Bostonia Global

About Bostonia Global

System Type: Dependent Charter

Grade Levels: TK-12 (this profile will focus on grades 9-12)

Enrollment: Approximately 1,100

Location: El Cajon, CA (Suburban)

Overview

Bostonia Global is dedicated to preparing students to be multilingual, multiliterate, and multicultural global citizens. The school is a creative learning environment where strengths and individuality are respected and students are encouraged to apply knowledge learned utilizing innovative methods. The schedule provides time for advisory at all grade levels, focusing on supporting student growth and goal-setting. Students participate in interdisciplinary learning experiences and projects and explore career options starting in the younger grades through the Cajon Valley Unified World of Work program. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday students are on campus engaged in projects and other learning tasks. Scholars meet in Advisory class for community building, World of Work activities and have time to check in with teacher Advisors for support. Often described as a “second family” by students, an advisory is a core organizational and relational structure that nurtures belonging. Learners stay with an advisor and a group of fellow classmates for multiple years, building close personal relationships that last a lifetime. Advisory experiences intentionally cultivate a learner-centered mindset by inspiring learners to develop the agency, skills, dispositions, and abilities needed to take charge of their learning journey. Advisors stand alongside students as they explore their passions and interests and help students turn challenges into learning opportunities. Tuesdays and Thursdays, students meet in Advisory, participate in X-factor electives and are working to find an internship mentor. For approximately 12 weeks on Tuesdays and Thursdays students may be off campus to serve a mentorship with a mentor in the community.

To learn more about Bostonia Global, listen to this interview with the CEO and founding principal, Nerel Winter.

Technology Tools Used for Assessment and Reporting

Bostonia Global uses the Growth Framework Learning model and Smart Coach Learner Growth System powered by One Stone for planning and tracking assessments and to produce their reports.

Reach out to Chad Carlson, Director of Research and Design at One Stone, for more information. chad@onestone.org, chad@idea51.com.

Outcomes: What is assessed?

Bostonia Global High School, in partnership with One Stone, has designed 24 Bold Learning Objectives that span 4 categories or quadrants:

Be Curious and Investigate the World
Think Deeply
Express Ideas
Realize Future Self.

Each Bold Learning Objective (or BLOB) has a series of 3-6 Growth Indicators that describe in more detail the knowledge and skills that define each objective. Discipline specific standards are incorporated into the Bold Learning Objectives such as Critical Reading and Applied Mathematics.

An overview of the 24 Bold Learning Objectives for Bostonia Global’s High School students categorized into 4 quadrants that make up the Growth Transcript.

2 Bold Learning Objectives that are further defined by a series of growth indicators, providing the specific sub skills that students practice to develop proficiency in each of the learning objectives. Teaching, learning and assessment happens at the growth indicator level. Reporting on the Growth Transcript happens at the Learning Objective level.

Below is an example course description for Integrated Science 4 that focuses on Scientific Inquiry:

BLOB Skill: Scientific Inquiry

Scientific Inquiry entails scholars probing the interactions within human-natural systems through questioning, hypothesizing, and experimenting. They critically examine human impacts on the environment, utilizing Bostonia's resources to explore sustainability. This process involves designing experiments, analyzing data, and drawing conclusions, with an emphasis on evaluating ecological consequences of human decisions. Scholars are equipped to think critically and apply scientific methods to complex ecological issues.

Levels of Proficiency: How is Progress Marked?

At Bostonia Global High School, individual Growth Indicators are assessed on a 7-level scale called a Growth Progression, that is intended to show progress over time from 9th-12th grade.

The 7 levels are:

Emerging
Developing
Early Proficient
Proficient
Highly Proficient
Advancing
Mastering

The goal is that all students are demonstrating proficiency by the time they graduate, though some may reach that level on a specific learning objective earlier in their high school career or even surpass that goal by reaching higher levels of proficiency on specific learning objectives that are strengths of theirs.

Above is the Bostonia High School Growth Progression, which was developed in partnership with One Stone.

The growth progression, following One Stone’s approach, defines the level at which the student is performing on the learning objective given 3 factors:

Complexity of Application- ability to understand and apply the skill in an increasingly sophisticated way.
Agency - ability to apply the skill with independence and purpose.
Context - ability to apply the skill in different and increasingly sophisticated environments.

It was important for Bostonia Global to consider a progressive scale that did not directly correlate to either grade levels (6-8 and 9-12) or traditional letter grades (A-F). This allows for a measure of growth over time and for students to demonstrate areas of strength with the levels that reach beyond proficient.

