, between students. This is something that isn't always prevalent on a "typical" high school campus where being smart or the so called "nerd" isn't always admirable. In connection with the discussion I had with a student from the  DC campus, this student remembered the experience attending regular schools and how difficult it was to be treated differently just because they were a fast learner. They described their experience as the student who received extra packets or work and revised lessons plans. This student had became frustrated, especially because they weren't being challenged and felt as though they didn't fit in. From the interviews I've had with people, to the student surveys I've read through, BASIS seems to offer an environment open to all people and can even become flexible when there are those who don't quite catch on as fast as others.

Another thing I'd like to discuss from my interviews thus far as a whole, is a commonality between all of these discussions. One of the questions I've asked interviewees is, "what would you like to see differently at our school that could help improve the development and sustainment of a positive school culture". The common response was that they felt BASIS could do a better job at keeping things consistent. In other words, BASIS needs to work on its consistency. On a campus as unique as BASIS Ahwatukee where we've experienced much change in a shot span of time, there has to be to some degree, a level of consistency that students can depend on in their daily lives. Whether this consistency be in rules, policies, procedures, or even those in charge such as admin and staff . For example, there have been those such as teachers, students and admin who have been at our campus from the beginning. More specifically, there have been teachers from the beginning who have had the opportunity to develop unique relationships with students, where they really know them and even their families, often times over a couple of years. This has allowed these teachers to not only build a solid relationship with that student but learn what the specific needs of that student are over years of development through teaching them multiple subjects. With a constantly changing admin like BASIS Ahwatukee, you get a more bureaucratic approach to student life, discipline, and any problems that may arise. With that, the people who may be enacting discipline, creating rules, or developing programs, are doing so from somewhat of a cold environment. A cold environment in the sense that there isn't an "organic" knowing of these students and who they, where they're at, and what they need. Some students have described this as just a prescription or system that begins to feel cold over time. From a students perspective of this situation, most of them resent the fact that they've been there longer than some of those who are enacting these changes without any sort of explanation. In affect, this causes some students to feel slightly disrespected. But, because things are constantly changing, there isn't the opportunity for new people to realize the maturity and growth of students who have been there since the beginning and the fact they can deal with the hardships of life and tough information if given it upfront. One way I believe BASIS Ahwatukee can begin to improve this issue is by possibly having meetings between admin and staff with students in a sort of "town-hall" setting. That way students can voice their concerns and feel a sense of being heard. This also provides an opportunity for relationships to begin formulating between students and admin. Like I've said many times before, good strong relationships is important for having a positive school culture.

As always, I look forward to keeping you all up to date about my progress, and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Best,
Eli

Week 5

Welcome Back Everyone!

I hope you all enjoyed your break! I'm glad be back into the swing of things here on the Ahwatukee campus. Being that this was the first week back on campus after spring break, everyone was busy preparing for this final stretch of the school year. That being said, I didn't have very many conversations with students or faculty but, I spent time scheduling meetings for next week as well as preparing for the next round of interviews and surveys.

For this post, I want to focus on an idea that I received much inspiration on from other individuals  during my stay in D.C. It's something that I was guilty of saying and agreeing with throughout my time as a high school student at BASIS. It's the idea of a "typical high school experience" You often hear this statement linger throughout the halls of BASIS, and at times, is the reason why some make the decision to find a place in which offers this "typical" experience. This is not to say that there is something wrong with BASIS but, because BASIS models the school of choice model, students are given the choice to stay or find a place in which better suits their wants and needs. However, as I began to think more about this idea, I began to ask myself, "why was I so determined to chase after this typical high school experience"? I never really struggled with the BASIS curriculum and I didn't play sports--something that you don't find a wide variety of on a BASIS campus. For other students that I've talked to, they say that they yearn for the overall social aspect of attending the "typical" American high school. They want the fully loaded experience--one in which includes the sports, the pep rallies, the dances, the overwhelmingly large student bodies, the occasional drama, and the sense of having some balanced level of a social life. I wasn't surprised to hear some of these because quite honestly, many of these were at one point in my BASIS experience, things I wanted as well. Luckily I came to realize what BASIS had to truly offer me. There were times in which I nearly made the decision to leave but, every time I tried, I couldn't convince myself that anywhere else would be a better fit for me.  It was time that I made the experience my own, instead of trying to model it after something "typical". After having this epiphany, I told myself that I had to stop trying  to force my BASIS experience into becoming something that could be bottle necked into a jar of other typical high school experiences. As a BASIS student, I believe as BASIS community we have to appreciate who we are and what we have to offer. We have to truly become accepting and appreciative of our uniqueness. Even as a charter school, we have the unique opportunities to develop our own unique programs and ways of education--something that a "typical" high school doesn't always offer. Being a BASIS school means more than continuously achieving more and being successful but, we are setting an example and raising the bar for the American education system--that is of course as we deal with our own imperfections and find ways to improve upon them. If we are going to do so successfully, we have to first appreciate ourselves for who we are before we can convince others the same.

I hope that post has served as new perspective for some of you reading, and I look forward to keeping you all posted.

Best,

-Eli

Week 4

Welcome back Everyone!

I hope you've all had an amazing Spring Break! Last week was technically my personal spring break however, I didn't realize that BASIS Ahwatukees Spring Break was this week. So, although I didn't necessarily perform any further research on campus this week, I took this opportunity to recap my trip to D.C, in preparation for arrival back on campus next week to complete the second half of my project. I hope you all are enjoying the information that I've posted and please continue to leave comments below--the feedback is much appreciated!

