Student 'Zine Describes

Reform Efforts

By Michael Heavener and Rhonda Barton

The students from Houston, Denver, and Culver City busily snipped, glued, wrote, and drew. In just a couple of hours, they were determined to create a 'zine-a cut-and-paste, impromptu, freeform booklet-summing up their experiences at small high schools and at the Practitioners' Forum on High School Redesign (see accompanying article).

The eight teens were invited to the two-day forum in Portland to lend their opinions on school reform issues, talk about their personal academic experiences, and pick up tips to take home. They said they learned a lot of different things: teachers are different when they're out of the classroom; strong mentoring is important; quality teaching really matters. Perhaps the most important lesson, though, was the hardest for kids accustomed to quick rewards. "We leave here knowing it's going to take time (to remake our schools)," they wrote in their 'zine. "It's not going to happen overnight, but it's going to pay off."

The students came from different points on the journey toward school reform. "Some had a wealth of experience with small-school conversion, and were prepared to share their stories, while others weren't really sure what was expected of them," said Keisha Edwards, a trainer in the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory's Child and Family program. Assisted by Shauna Adams of Portland Public Schools, Edwards guided the students through a series of exercises. They broke the ice by creating "I Am From" poems that showcased cultural aspects of their communities and families. Then they outlined their impressions of an ideal smaller learning community.

They decided to capture those thoughts in a 'zine they could share with the adults at the forum. Using a digital camera, computer, and photocopy machine, they worked together to write, illustrate, and lay out their publication. Edwards and Adams provided the tools and encouragement.

Within the two-hour deadline, the 'zine—titled Work in Progress—was finished. Monico, a student from California, summed up the experience as he thanked his peers: "We all came to this area to help students. You gave your input and affected thousands of other kids. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but (our 'zine) is like tens of thousands of words." Copies of the 'zine are available by e-mailing edwardsk@nwrel.org.

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