Engineering Design: Hands-on Learning that Works

When you walk through the front doors of Mt. Blue, you immediately see the Bjorn Auditorium, above it suspended a beautiful, colorful glass sculpture. This accentuates the school’s phenomenal music and arts programs—which greatly deserve the attention. However, there are many other impressive qualities and programs, both in the facilities and the students at Mt. Blue. One of these programs is a class: Engineering Design.

Jake Bogar is the sole teacher of Engineering Design. All of his other classes are physics classes, and that has certainly had an influence on the fact that students can gain their physics requirement through the class. But perhaps the most outstanding characteristic of the class is how it is steeped in creativity. Bogar says, “It’s a project-based program. You make things. You work with your hands and your mind. The class tries to realize the MIT slogan: “Mens et Manus” —mind and hand.” Just taking a look into the room makes you understand just how project-based the class is. Wires, wood, and bits of metal and plastic are everywhere, and semi-finished assignments and ideas litter the floor and walls.

The class was conceived in 2005 in conjunction with the Foster Tech composites class. Bogar explains, "I always wanted to create a playground for students where they could make their world better through creative and fun purposeful work and exploration.” It certainly is a playground, and one that is perfect for just about everyone.

Not only do students learn concepts of physics, sketching, and many hands-on skills, they figure out the smaller challenges involved with creating something for a specific purpose—and a specific deadline. Materials lists, comparison shopping, evaluating the quality of parts and making trade-offs are all things that occur outside of the classroom, but are commonplace in Engineering Design. According to Bogar, “[Students are] practicing skills and applying knowledge to create something that improves a situation or solves a problem. They have time to dig into a project of their choosing while being supported with tools and materials. They can experience digital and analog fabrication techniques. They take things apart, learn how they work and repurpose components.”

Many classes try to incorporate direct, real world experiences for students to build and maintain a better understanding of the curriculum. With Engineering Design it’s a given: physical and professional applications are incorporated into the class—by design. Bogar strives to make the classroom a welcoming and creative environment. “I draw on my experiences regularly to make class real for students.” It is certainly one of the most genuine classes in the school and allows students to act on their aspirations—really no matter how large or small. An arena for growth and exploration, Engineering Design allows learning through experiences. Students get out what they put in through these experiences, which permits a deeper connection with what they learn.

Art is Eternal

Roger Bisaillon greets each student as they walk in, in a booming voice that captures everyone’s attention. His favorite thing to say to a new class is “Hello, get out your work.” If it is an older class, he greets with a “It’s time to do school. Ready? Here I go!” Each class is expected to get work done, because in Mr. B’s art classes, there is no messing around. He knows each student by name, and as students approaches him, they are asked about something meaningful that happened since he last saw them. The passion in the room and the relationships between students and Mr. B creates a truly beautiful and unique experience. Mr. B teaches because he thinks that “art is eternal, and it will last forever. That makes it a cool thing to teach.”

Students find Mr. B’s art class to be fun and Brianna says she loves it because “it’s different every day.” Others say that as far as a class goes, “it doesn’t feel like a boring class. It’s fun compared to others.” Their work is often displayed around the school, especially in the school library. At the local college, the University of Maine at Farmington, there is an annual Mt. Blue Art Show that displays the work of all art students of the year. Artwork is displayed on walls reaching up to 40 feet and on the big opening day, over 1000 people go to view the beautiful pieces, as if it were a museum. Mary says that seeing her art up on the big wall makes her feel like a “small part in a big art world” and Adam thinks that “it is just one step to having his art up in a well-known museum.”

Art at Mt. Blue changes students in more ways than just learning how to paint and make a clay pot. It helps a room full of teenagers find themselves and discover who they want to be. It makes artists realize that their art can make an impact, and that living in a small town does not mean that you cannot be great as well.

Academics

One of the things about Mt. Blue Campus that stands out the most is the variety of courses that are offered. With more than 150 courses to choose from, students are offered a comprehensive approach to education, and there are classes available in many areas that students might be interested in. One class offered is Engineering and Design, where students can ponder about a problem in the world and then fabricate a tangible product that solves it. Students can try their hand at journalism, writing articles for the school’s newspaper. Another class that might appeal to a different demographic is Sports in Society, a class about the profound impact of sports throughout history. In addition to our engaging college preparatory curriculum, many higher level honors and AP courses are offered for more advanced students. No matter what his or her learning level, there is a class for every student at Mount Blue.

These classes encompass learning that isn’t limited to being within the walls of a classroom. The Foster Technology Center at MBC provides a wide variety of courses where students can experience a certain profession in depth through hands-on learning. Just a few of these courses include firefighting, biotechnology, and CNA training. Students can receive crucial certifications for the advancement of their careers. They can become certified as a bank teller, truck driver or certified nurse’s assistant.

Mt. Blue also has many academically-oriented clubs that promote student growth. One such example is the robotics team, which recently received a grant from NASA for components. Students can join the Math Team and compete with others across the state. Students can also join Curtain Raisers, an improv comedy group that aids students with communication skills. Students have the ability to choose from many different clubs, depending on their interests.

At Mt Blue High School, students have the freedom to study what they are interested in and the ability to challenge themselves with many different levels of courses. Mount Blue students truly have the world of academics at their fingertips.