[SOUND] [MUSIC] In one of our classes, we looked at a spoken word and then talked about how in most public schools, a grade, either an A or an F decides who you are and who you'll ever be, but I don't agree with that. I think that here at High Tech, we really look, as students, as individuals. [MUSIC] >> You get graded mostly on your effort. If the teachers see that you're working really hard, but sometimes you don't finish the project, they're gonna give you the grade for effort. But if you're kind of low-balling it and not really putting the effort in it, they're not gonna give you the good grade. >> What our teachers usually do is they'll give us a list of things that need to get done, so they are like different deliverables of a project. Teachers are really flexible here which I think is really great cool. I feel like I learn more. I feel like I am not afraid to get bad grades. I think it just helps me learn better, and it doesn't make me stress as much, caring about my grades 24/7. >> Well, exhibition is basically when you present your work, all the hard work you've been doing during the trimester. >> So exhibition is where you decorate your classroom, and you have stations set up, and you either walk your parents around or the parents walk around. >> Exhibitions are open to family's of the students, but it's also open to our whole community, and so, we usually have about 2,000 people come. >> I enjoy them cuz I like showing my projects to everyone that comes to visit them and showing them the process I went through, the work I put into it. I think it's fun when you make something you really proud of and people are also interested in it and give you compliments. [MUSIC] >> So, a POL is a Presentation of Learning, and instead of having finals at the end of the year, this presentation decides whether we're ready to go on to the next grade. >> So in a POL, you just present what you learned throughout the year, like struggles you faced, projects you did, things you learned. >> They actually determine if you pass or fail the grade. Obviously, if you have really good grades, and your POL is just not good, then they'll just have you redo it until it's good enough. POLs are really important because the way that you present yourself to your teachers and how you're able to talk about your projects, it really reflects everything that you did in the year. Part of your learning isn't just retaining the knowledge, but if you're able to teach it to someone else, then, you know that you've really learned it. >> And I think that if we're able to speak about ourselves in front of other people, it's just a skill that we're gonna use forever. [MUSIC] We do take tests sometimes. And that's just a way for the teacher to see if we either need more practice or we're good to go on to the next topic. But also, the teachers are pretty close with the students. And so, they're able to check in on the students and talk to them to see how they feel about the work that they're doing. >> I would say most students have a pretty personal connection with their teachers. We're more like friends than being forced to be with each other. >> Both of my teachers are fairly young, and so they're very approachable and easy to talk to. >> I really, really like both my teachers because they're really nice. >> I feel like I can ask them anything work-related, school-related, or about my social life. With a great relationship, I think it gives the students an opportunity to learn better, to do better in school, and to have more passion for learning. >> My advice for teachers who want to teach students better is to understand what your students want to be learning. I just think communication and critique is the best advice. >> If I could choose how I am taught, I would want a teacher that I could talk to and could relate to and approach. I also want to be taught in a way that's not for the state standard, but for me as a student and as a person. [MUSIC]
