After observing and listening to concerns and stressors from her fellow classmates, Emerson Milliken, a recent graduate of Rutherford B. Hayes high school researched and shared her findings on efficient teaching approaches and policy under her district’s “Mastery Learning” curriculum policy. 

Mastery Learning, implemented by Delaware City Schools beginning 2021, aims to grade students on comprehensive understanding of a subject instead of assignment completion. Instead of receiving typical individual assignment grades every quarter, students receive a level ranking of overall knowledge on the subject ranging from Level 1-4. This system helps solidify students’ foundational knowledge on curriculum prior to moving on to more advanced material, but comes with its own set of adjustments and struggles for students and faculty.

“After the mastery learning system was implemented at my school students have been struggling to achieve the outcomes they desire,” says Emerson. “This global issue is affecting the people in my community because many feel as though the students are not receiving the level of education that they believe our student body is capable of achieving.”

Emerson, motivated to take action on this project to help her classmates and school administration, began interviewing and surveying students and faculty on their experiences with Mastery Learning. 

In Emerson’s findings, an overwhelming majority of respondents stated there was a need for a school-wide retake policy, an adjustment to a percent grade conversion and stronger support when introducing Level 4 curriculum to students. 

With these responses, she compiled a presentation and data to share to Hayes High School’s faculty and students. All students and staff were invited to her presentation, and she presented in three different classrooms including 21 teachers across different subject areas.

Emerson’s suggestions include offering extra support for Level 4 curriculum both in-person and digitally, discussing school-wide retake policy changes, and opening up conversation on the scale to point to grade conversions under Mastery Learning. 

 Emerson’s project is a local approach to U.N’s Sustainable Development Goal #4, “ensuring sustainable and equitable quality education to promote lifelong opportunities for all.” On a global scale, this often means allocating financial and physical resources to promote schools, education, and student wellness.

“My community as a whole has a similar goal when it comes to education, I know that most students want to get the highest grades they can and the teachers want the students to get the highest grades they can,” says Emerson. “Of course, neither group wants to exert excessive energy or effort to achieve these grades. We all have the same goal, but everyone is involved in a different way and has a different type of power. It just takes the community some time to figure out how to work together to make that end goal a reality.”

After graduation, Emerson will continue her education at the Ohio State University studying Neuroscience Pre-Med. 

“Learning so much about other countries and global issues through all of the activities in the first two years, I gained a new perspective on things happening in our country and community as well. I shifted my thinking to not focus so much on what I already know about a situation, but taking that to research and learn more,” Emerson says on her Global Scholars Diploma experience.