The Art of Compromise – Lessons from Sixth-Grade Social Studies
by Lars Kuelling, Academic Dean
“Talk, communicate, and compromise.”
Everything that we need to know about effective teamwork rolled up into four words, and it was all being learned by sixth-grade students in Raj Singaravelu’s social studies class as they went about a collaborative activity.
Mr. S recently focused his classes on active learning across disciplines by tying his materials to Anneke Nordmark’s science classes. Rather than a stand-and-deliver lecture about the ways in which cyclical flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates promoted a sedentary lifestyle and the emergence of agriculture, cities, and a class-based society, the class spent most of their time “at play” with an erosion table in the Baron Greenhouse.
There, the class doubled down on their environmental studies in science class, working in groups to describe the soil quality, identifying the different parts making up the soil, and experimenting with different models for irrigating fields during periodic floods.
Inquiry-based Engagement
The level of student engagement was evident as students burrowed their hands into the loamy soil, squeezing the sandy, silty mixture between their fingers as they watched their “fields” flood with water.
Over several iterations, students observed how the placement of a canal opening relative to the flow of the water could lead to flooded or parched fields and control erosion – was it best to have an opening at an angle to the river or perpendicular to it and how could the linking of several irrigation canals affect the quantity of water and the minimization of erosion?
At the same time as Mr. S guided student discovery, he consistently, intently, focused on developing the skills of team-work and collaboration in his students.
While the inquiry-based learning approach served to engage his students in some joyful learning, it was Mr. S’s focus on the importance of cooperation that piqued my interest.
“Here’s the deal. Before we start, you’re going to work together and come up with a plan. You need a plan before you get started,” he said as he introduced the sand table experiments.
Just as the students prepared to head off to their groups to devise their plans, Mr. S hit them with a reminder that resonated deeply with me: “Talk, communicate, and compromise.”
Here’s what I think Mr. S was saying with each word:
- Talk – “Participate, offer up ideas, get things out on the table – be a contributor.”
- Communicate – “Listen, probe with additional questions, re-state what you think your group member said – hear what they have to say and work to understand each other’s point of view.”
- And – “Don’t just do one or two of these items, do them all. They all matter in finding a workable plan.”
- Compromise – “We all need to come away feeling that we have contributed and that others have taken our ideas into consideration. We’re not working from a win/loss basis, but from a win/win perspective.”
And, here’s why this is important: in a time with a great deal of polarization, Mr. S’s lesson in teamwork and collaboration reinforced the value of finding common ground, of participating, of listening, of finding a way for both sides to be a part of the process.
That’s the art of compromise, and I’m glad Mr. S is teaching it so clearly!
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Harley’s Approach to College Counseling is highly individualized and student-centered. Students have direct access to college counselors throughout their Upper School experience, but really, each student is part of a team including faculty, administration, and staff. It’s our job to support each student and we want nothing more than to send students on to the next step of their journey at a right fit school for them. The student centered and driven process is wrapped in care, expertise, and professionalism.
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A few of this year’s choices: Sports Media, Social Action Club, Journalism Club, Feminism Club, Student of Color & Allies (SOCA), Gay-Straight Alliance, Tri M (music honor society), E-Sports Club, Euchre, Key Club (service), Animation Club, Dungeons & Dragons, Sustainability Club, Jewish Cultural Club, Astronomy Club, Biomimicry, and Beyond Soup (social justice/service).
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Helping our athletes to reach their potential are some of HAC’s best assets: our coaches. More often than not, they are drawn from the ranks of our faculty and have a deep understanding of the personalities and abilities of the student-athletes on their teams.
We strive to find the right balance of academics, exercise, and personal growth for everyone. By offering a variety of sports at many different levels, all student-athletes find a sport they can be successful in. It is with great pride and pleasure that my team and I work to enrich the athletic lives of all our HAC student-athletes. Go Wolves!
To learn more check out our athletics page.
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Our Upper School is filled with formal and informal opportunities for students to take on leadership roles. Whether following passions or learning new skills, student-driven opportunities take many shapes.
– Independent study: one trimester, full year, and multi-year projects have included automating our solar chimneys, coding handmade musical instruments, or developing a class on financial literacy for underserved high school students.
