Students get career training in summer program

CEREDO -- A dozen Ceredo-Kenova Middle School students are spending two weeks in a summer program that allows them to become an editor-in-chief of a magazine and a lawyer.

The program is made possible through computer simulation software designed by Classroom Inc. It allows the students to make choices that takes each of them on a different path. And it gives them a sense of ownership.

On Tuesday, students were working with a civil suit simulation based on a young woman getting injured on a theme park ride. The student is the lawyer defending the theme park.

The computer image is set up as if the student is looking at his or her office from behind their desk. The students took phone calls from partners, read brochures and case files on negligence and designed a deposition for the woman suing the park.

"It feels like one those TV shows," soon-to-be seventh-grader Cole Rucker said. "I really thought it would be cool to be a lawyer."

Rick Chaffin, who teaches social studies at the school, also works for Classrooms Inc. during the summers, training teachers in New York City and throughout South Dakota on integrating the simulations into classroom lessons.

He said he serves more as a guide and facilitator than a summer instructor because the students are learning more on their own through the simulation. Each time they work through a simulation, they gather around in a circle and talk about the choices they made and the different outcomes they reached.

"They learn from each other," Chaffin said.

Chaffin said the simulations -- the company has about 30 different programs -- incorporate the skills of a 21st-century learner, including reading, writing, problem solving and critical thinking. For example, the students choose deposition questions from a list given to them. A simulated partner in the law firm makes suggestions afterward if a different question should be chosen. And, students must write their own conclusions about what they've heard from theme park owner, the ride operator and the woman who filed the civil suit.

Students also worked through simulations on defending a criminal case, getting a pop singer signed to a contract, plea bargains and school law. Last week, the magazine program put students through simulations on placing editorial and advertising, hiring writers, arranging a photo essay and checking for accuracy.

The two-week program was made possible by a grant through the 21st Century Ceredo-Kenova Learning Center.