New Pod System at Springville Junior High School

Submitted by tiffanie.miley on

Springville Junior High School took a jump into learning this year by combining English, history, and science into an intertwined system called the pod. Mrs. Elizabeth Bass, English teacher, said, “The major purpose of the pods is to provide a small-school, student-centered environment that allows students to feel a part of something.” 

According to various teachers at SJHS, the pod gives teachers a better opportunity to focus on individual students and collaborate across content areas.  It gives students the opportunity to create better relationships between the other students in the class, resulting in students taking larger risks with their learning.  According to Ms. Miley, English teacher, the seventh-grade pod has allowed students to make an easier transition from elementary school to junior high. 

According to Mr. Ken Van Ausdal, principal, it was a combined effort from the administration to incorporate the pods into the school system. They went to different schools and saw how podding worked. Teachers that volunteered to be involved in the pod attended training sessions to understand the system better; afterwards the pods were scheduled for the 2011-2012 school year.
Mrs. Lise Carpenter, science teacher, said, “It’s hard to tell if student learning has increased. It will take at least another term to gather and analyze data regarding student learning. But I do think that the pods have helped students feel more comfortable because they have a core group of students they see three periods a day.” 

According to students in the seventh-grade pod, the pod system helps students to become more comfortableat the junior high.  The pods also help to make friends faster.  Jeremy Sumsion, seventh grader, said, “The pod helps because we learn the people in our class faster so we can start learning sooner.” 

 

Attributions
Ali Earnshaw, SJHS Staff Writer