EXHIBITIONS OF MASTERY
The Exhibition of Mastery (EOM) is our school's form of "final projects" for students in each Level. EOM's are a showcasing of each students' mastery of a certain subject, providing an example of their knowledge gained throughout the school year and their ability to teach others what they've learned. Students in each Level create a multitude of different projects and events to complete their EOM's, and once completed, students are able to move forward to the next Level at SSCPS.
The Importance of EOMs
The EOM has been a crucial part of the academic program at SSCPS since the school’s inception. It was designed as a way for students to publically share what they learned through project-based learning. At one time, most of the school day was devoted to Project, and the EOM was the primary mode of assessing student learning. Like the Project model, the EOM has evolved over the years. Today the EOM takes on a different form for students at different grade levels, but its essence is the same. Students are expected to dive deep into a subject and then share what they have learned with an audience of their peers, teachers, and families. They are expected to prepare, practice, and answer questions. They learn as much about engaging an audience as they do about the subject, an important skill to take forward in their academic careers.
EOM projects evolve as students grow. A kindergarten student might prepare a presentation about their family and display pictures with one word captions on a poster board, a Level II student could speak about a musical instrument using talking points printed on a trifold board, while an eighth grader might share information about clean energy using a PowerPoint presentation. At every Level, the successful completion of EOMs are an Exit Standard that students must complete in order to move to the next Level or, at the high school, to graduate.
For many high school Workshops, school events such as the Winter Concert, Theater Festival, and the Fashion Walk serve as an EOM. The process of completing EOMs at the high school level is different than it is for students in grades K-8. High school Exhibitions do not have fixed dates on the calendar, but are spread out to align with the goals of the group. A broad range of project formats allow student work to appropriately echo the focus of the Workshop. These projects often take forms outside of the traditional trifold board or PowerPoint presentation that our younger students are accustomed to. Students in the Music Workshop show the skills they have learned as they perform in a concert, Art Workshop students share their fashion creations in a judged fashion show, and Theater Workshop students demonstrate their work with character development on the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild High School Drama Festival stage.
Exhibition of Mastery dates for students in grades K-8 are posted on our School Calendar. Families can expect communication from teachers regarding Exhibition of Mastery guidelines well ahead of due dates. Families are encouraged to attend student presentations.