Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on the day's biggest business stories
Subscribe to Axios Closer for insights into the day’s business news and trends and why they matter
Stay on top of the latest market trends
Subscribe to Axios Markets for the latest market trends and economic insights. Sign up for free.
Sports news worthy of your time
Binge on the stats and stories that drive the sports world with Axios Sports. Sign up for free.
Tech news worthy of your time
Get our smart take on technology from the Valley and D.C. with Axios Login. Sign up for free.
Get the inside stories
Get an insider's guide to the new White House with Axios Sneak Peek. Sign up for free.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Want a daily digest of the top Denver news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Want a daily digest of the top Des Moines news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Want a daily digest of the top Twin Cities news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Want a daily digest of the top Tampa Bay news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Want a daily digest of the top Charlotte news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Photo: Summit Shasta Public School
While reporting this story about high schools that are rebooting themselves to better prepare students for future jobs, I visited Summit Shasta, a charter school in Daly City, Calif., just south of San Francisco.
- There, I watched students in a science class assemble circuits and listened as English students read through a New York Times review before diving into a new book — Junot Diaz's "Oscar Wao."
- The big picture: As they worked, whiteboards displayed the skill each activity emphasized, like explaining evidence or modeling difficult problems. These skills are among the dozens that students track through an online hub — something like a custom Trello or Asana for school.
This platform is at the center of students' lives. They use it to organize assignments, projects and goals.
- Caitlyn Herman, head of Summit's San Francisco Peninsula schools, says students are meant to learn three essential things: content knowledge, critical thinking and habits of success.
- These last two, she hopes, will get students better prepared for college and for work than if they were only learning traditional subject-matter knowledge.
"You can't just know stuff," Herman told Axios. "You have to develop these attributes that are going to work well with people. You need to be able to create a plan and be flexible with that plan when things change."
At the end of my visit, I met with three Summit Shasta students who talked about how they'd personalized their learning, choosing classes, projects and internships based on their goals.
- Josephine, a senior, said she wants to be a physician's assistant. She's lined up internships during the school year at a rehab center, and she spoke impressively about how her chosen field is likely to be transformed by AI and robotics.
- "I probably have to work more on communication skills," she said. Even if robots are increasingly involved in medicine, Josephine said, she will still need to work with physicians and patients.
Go deeper: Rebooting high schools