Bringing the Community into the Classroom to Prepare Students for Careers
How does BB2C work with businesses and teachers to bring careers to life in the classroom? One way is through Real World Problem Scenarios (RWPS). This professional development opportunity for educators brings teachers and business representatives together to mesh class-content with issues faced by businesses and organizations. Together, they create Real World Problem Scenarios for students to tackle. The students then have the opportunity to use classroom learning to brainstorm real solutions. In this way, students are able to see how what they are learning in the classroom translates to careers, businesses, and professional fields.
So far during the 2021-2022 school year, BB2C has offered Real World Problem Scenario to teachers in six different counties through our BB2C Network partners. Two of the school districts in these counties chose to take a district-wide approach to implementing RWPS in their classrooms. BB2C has worked closely with them both, one in Washington County and the other in Noble County, to help teachers in multiple grade levels learn, develop, and implement the program for their students. This has resulted in an increase in the number of community members and businesses coming in to talk with the students about work-based learning and career-readiness skills.
Some of the unique Real World Problem Scenarios from Washington & Noble Counties:
At Warren Local High School, Marietta Memorial CEO Scott Cantley challenged Cindy Kubala‘s business class at Warren Local High school to take a fresh approach to the nursing shortage problem. And students in Ryan Werry‘s leadership class workshopped their practicums with community leaders who could help advance their ideas. At Warren Middle School, Terry Reiter‘s machining students solved a critical machine part issue for a local manufacturer.
Middle school language arts students in Chance Goolie’s Noble Local School District class worked with Micro Machine Works to figure out advertising solutions to increase awareness around manufacturing careers. Rural Action joined students in Mike Legets’s middle school science class to work together in Noble Local School District’s outdoor lab to generate ideas around sustainable ginseng forest farming. Other class projects included designing a website for Noble County businesses and diagnosing injuries to be treated with physical therapy.
Real World Problem Scenario adds depth to both the learning process and the level of community engagement students experience. It also reinforces career awareness in the classroom and enriches the communities and businesses students are able to work with and learn from. This type of hands-on learning truly takes a village. We are thankful for our business and community partners, our school partners, and our BB2C Network partners who come together to make this learning approach possible.
To learn more about the Real World Problem Scenario, including how you can bring it to your community, schools, or classrooms, contact Allison Ricket, BB2C Network Director and Education Engagement Specialist, at aricket@bb2careers.org. You can access our library of Real World Problem Scenarios at bb2careers.org/rwps-library.