Learning in new ways at Iowa BIG

When I started high school, I thought I would have to do the same thing every day. Go from class to class with the same people and have homework every night.

But at the end of my sophomore year, I got a great opportunity to attend Iowa BIG for a credit of my choosing. I was very happy to start something new. I am now attending BIG and taking my English credit there.

I attend classes at Prairie High School, Kirkwood Community College and Iowa BIG.

Kirkwood and Prairie are similar in terms of the structure of the classes. The class sizes are between 20 and 25 people.

At BIG, we work in teams, usually of between four and seven people. I have two different projects - Upgrading Johnson Elementary School and the 415 Giving Project.

It is nice only having to meet with my team for each project once a week. I have tasks to do for the next meeting, and it makes me feel very responsible.

Some of those tasks could be sending emails or making phone calls to people in the community, researching or even working on presentations for the people we work with. The project tasks are different from homework because we actually get out and talk to people in the community, instead of just talking to our classmates. I feel like the teachers trust that I will get my tasks done for the next meeting.

Another way BIG is different is how teachers assign grades. At BIG, we have standards to meet during our projects and that determines if we get the class credit. I can make my own timeline of when I need to get things done. It shows me how to be more responsible.

Something that is a huge difference between the two school environments is who I communicate with.

At Kirkwood and Prairie, I usually talk to my teachers and my classmates. We usually stay within a certain classroom every day of the week.

When I am at BIG, I talk to my teammates, but we also talk to a lot of people out in the community, including business professionals and city employees. I have learned that I can't talk to them like I do with my friends. I need to be more formal and use different words.

I have learned a lot from BIG, and I am so glad that I got the opportunity to attend. When I am at BIG, I do not even feel like I am learning, which is a good thing.

I like having fun and even learning from my mistakes. I have had three of my projects fail, but I have learned so much from each. The biggest lesson is that I will not be successful at everything I try. And when I do fail, I have to try again. That's the nice part of it not being a 'traditional” school.

I think BIG is an opportunity that everyone should have in their high school career. I will definitely be doing it again next year!

' Jayde Wilson is junior at Prairie High School. Comments: coordinator@iowabig.org