“My main goal as a teacher is to teach the kids skills they need to continue to learn on their own.”
Mr. Hoyt has been at Leo Hayes since it first opened its doors in 1999. Before that he taught in Miramichi, Doaktown, and at Albert Street Junior High, now known as Bliss Carmen Middle School. He has taught grades 9 to 12 and a diverse mix of courses from environmental science and economics to law and world issues. After eight years of university, studying engineering, biophysics and history, Mr. Hoyt knew he wanted to be an educator while coaching a middle school basketball team.
In the hour I had to chat with Mr. Hoyt we had great conversations about economics, philosophy, and our passions for learning. These conversations stemmed from the topic of his new essential skills program.
The essential skills program is a pathway to your post secondary plans, whether that be college, university, or trade school. The course covers 407 different outcomes, but they are not rewritten specifically for the course; these outcomes can be demonstrated in other classes and count towards the essential skills program, and it also works the other way around. Outcomes you demonstrate in essential skills can count towards your other classes. One of the main goals of this program is to put a “why” behind the “what”. Mr. Hoyt took some time out of our interview to show me the video Know Your Why featuring comedian Michael Jr. This video did a really great job of explaining this concept. We both agreed that meaning gives motivation to students.
In the essential skills program, how you cover the outcomes is up to you. You are not expected to be an expert in all of these outcomes. The goal is to master the outcomes to the level that will be most beneficial to your post secondary plans. Though four hundred and seven outcomes may seem like a lot, you have lots of time and choice of how you cover them.
This course is two and a half years, spanning from second semester of grade 10 to the end of your 12th grade year, and will take up your first two periods of the day. As of right now, there is no fee. Mr. Hoyt is currently the only educator of the program with Mrs. Waddell as the vice principal supervisor and Mrs. Gatto as the guidance supervisor. Though he is sure that as the program grows, more teachers will be recruited to the program.
“It will take about three years for this program to fully develop. We’ll start with our grade 10s this year. When they go into grade 11, we'll bring in more grade 10s. When they go into grade 11, well bring in more grade 10s, then we’ll have all 3 grades working together in one room.”
Leo Hayes in not the first school to launch this program. It has been around for approximately six years and dozens of other schools in the province have launched it successfully.
When asked how he thinks this program will enrich his experience as an educator he said that this is a “completely different form of teaching”.
“There’s no [traditional] marking or lesson plans.” He says. “I am providing an environment for students to engage in learning that best suits them in a field they are passionate about. It is about student choice and voice.”