Next Step PCS

The Next Step is a model for other schools working with a diverse immigrant population. Each student at The Next Step has his or her own goals. Some students are building basic literacy in their native language or working to improve their English fluency and grammar. Some are working toward their General Education Diploma (GED) so they can get the necessary credentials in order to find employment to support themselves and their families. Others are gaining the skills they need to further their education or move on to vocational training or secondary education. The Next Step students are recent immigrants or young people who were born or grew up in the United States, but have found it difficult to achieve success in traditional public schools. For many students, personal challenges including becoming a teenage parent, the need to work to support themselves or their families, the lack of a stable home, have made it impossible for them to stay in public school. Other students have language and literacy barriers that keep them from understanding and participating in traditional classroom settings. The Next Step provides a full-time academic program that uses a flexible, practical, individualized curriculum designed around students' needs. The school has one teacher for every eight students, and computers for students use in every classroom. Students attend five and a half hours of instruction a day in Basic Literacy, English, English as a Second Language, Math, GED preparation, Social Studies, Science, Life Skills, Computers, Parenting, and Reproductive Health. As mastery of basic skills in one's native language is essential to success in learning English, we also conduct Literacy and Social Studies Classes in Spanish.

The mission of The Next Step/El Próximo Paso Public Charter School is to provide students who face extraordinary challenges and who are not supported in traditional high schools with the opportunity to continue their education and to enable young immigrants who have never attended school in this country to gain proficiency in the English language and master basic academic skills in English and Spanish. The Next Step provides a nurturing and intimate environment, comprehensive counseling and social services, life and job readiness skills and individualized instruction. The Next Step focuses foremost on preparing students to take the GED examination and attend college.

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