As I said, this week I took the opportunity to reflect on my trip to D.C and more so, reflect on the BASIS experience as a whole. Thus far, one of the things that I've noticed about BASIS Ahwatukee and BASIS Washington D.C, as they continue to develop a school culture, both campuses strive in building positive relationships. Although I may not be researching every BASIS school, I'd like to make the assumption that this is the same among the entire BASIS community. As I spent time on the D.C campus, I payed attention to the interactions between students, teachers, and staff. I would often listen in on student conversations and what they had to say about their teachers, other students, and staff. Of course there was always a common frustration among the students with their teachers about an assignment they weren't too excited about having to complete. However conversations always held to a some degree or another, a positive attitude. Students provided assistance to one another, while teachers opened up their classrooms and offered any necessary resources to their students. As for the staff and other administrators, everyone maintained a positive and professional relationship between one another. If I were a student at BASIS D.C, I would appreciate the fact that while living in a large city and being exposed to things that can cause various levels of stress, there is a positive attitude maintained that is reflected through the many relationships being built on campus. Even from my own personal experience attending BASIS Ahwatukee, I've always felt the need to emphasize that I've had the unique opportunity to build positive, long lasting relationships--the kind of relationships most people would say you won't have until college but, I'd like to say that BASIS is establishing new norms and traditions. 

Having positive relationships is not only vital to maintaining a positive school culture but, as well as a healthy life. Without these quality relationships, a school campus might become a place in which doesn't offer a safe environment for students to learn and grow together. Whether this relation is between you and a friend, you and a sibling, or you and a teacher/administrator, each of these relationships gives us the chance to invest our energy in making our own and another persons reality better. In essence, these relationships offer us the unique opportunity to invest in our futures. Learning how to build these positive relationships now, is important, rather than waiting until much later in our lives when knowing the right person and having a good relationship with them, may have earned you the keys to part of your success. Luckily, BASIS offers an environment for you to learn these skills from an early age. 

I'm very excited to be back on campus next week to continue my research. For those of you still on break or may be beginning one, I hope you enjoy your time off as much as I have! I look forward to keeping you all updated and remember to check back here next Friday for my latest update!

Best, 

Eli 

Week 3

Welcome Back!

I hope you've had an another amazing week! For some of you, this may be your last week before an exciting Spring Break! That being said, I will not be updating my blog next Friday, as I will also be enjoying some time spent with family and friends! In advance, thanks to everyone who has followed and commented on my posts thus far. I really appreciate all of the support! Sadly, this is my last day in D.C, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank the D.C students and staff for accommodating me during my stay and being of any assistance when I needed it. I've had a wonderful time here and I can't wait to share with the folks back home, how awesome of a school BASIS Washington D.C is. While BASIS schools may have their slight differences, from my experience on campus and the relationships I've built in the short span of time I've spent here, BASIS D.C has joined the rest of the BASIS community in developing, supporting, and sustaining a positive school culture!

In my last post, I provided a definition for school culture. As a quick refresher, school culture are the beliefs, perceptions, relationships, attitudes and rules that influence every aspect of how a school functions but, this also embodies issues such as physical and mental well-being of the students, orderliness of the school, and the degree to which the school embraces racial, ethnic, or cultural diversity. While here in D.C, part of my research has dealt with the last part of this definition of school culture-- the degree to which the school embraces racial, ethnic, or cultural diversity. Being that Washington D.C's diversity has a much different composition of ethnic groups, you can expect varying levels in the extent to which the school embraces or celebrates this diversity. That being said, the city of Washington D.C has been found to be one of the most diverse places in the United States. An article by The Washington Post goes as far as saying that, "racial and ethnic diversity is no longer a vicarious experience for Americans". This demographic diversity within D.C has impacted the way in which its local schools and communities approach this new from of inclusion and acceptance. 

So, in order to begin my research of how BASIS D.C embraces this diversity, one of the questions I included in the student survey's was, " Do you feel that your school embraces your ethnic culture?" The general consensus was "yes", with some left undecided or simply responded by saying they didn't know how to answer the question. 

However, in order to receive more insightful responses, I conducted an open dialogue with the senior class. In this setting, I received a variety of responses about a variety of things, one of them being this embracing of cultural diversity. First off, the majority  of this class is African American as is the majority of the student body, with fewer White students, and one student who is Latino. Most interestingly, students a part of this conversation who identified as white responded that they felt as though their culture was definitely embraced by their school. One of these students went further to say,"...if  a school has any significant patron of white students, then they typically have to embrace white culture simply because it's so dominant in America". As the conversation continued, students who were African American began to provide their insight into the topic being discussed. Most of these students agreed that their school recognized African American culture but didn't feel as though it was truly being embraced. They pointed out that while their school celebrated African American History month or that African American history is usually touched upon in the American History courses, briefly addressing well-known issues such as slavery of world-known figures such as Martin Luther King and Malcom X just to name a few, they felt as though more time should be spent on a topic that has a significant part in American History. Therefore, they were fostering in an idea that has recently lingered in American society and politics. That is, what is American history without the significant inclusion of African American history? Students continued the conversation by saying that they believed  part of the reason for certain things being left out was because they weren't going to be tested on it for the AP test--a test in which plays a huge role in the BASIS curriculum. Some pointed out that if there's a U.S history test, World History test, and a European History test, why isn't there one for African-American history? These students clarified their concerns and criticisms as issues that weren't specifically wrong with the BASIS model but, as an issue that America has faced on the national level in the past and the present. As our conversation neared an end, students expressed that they believe their school is doing what it can in order to meet the needs of all it's students, whether or not that need specifically has to deal with cultural diversity. However, being that BASIS is a charter school, it's offered with the unique opportunity to modify curriculum in order to address the needs of its students. This goes beyond the needs of just the BASIS D.C campus, where there is a larger African American population but, for students attending BASIS schools nationwide and internationally. 

Once again, I hope all of you have a wonderful break and I look forward to updating you again very soon!

Best,
-Eli