The Renzulli Learning Program, a web-based learning tool that identifies student interests and boosts academic performance, will be introduced in nine additional schools and academies within the Diocese of Brooklyn.
A grant from The Catholic Foundation is making the expansion possible and will bring the total number of institutions using the Renzulli Learning Program in the diocese to 21.
The following schools will be adopting the program this fall: St. Adalbert, Elmhurst; St. Margaret, Middle Village; Our Lady of Hope, Middle Village; Notre Dame Catholic Academy, Ridgewood; Sacred Heart; Bayside; St. Pancras, Glendale; St. Stanislaus Kostka, Maspeth; and St. Matthias, Ridgewood.
Tailored to Learning Styles
The program features an inventory that captures the interests and learning styles of each student and develops a unique profile for each. As a result, teachers can tailor assignments to ensure that everyone in the classroom stays motivated.
While some students might enjoy expressing what they’ve learned through drawing, painting or sculpting, other students might enjoy expressing what they’ve learned through an oral presentation, an audio-visual display or a multimedia presentation. One child, for example, may want to approach a project about a Civil War battle using math and statistics, while another may prefer a writing assignment.
Teachers report that students have enthusiastically embraced the program because it enables them to:
• travel on exciting virtual field trips without leaving the classroom, • participate in 25,000 project-based learning activities,
• engage in challenging critical thinking projects, • enjoy hundreds of materials geared to their specific interests,
• conduct research and independent studies.
“We’re grateful to The Catholic Foundation for the grant because it will fund the program in these schools and academies during the school year,” said Anthony Biscione, deputy superintendent of schools for the diocese. “In addition, a select group of teachers will take part in a full week of intensive professional development with the creator of the program, Dr. Joseph Renzulli, at the University of Connecticut.”
Dr. Renzulli and Dr. Sally Reis, professors at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, Conn., created the Renzulli Program based on 30 years of research on gifted and talented education. Through their research, they discovered that by identifying interests and learning styles and providing an engaging educational environment with a personalized curriculum, any student could achieve academic success.
“The Renzulli Learning Program is unique,” Biscione noted, “because it features a strengths-based inventory tool that creates a comprehensive profile of each student’s interests and learning style.
“We believe that the Renzulli Learning Program will enhance our students’ education and build on the Diocese of Brooklyn’s commitment to create 21st-century learners, embrace technology in the classroom and develop the unique gifts and talents that each student possesses,” he said.
To learn more, visit www.renzullilearning.com.
