Students at RJ Grey Junior High School Learn Technology & Engineering Via Partnership with Minuteman High School

By Judy Bass

Students at the R.J. Grey Junior High School in Acton are getting valuable exposure to fundamental technology and engineering concepts, thanks to the school’s innovative partnership with Minuteman High School in Lexington.

Two technology teachers from Minuteman, Andrew Patenaude, 27, and Brian Crossman, 48, guide seventh- and eighth-grade students at Grey through the intricacies of hand and power tool safety, transportation systems, and several types of technology connected to the fields of biotech, construction, manufacturing and communication.

“We add a few bricks to their foundation,” explained Mr. Crossman modestly. The main goal, he said, “is to relate this to them and their world.”

What he and Mr. Patenaude are actually doing is consequential and far-reaching. By using a creative, hands-on approach that is project-based, they are cultivating these students’ problem-solving and critical thinking abilities while introducing them to 21st-century careers they may want to pursue in the future.

The youngsters love it. “They run the class,” said Mr. Patenaude. “They are super-excited and ask, ‘What’s the next step?’ and ‘What can I do now?’ It’s absolutely fantastic.”

In 1991, Minuteman began partnering with some of its in-district middle schools to give students the opportunity to experience technical education as taught by Minuteman’s faculty. (In addition to R.J. Grey in the Acton/Boxborough Regional School District, Minuteman currently partners with three schools in the Nashoba Regional District - the Florence Sawyer Middle School in Bolton, the Luther Burbank Middle School in Lancaster, and the Hale Middle School in Stow.)

What truly sets Minuteman’s Middle School Outreach Program apart is that students who are in it don’t just pore over their textbooks or passively watch a teacher lecturing in front of the blackboard. They’re actively doing everything themselves - and having their imagination ignited in the process.

Middle school students in these schools are introduced to STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) topics by using tools, equipment and software in a manner that fully engages them and encourages them to pursue STEM education in high school, possibly at Minuteman, and in college.

Minuteman is uniquely qualified to introduce technical education to young students. It’s an award-winning regional high school that gives its graduates a competitive edge in the new global economy by providing them with a high-quality career and technical education, coupled with a thorough grounding in mathematics, English, science, and social studies.

‘Children are natural engineers,” said Mr. Crossman. “We always try to be fresh and try new things with them,” while making the curriculum “fun and relevant.”

With that philosophy in mind, the seventh-grade students develop skills that will help them think like engineers. Then, in eighth grade, they complete projects that allow them to apply those skills in practical, real-world ways - making a styrofoam plate speaker to learn about the physics of sound, how electromagnets function and the difference between mass production and custom design; creating a “reacher” tool that can grab objects like a human hand does to study ergonomics and the bio-engineering design process; and building a “monster truck” from scratch to observe propulsion, suspension, guidance, control, support, and the structural aspects of transportation.

They also design a “dream house” using computer-aided design software. This project’s aim is to have students understand building codes, zoning, and different materials that can be used in the construction of a house.

These and other projects make daunting abstract concepts vivid and clear. When students feel vibrations emanating from the speaker they crafted, for example, they truly understand the concept of sound, said Mr. Patenaude. What they learn in their other classes comes alive also, such as science terminology; math equations, fractions and decimals when taking measurements for their projects; and English, through labs and on documents.

For youngsters seeking even more instruction, Mr. Patenaude runs a bi-weekly after-school technology and engineering class that has about 50 students.

What do these two instructors hope the students derive from this class in the long run? Mr. Crossman said the idea is to give them “a real tangible engineering experience” which teaches them to “think with a problem-solving mentality.”

“We’re setting the foundation,” said Mr. Patenaude. “We plant the seed of that interest, and then Minuteman will take it the rest of the way.”