Catalina High School,
Tucson, Arizona
For nearly a decade, teacher Marge Christensen has used a professional workplace setting to teach at-risk students at Catalina High School in Tucson, Arizona. Viewing herself as the manager/facilitator and students as professional workers, Christensen uses computers as the main tool of instruction. Students focus on literacy (developing reading and writing skills), thinking skills, and job skills. The major emphasis is on writing, and students write an essay every week. The classroom is designed to allow students to work in small groups on writing projects that they helped create. Students write, edit, and publish their work. They work together and help each other learn. The learning environment is self-paced and success-oriented. Older students are paired with adult mentors from the business community so that they get a sense of continuity between their classwork and the job world. The at-risk students in Christensen's program are faced with high expectations and numerous responsibilities, yet they show increased self-esteem and pride in their work. Success in this program has led many students to improve their grades and continue their education past the high school level. (Christensen, 1995).