Reporting: How is Progress Documented?

In High School, students receive what is called a Growth Transcript, which was developed in partnership with One Stone. According to Bostonia’s FAQ guide for families, “The Growth Transcript provides a holistic approach to measuring and tracking growth and skill development and serves as a tool that helps scholars identify areas of strength and opportunities for growth, enabling them to set personalized learning goals.” In Middle School, students receive a similar looking report that is called a Growth Path.

The Growth Transcript shares each semester’s final score on each of the 24 Learning Objectives. The goal is to see a trend of growth over time as a student goes through their 4-year high school career. However, it is possible for a student’s score on a Learning Objective to go down in the next semester because learning is a dynamic, not linear, process. The goal is that by the end of a student’s 12th grade year, they have reached proficiency, denoted by the red line on the graphic.

The other goal of the Growth Transcript is to show that all students have unique strengths and areas they are working on. Instead of a student receiving a C for example in math class, this Growth Transcript is intended to describe strengths and areas of growth by skill, rather than by course.

Sample Growth Transcripts

Sample Growth Transcript: Grade 12 (Used with Learners, Families and Educators)

This is a view of a Growth Transcript that is used with learners, educators and families to see details of growth over time. In this 12th grade example of a Growth Transcript, the student shows growth in most Bold Learning Objectives, reaching the goal of proficient (see the red line) in most but not all objectives. There are some objectives, such as Information Literacy where they didn't show growth between 11th and 12th grade. This reflects reality that skills don't always grow in a linear way. Therefore, seeing growth over an extended period of time is the goal.

Sample Official Growth Transcript: Grade 12 (Sent to Universities or other institutions)

This is a view of an Official Growth Transcript that is used to demonstrate 12th grader's current level of proficiency in each Bold Learning Objective for the purpose of sharing with universities and other institutions. This 12th grader has developed a level of proficiency that shows they are equipped for college and career success, denoted by the bright green line, in every objective except Management and Applied Mathematics. They show real strengths in Leadership, Critical Reading and Resilience.

How Bold Learning Objectives are Assessed and How Final Scores on the Report Are Calculated

For each learning experience, educators identify specific Learning Objectives and Growth Indicators that students will have the opportunity to demonstrate evidence of. As students demonstrate evidence, educators answer questions about the student’s evidence towards those Growth Indicators. These questions address the context, complexity and agency factors mentioned above in the discussion of the proficiency levels. The Smart Coach tool, powered by One Stone, then applies a sophisticated algorithm to determine a final score on the overarching Learning Objective, factoring in all other assessments that have happened throughout the semester from various learning experiences. This means that a final proficiency level on a Learning Objective incorporates feedback from multiple educators and multiple learning experiences across disciplines. Each term the scores reset in order to show growth and change overtime.

Sharing with Families

Bostonia Global hosts multiple events, both virtually and in person, for families to explain the Growth Framework and help them understand how to interpret the Growth Transcript. They also share the following FAQ document with families. Throughout the school year, students receive written and oral feedback on specific assignments and projects. Semester progress reports through the Growth Transcript show a student’s progress in the competencies.

Bostonia-gf-faq_2024.pdf

Crediting, Promotion and Admission to Secondary/Post-Secondary

In addition to the Official Growth Transcript that provides information about a student’s current proficiency in competencies, students receive a credit transcript that provides the list of courses that students have earned credit for. Credits are provided to students based on completion of coursework expectations. Students who are in need of greater support are provided time and differentiated access to coursework through Level Up experiences.

Students at Bostonia Global started applying to secondary institutions in the 2023-2024 school year. The school’s leadership team spent significant time working with higher education institutions to explain the Growth Transcript and support learners in gaining admission to their higher education institute of choice. The Growth Transcript is powered by One Stone, which has a proven track record with their own high school, Lab 51. Students from Lab 51 have been admitted to over 170 different colleges and universities using their version of the Growth Transcript. This proven track record has supported Bostonia Global in their efforts.

Utilizing the Growth and Credit Transcript, Bostonia Global scholars have been accepted to the following 4 year and 2 year institutions:

Cal State University Chico
Cal State University Santa Bernardino
San Francisco State University
University of San Francisco
University of California, Davis
University of California, Merced
University of California, Riverside
California Polytechnic, San Luis Obispo
University of Arizona
University of Illinois, Chicago
Cuyamaca College
Grossmont College
San Diego City College (Welding Program)