SOCIAL STUDIES DEPARTMENT
M. Currier
B. Dube
R. Upton Ms Miles
T. Zavras G Washington
W. Murphy F. Grealish
G. Richardson
Classical Economics Class gets Real Life Experience
LYNN - On the list of high school
classes with the "boring" or "difficult" reputation, honors
economics may traditionally top the list in both of those categories, much to
the dismay of Classical High School seniors who are looking to take a social
studies elective, and find that the practical study of world finance is their
only option.
With this in mind and a little help from a few professionals, economics teacher
Gayle Richardson has succeeded in spicing up her honors economics course by
bringing in financial professionals to help students better understand the stock
market and prepare for the voluntary Advanced Placement economics test available
to all students in her class.
For six years, Richardson has involved her students with the Economic Education
Foundation, an organization that sends a financial professional to Massachusetts
high schools to work with students preparing for the AP exams.
Along with providing textbooks and study materials, Program Director Dick
Brunelle attends several classes each year to help students prepare for the
content and questions on the college-level exams. A former AP test reader,
Brunelle knows what students must do to achieve a passing grade on the test, and
trains them accordingly.
"These kids are pretty brave to take economics because it is thought to be
both boring and hard," said Richardson. "So we start out with a group
of kids who are really motivated to succeed. Last year we had 10 students take
the AP test, and this year we are up to 14."
Brunelle covers several economics topics, such as supply and demand and
monopolies, and offers advice on how to answer essay questions.
While Brunelle works with the students taking the AP test only, Senior Vice
President and Institutional Portfolio Strategist for Bank of America Joseph A.
McCourt runs a simulated stock market program for all of Richardson's students
to give them real-world experience buying and selling stocks.
Beginning with $30,000, students learn to buy and sell stocks, follow the market
and make intelligent financial decisions based on what happens each day on Wall
Street.
The students can decide which stocks to buy and sell, and they can monitor their
earnings and losses each day online.
McCourt also teaches vocabulary and other smaller financial tidbits that may
help students better understand what to expect from the stock market.
Although he has held many high-powered positions at financial institutions,
McCourt says he finds helping students get ahead while they are still in school
very worthwhile.
"I would just like to say how much I have enjoyed talking to the classes
over time, and what good kids they all are," he said in an email. "I'm
not doing this for publicity, I am doing it because I enjoy it."
Merril Lynch and the Boston Globe, who provide free newspapers to the class
every day, sponsor the program.
"In the future I will probably invest in the stock market, I don't see
myself being a stock broker or anything, but it is good to know where you can
make and lose money," said senior Erik Silva.
Students say they have learned a lot of things about the stock market, like how
companies target children and teenagers through advertising, and when making
investments it is better to take risks with unknown businesses than invest money
in a stock that everyone is more familiar with.
"I learned that time is valuable, just like your money," said Laura
McLaughlin.
Richardson says the content in these programs is different than what she does in
front of the class, which she thinks is a good thing because it provides her
students with an understanding of what to expect when they get out into the real
world.
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| History students from Classical High who are taking part in a special program at the John F. Kennedy Library. Front row: Mai Cao, Dionysios Koutoulas and Jacklyn Crowley. Back row: Deborah Pierre, Peter Rondeau, Juliana Davis and teacher Gregory Washington. Item photo / Owen O'Rourke |
Classical History Students Polish Skills at JFK Library
LYNN - History, perhaps more than any other subject, is
reliant on text books and written accounts of the past which detail the progress
and mistakes made by the people who formed the basis for modern society.
For high school students, government and social issues are often more difficult
to comprehend in the classroom setting, where words on a chalkboard cannot fully
express the importance of the events being discussed.
For members of the Lynn Classical High School History Club, an opportunity to
visit historically significant places, filled with historic and educational
information, is a much-needed fix for their addiction to the subject.
Club leader and history teacher Gregory Washington has been providing that
opportunity to his students, working with local businesses and the John F.
Kennedy Library in Boston to organize and arrange periodic field trips to the
library and museum, where his students attend classes, tour the grounds and
participate in a variety of debates.
Washington has been working with the library for several years, dating back to
his tenure as a teacher at Lynn Vocational and Technical Institute, and has
brought that tradition to Classical, where an enthusiastic group of history
students has embraced the opportunity to learn more about the subject.
Washington and his students will take four separate trips to the library this
year, and he is hoping to increase the number to six next year.
Students participate in a variety of programs and debates, touching on subjects
such as civil rights, the Cold War and the 1960s.
Debates cover topics like diversity and budget issues, and also affords students
the opportunity to learn about politics and debate upcoming elections. In 2006,
Washington's students were even given the opportunity to watch Deval Patrick and
Kerry Healy debate during the gubernatorial election.
Students from several schools across the state attend the JFK Library programs,
and are often integrated with one another for discussions and debates.
"I like the debates because it gets us to understand what other students
from other schools are thinking," said history club member Mai Cau.
"It starts as a discussion and usually turns into a debate because we are
from different cities and we have different views."
The trips also allow students to examine documents and evidence of history
within the library, including video and documents from Kennedy's time as
president during the volatile Cold War and Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.
"I am a history buff, I love history," said Dionysios Koutorlas.
"We talk about the Cold War a lot, and I like that. I enjoy learning about
the Cold War."
The trip is entirely voluntary, and students attend for different reasons. Some
like to learn more about the topics covered in history class, while others enjoy
touring the historic museum.
The trip is made possible through donations from the JFK Library, which pays for
the buses, and Eastern Bank, led by Vice President Wendy Silva, who provides
money to hire a substitute for Washington during each trip.
"It is really nice to see people from other areas and backgrounds so we
don't get that stereotype," said senior Deborah Pierre. "It is a
really great program. It teaches us a lot."
Voice of Democracy Program
AFL/CIO Scholarship Program
Jewish War Veterans “ Good Neighbor Award”
Black History Month Assembly
Veteran's Day Assembly
A.P. U.S. History Program
FEI Economic Scholarship Awards
State Student Advisory Council
Lynn Student School Committee
Martin Bloom Scholarship Award
Contemporary Affairs Program
Economics Club
History Club
History Day Program (State and Salem State College )
City Government Day ( Lynn )
State
Government Day ( Boston )