For many years, PSCS called the collaborative scheduling we do as a whole community three times a year, “Scheduling Circus.”  The name of which was meant to impart the many different factors being juggled in order to build a schedule of classes and activities students wanted and needed each term, as well as all the courses and activities facilitators were excited to teach and offer.

The name however, was misleading. “Circus,” sometimes made it seem unintentional and messy, three rings run by a leader, maybe some peanut shells on the gallery floor. While it certainly can be a bit messy, there is absolutely nothing unintentional about scheduling at PSCS. This beautiful, iterative, process is a truly generative and collaborative effort. One that supports leadership in many styles, as well as critical thinking, and self- and community-care.

how it works

Scheduling at PSCS starts with staff building an online Course Blog, prior to each term (like a college course catalog), that has, on average, 20-25 class offerings, mostly based on student and staff input, as well as the academic requirements put forth by the Washington State Office of Public Instruction (OSPI). The catalog includes offerings from staff, volunteers, parents, and students, and prioritizes staff facilitating those courses and activities they are most experienced and interested in, as well as passionate about.

Students work with their Advisors and parents to assess their short term needs and goals, as well as those that further current passions and interests, and prepare them for a myriad of opportunities post high school. Students in high school keep track of their credits on a spreadsheet (originally conceived by past staff member, Liana Green, who called it the “Credit Gizmo”) which is available online for them to keep track of at all times. Middle schoolers practice this tracking as well.

“Schedule Mapping is the crux of PSCS programming and curriculum.”

stickering

Soon after, students partake in a process called “Stickering” a system of personal prioritization that is called so because it used to be actual stickers, but is now an online program designed by PSCS students several years ago to replicate the old system. Each student makes lists of their preferences, discusses their plans with their Advisor and families, and then inputs their priorities. After this is done, the PSCS Conflict Resolution Team takes the data and works together on behalf of us all to draft a schedule that considers everyone’s needs, desires, and goals—including volunteer hours, Seminars, senior planning, affinity spaces, practice and skill-building, and community engagement.

This leads to yet another key component of the process: all-school collaboration on a final draft, which can take several days. This is done all together in one big room, with everyone engaged. Students prioritize themselves and each other in real time, moving classes if needed, checking in to see what changes cause the best outcome for the most people. Lastly, students register for classes and prepare for an add/drop period, meant to replicate that of higher ed. Students must communicate their needs to their facilitators and Advisors within a reasonable time frame.

schedule mapping

A few years ago, we started calling this programming Schedule Mapping, and it remains the crux of PSCS programming and curriculum. The outcome of this intensive work is a huge slate of classes and activities each term—all of which are important, but are, ultimately the icing on the cake of this rigorous, collaborative process. Accountability is being fostered, not foisted, and is evidenced through the choices students each make (whether to engage or not, whether to teach a class themselves or not), the way they show up in the classes they choose, and the work any one of them actually does—whether they choose to simply skim the surface, or allow themselves to be guided toward deeper exploration.

This is meant to reflect a life beyond college; this is a master’s program in charting our own goals and our plans to achieve them.

PSCS is life prep. Through regular, scaffolded opportunities to think critically and understand what “empowered” means with regard to their own education; to practice independence and walking forward on their own best path, along with lots of intentional opportunities for joy and fun, as well as deep consideration of the needs and desires of other community members.

Schedule Mapping, as we call it today, fosters real skills that real people need for a real empowered future. This, along with teaching the truth and being a safe space for all identities, are what make PSCS a vital educational environment for the 21st century.

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Sieglinde Levery-Nicholas is the Puget Sound Community School Director of Community Engagement. She’s in her 13th year at the school—and her 20th in education administration.