– Serving on student council
– STEM: Climate curriculum program, biomimicry program, NASA Hunch program
Clubs
“Club Rush” is an afternoon every fall in the Upper School when students have the chance to sign up for clubs for the year, and each year it is very different because new clubs are created based on student initiative and enthusiasm.
A few of this year’s choices: Sports Media, Social Action Club, Journalism Club, Feminism Club, Student of Color & Allies (SOCA), Gay-Straight Alliance, Tri M (music honor society), E-Sports Club, Euchre, Key Club (service), Animation Club, Dungeons & Dragons, Sustainability Club, Jewish Cultural Club, Astronomy Club, Biomimicry, and Beyond Soup (social justice/service).
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Unlike this class, death is not an elective. Although it is one of two universal human experiences, our culture often ignores, denies, or misconstrues the true nature of death and dying. What happens when we bear witness to this natural process in the cycle of life and develop our ability to be fully present with others when they need us more than ever? It has the potential to change us deeply and fundamentally while shining a brilliant light on the path of our own lives.
With the support of their classmates, teacher, and comfort care home communities, senior students are offered the chance to care for others who truly need their purposeful, non-judgmental attention. In the home-like setting of a comfort care home, opportunities for learning extend beyond a traditional classroom rubric and conventional methods of evaluation. In this course, students will certainly find tangible “learning outcomes” by studying the medical/physical processes associated with dying and the basic nursing assistant skills of comfort care. The ultimate goal, however, will always be rooted in true relationships and connection, which occurs only through empathy and compassion.
Learn more about the Hospice Program at Harley HERE.
Capstone/Independent Studies
This program utilizes environmentally-focused approaches to education and hands-on learning in order to foster the next generation of leaders through a lens of sustainability and problem-solving.
Food & Farm: These year-long and trimester-long classes are held outside as much as possible, allowing students to become leaders in our various growing spaces. They cover environmental justice issues as well as hands-on work such as planning and overseeing planting, harvesting, and preparation of the gardens.
Past year-long focus projects have included: Creating a native plant shade garden in the Wild Wood area, redesigning our hydroponic system, overhauling Harley’s high tunnel, and improving the irrigation system for the MicroFarm.
Culinary Arts: These classes have a two-fold purpose: to give students practical skills in cooking and the science behind different techniques in the kitchen, learning about food justice, food sourcing, labor topics, and sustainability.
Past topics have included: Examining a plant-based diet, looking at the carbon footprint of different meals and food preparation methods, proposing a low carbon footprint menu to the dining hall, links between food labeling and environmental issues of food production.
Beekeeping: This one trimester class provides hands-on training in beekeeping, how to be a beekeeper, and safety and other techniques for working with bees. Once trained students help with all aspects of Harley beekeeping such as hive inspections, honey collection and extraction, and teaching students in Lower School about our hives.
Students pick a research topic addressing honeybee health and the larger environmental picture.
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At Harley, our students learn how to evaluate social systems in order to identify complex problems in society through a lens of social justice. They take a hands-on approach to working for a fair, equitable society by researching, exploring and evaluating different perspectives, and offering solutions—both theoretical and practical.
Our faculty integrate social justice into our broader curriculum to assist students in gaining a foundational knowledge about what makes a democracy function. By gaining skills in ideating supportive pathways they become more exposed and experienced to how communities can undergo healing and restorative actions.
Capstone/Independent Studies
Students may create independent studies with supervising teachers throughout their Upper School experience or, during Grade 12, they can design Capstone projects—intensive collaborations with Harley faculty and off-campus mentors—involving rigorous academic study and culminating in public presentations. They are empowered to create their own curriculum, set goals, and work on time management skills in order to accomplish their objectives.
Independent Studies run the gamut from The Psychology of Sports to Furniture Design to The Neuroimaging of Alzheimer’s Disease. Capstones, meanwhile, are as diverse as the students who pursue them: Fictional Rochester, Autobiographical Art, Biomimicry Education, Organic Fuel, and Rochester Refugees.
Indicative of Upper School curiosity and creativity, pursuits such as these distinguish our graduates in college. Through deep dives of this sort, Harley students master more than speaking, writing, and computing: they learn to communicate, advocate, collaborate, organize, listen, and empathize.
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