Introduction

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened….vision cleared......ambition inspired….and success achieved.
- Helen Keller -

So, what is the vision of learning for Portland students? The community spent countless hours articulating the mission of the Portland Public Schools: Assuring that all students are learning for their future.

However, the mission begged further clarification. What does learning for their future look like? In Portland, as well as all over the country, stakeholders pondered and answered the question:

What should all students know and be able to do
upon graduation from our high schools?

To have, in the words of Helen Keller, a soul strengthened...a vision cleared.....ambition inspired......and ultimately success achieved.

Portland’s work was consistent with a national report: the Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) published the report What Work Requires of Schools: A SCANS Report for American 2000 (1991). The commission spent 12 months talking to business owners, to public employees, to the people who manage employees, to leaders in higher education, to workers on the line and at their desks. Portland conducted six Community Dialogues.

The message from both initiatives was consistent and strong: students must be taught a variety of skills and abilities to be productive citizens of the 21st century. While the responses included knowledge learned in traditional academic subjects, there was a strong voice highlighting additional skills and abilities which included: critical and creative thinking skills, learning how to learn, individual responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self-management, and integrity.

Portland’s Community Dialogues clarified the mission and answered the above question, resulting in the 7 Learner Expectations. These Learner Expectations reflect the information and skills that are used throughout life in a variety of contexts.

  1. Collaborative Worker
  2. Effective Communicator
  3. Involved Citizen
  4. Quality Producer
  5. Knowledgeable Person (see the Content Standards)
  6. Self-Directed Learner
  7. Versatile Thinker (see the Complex Thinking Standards)

The Learner Expectations gave birth to the Content Standards and Complex Thinking Standards, all 3 of which are collectively known as Portland’s LEARNING RESULTS.

With this work, the vision for learning is clear; we hope to inspire the ambition of our students; and thus achieve success for all Portland’s students.

Adapted From: