TEACHER FEATURE #6: THE HAWK NEST AT KEALAKEHE INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL
What does it look like to turn student voice into student action? At Kealakehe Intermediate School, teacher Mathieu Williams works to create student experiences that allow them to design, test, and redesign solutions that connect their learning to self, place, and others. As he puts it, “If we can’t change learning today, I don’t know when it will ever change. When the whole world is affected around learning, we have to redefine it.”
The Hawk Nest. All images in this article courtesy of Mathieu Williams and the Hawk Nest website
Originally from Kaua‘i, Mathieu Williams started teaching at Kealakehe Intermediate as a SPED teacher through Teach for America in 2012, where he enjoyed learning from and working with other teachers. Those experiences in elevating student voice, along with his experience in digital media and technology, were precursors to his next project: redesigning the school library into a flexible, functional, and fun space to create with technology and access information. The “Hawk Nest” will also be a gathering space where students, teachers, and the community can come to work, learn, gather, and pursue their own passions. The space will be student-designed and student-run in a way that reflects and welcomes all students. Students will also be resources for others in the school and community, offering help to those seeking help with printing materials, creating digital media, and more.
Mathieu Williams (left) and the Hawk Nest crew pre-COVID
In Mathieu’s experience, students are eager to commit to working together on projects like this. Most important for success are students who feel they belong, tune in, and choose to give their best — acknowledging that a student’s “best” is different each day. All students and teachers have the capacity to be innovative. Given resources and the opportunity to make meaningful contributions, students can do and learn a lot. Teachers can then find opportunities for growth as students discover the boundaries of what they know and do not know.
Teachers do not have to put themselves in a box, either. They can learn alongside their students. The new library space will also be a hub for teacher collaboration, where opportunities for teacher learning and cross-curricular instruction can flourish. Such collaboration is more important now that it is harder to access students and families, and as teachers lean on one another to present quality remote learning.
Mathieu is currently working on a doctoral thesis around design and student agency during the COVID-19 pandemic. To support the transition from in person to virtual learning he assisted in the codesigning of statewide distance learning modules for teachers, and will also work with Hawaii P-20’s Gear Up project to empower future-ready students. He is also piloting a virtual social-emotional learning class that integrates media arts, and was part of the recent Taste of Innovation Creative Cafe digital event that gathered educators to design units of study.
Want to get involved? Mathieu is seeking class mentors from the community to share their skills and provide feedback to students. Volunteers would join the class at least twice for a short period of time, allowing for time to reflect and circle back.
To see some of the collaborative projects Mathieu has worked on, visit www.westhawaiistudents.org
