Alternative-style school caters to creative students

WINTER SPRINGS - A school with no tests? No FCAT? No multiple choice? No way.

Yes way. Believe it or not, such a place does exist.

The Jacob School, nestled comfortably in Winter Springs, is a high school for ages 14-17 that has a teaching method all of its own. Priding themselves on their ability to "customize education," the Jacob School believes in less testing and more real world experience, according to Carrie Straub, the school's director.

"We don't do tests, everything is performance based," Straub said. "We watch them do things and give them feedback on it."

As the school's nine students file into class in the morning they don't start the day off with a pop quiz or an FCAT practice. Instead, they watch the news and research current events. This is all part of the school's goal of providing a top-notch education that will benefit them both inside and outside the classroom. As the day progresses, students may find themselves studying political cartoons to understand World War II or in the local movie theater watching "The Great Debators" to gear themselves up for in-class debates.

"Because we don't plan lessons like a typical school would, we have to find projects that are engaging and something that's going to engage more than one student," said David Knoell, a teacher at the school. "It's not one of those 'here's the information, here's the test, see what you've learned' kind of schools. I feel like they are truly interested in the educational success of the student here."

Knoell, who started teaching there shortly after the school was opened as the Jacob School in August of 2007, explained that the curriculum is both challenging for teachers and students and requires a lot of out-of-the-box thinking.

"The first question I ask myself is how can I relate the experience of what I'm teaching to my students," Knoell said. "For instance, we're going to discuss the Great Depression. Instead of throwing out facts and numbers and statistics at them, I'm going to give them money and take it away and have them experience that."

Another trademark of the school is the fact that they emphasize the importance of becoming a member of the community, gaining real hands-on experience and developing valuable life skills. Straub explained that the school has done numerous projects in the community including a project in the works with the Helen Stairs Theater in Sanford. The students will be helping with a production while planning and working behind the scenes. The goal is to show the students that they can generate an idea, evaluate it, participate and see it through.

"Our specific focus here is real-world skills," Straub said. "We're very focused on teaching them how to budget [and] have an entrepreneurial focus. We want to expose them to the realities of fast-paced environments that they're put into. "

As for the students, the liberal approach seems to be working. Austin Rallo, a 16-year-old junior from Heathro, previously attended public school where he struggled with classes, peer pressure and a drug problem.

After attending the Jacob School, the teen, who has a passion for graphic art, design and photography, found himself on the right track and holding down an internship at a local print shop. Austin explained that the school helped him out of his rut and helped him develop a better relationship with his instructors.

"They're just like normal people who are teaching," Austin said. "[In public school] teachers had to deal with a whole bunch of kids, so by the time they got to you they were just sick of it. Here they have the same kids all day so they're not going to change from class to class. Here they are more like your friend than a teacher. They really do look out for your best interest."

Austin's mother, Debbie Rallo, also raved about the school's approach.

"[It's] a much more personal environment," Rallo said. "The school will tailor his curriculum to what he's doing in the outside the world and that pretty much can't be done in any other school."

However, with a specialized education comes a specialized price. The school charges $13,000 annually. Straub said it is pricy, but scholarships are available.

Still, the $13,000 a year isn't the only drawback to attending the school. Activities such as proms, athletics and clubs simply aren't feasible for a school of only nine students.

"Because it's such a small school, they don't offer a lot of other activities, not that my child would necessarily partake in them," Rallo said. "Also, in such a small school they don't have a huge diversity of curriculum. They have all the courses you need to graduate but, say you go to Seminole High School, they offer more different kinds of courses."

Even so, the Jacob School offers an alternative style of learning that still meets all the state requirements to graduate while not having to pass the FCAT.

"I use sunshine state standards," Straub said. "As long as they're covering the information, the student can negotiate how they want to demonstrate what they learn. I'm customizing things to that child's interest level."

Although the school may not be for everyone, Straub said that it's an environment for a special kind of student.

"Our typical student [is] a creative kid who thinks outside the box and is maybe bored in a traditional setting," Straub said. "That's the kind of student that suffers generally in a typical school setting. If you give them a different learning environment, they can thrive."

For more information about the Jacob School, visit their Web site at www.thejacobschool.org.