The Walton Way, Lessons and Applications for Lifelong Learning

Copyright © 2016 by Natise Vogt.

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

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Rev. date: 11/29/2016

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Works Cited

Chapter 1 Breathing New Life into an Old School

Chapter 2 Engaging Students

Chapter 3 Empowering Teachers

Chapter 4 School Family/Family School

Chapter 5 Getting It Right, Asking the Hard Questions

References

INTRODUCTION

by

Dr. John R. Morton

Give the pupils something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is of such a nature as to demand thinking; learning naturally results.

—John Dewey

J ohn Dewey’s quintessential quote perhaps sets the stage for the premise of this book better than any other source. His learn by doing approach to education has been in and out of vogue since the 1930s. Yet now, with the advent of a more common sense, common core standards approach to teaching and learning, the pendulum may be swinging back as evidenced by what has occurred since a small, rural, low-enrollment elementary school in Kansas shifted both its philosophy and focus as part of its move to a nationally recognized charter school.

Walton’s roots can be traced by to its origin as a K-12 rural school which began its work in 1934 and served as a hub of activity for the small rural Kansas town of the same name. Over time, the town became smaller, the school struggled to retain enrollment, and it eventually became part of the Newton Unified School District USD 373 as an elementary school. However, enrollment issues persisted, leading to increasing concerns regarding its future. Ironically, during this same time, school districts in Kansas were being urged to write for charter school funding to promote innovative and out-of-the-box schools throughout the state.

The prospect of transforming Walton into a charter school, with dollars available to support change, was an appealing one. While various themes were considered for the school, an obvious one came to mind; Walton was in the middle of a rural, predominantly agricultural area of Harvey County, Kansas. It seemed logical to create a rural life center around that theme. So, in 2007, with the assistance of the district’s very capable grant writer at the time, Barbara Burns, and with the unanimous approval of the USD 373 Board of Education, a charter application was submitted to the Kansas State Department of Education. The application also had the unqualified support of the school’s principal, Natise Vogt, and all of the staff working in the school.

The plan revolved around a three-year implementation timeline. Imagine our surprise when, because of changes in the charter implementation policies at the federal and state levels, we had to telescope the first two years into one, combining staff training with implementation and building an addition to the school at the same time. It was, needless to say,