Stephen Parker Zielinski has served as Superintendent of South Seneca Central School District for enough years to learn a lot about students, education, and the growth that is undertaken as student, faculty, and administrators evolve. He sat down with Josh Durso, FingerLakes1.com News Director to discuss the future of his district, and some of the larger trends in education.
“One subject is not a silo,” he explained of all education in 2019. “In a lot of ways it’s been artificial all these years to separate out all these subjects,” Zielinski explained of the integration changes that have taken place in schools across the board.
Students are more interested in alternatives, but sometimes those alternatives are simply coursework that works together. He spoke of the shift toward STEM programming in colleges, but also how that is making its way into the high school and middle school level as students become more engaged and interested in the science, math, and tech fields.
“There’s a lot more opportunity for programs outside the school day, during vacation weeks, and weekends,” he explained. The push to make education an experience – rather than a set of goals that need to be achieved is pivotal, according to Zielinksi, who says it’s exciting to see students and faculty being empowered to do things that get everyone involved more engaged.
He says the technology students are using, and the way faculty are interacting with it – allows for students to get an even more complete experience. However, the challenge remains creating access for all students. Zielinski noted that his district continues to work hard making access less of an issue.
Check out the entire conversation, which covered a lot of ground – including the prospect of modifying the way teachers are evaluated.
Watch the program below or check the podcast on your favorite platform by visiting anchor.fm/sunday-conversation.
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