Posted on: Thursday, July 12, 2007
Wheeler students thriving with well-rounded education
By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Central O'ahu Writer
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With 90 percent of its students from military families, many with parents that are deployed, Wheeler Elementary School Principal Joe Lee says its important to meet their academic and emotional needs.
Photos by JEFF WIDENER | The Honolulu Advertiser
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WHEELER WARRIORS
Where: 1 Wheeler Army Airfield, Wahiawa Phone: 622-6400 Web address: www.wheeler.k12.hi.us Principal: Joe Lee, who grew up in Wai'anae, has been principal at Wheeler since 1998. School nickname: Wheeler Warriors. Colors: Black and gold. History: Wheeler Elementary was established as a public school in 1960. It's on the site of the original Leilehua High School, also formerly known as Army School, Lee said. Enrollment: 670 Test results: Stanford Achievement Test. Listed is the combined percentage of Wheeler students scoring average and above average, compared with the national combined average of 77 percent: third-grade reading, 78 percent; math, 81 percent; fourth-grade reading, 69 percent; math, 74 percent; fifth-grade reading, 77 percent; math, 73 percent. Hawai'i State Assessment. Listed is the combined percentage of school students meeting or exceeding state standards. Third-grade reading, 36 percent (state average: 50.2 percent); math, 27 percent (state average: 30 percent); fourth-grade reading, 55 percent, (state average: 58.1 percent); math, 34 percent, (32.5 percent); fifth-grade reading, 39 percent, (43.5 percent); math, 16 percent, (24 percent). Special programs: Flower therapy. Under the program, a partnership with the Mokichi Okada Association, students make their own flower arrangement to bring home. "It provides them a chance to ... look at beauty versus looking at the negative side," Lee said. "It allows them a chance to create something that has beauty to it." Computers: Wheeler has two computer labs, each equipped with at least 30 computers. Each classroom includes a computer for the teacher and at least two computers for students.
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Student academic achievement is not the only goal Principal Joe Lee focuses on at Major Sheldon Wheeler Elementary School.
"We're looking for a well-rounded student, not just an academic," he said. "There really needs to be a balance between having the book knowledge and having the hands-on knowledge, the life knowledge."
The philosophy has driven programs such as the school's nature garden, where students plant, care for and harvest crops including eggplant and lettuce while learning science and other lessons.
The gardening will "go to the next level" this coming school year, Lee said. The site of an old eight-classroom building that was recently torn down has become an additional garden space, which will be used for rotating crops such as corn and soybeans.
Lee envisions fifth-grade students not only growing crops, but learning more about economics and marketing and packaging. Vegetables would be sold to school staff, which also would help the garden to be self-sufficient. With the help of the Mokichi Okada Association Hawai'i, the school raises crops without using chemical fertilizers or pesticides.
For Lee, in addition to being an effective learning tool, the garden gives students a healthy outlet and a chance to take pride in seeing something they planted grow.
"The teachers can figure out how it connects to the science benchmarks and standards," he said. "But for me as the principal, the bigger thing is for the children to have experiences that they probably will never have (otherwise)."
About 90 percent of the students are from military families, Lee said. Approximately 70 percent have a parent who has been deployed to the Middle East.
Outlets like the garden will be especially valuable when the bulk of troops serving 15-month tours return home later this year, Lee said. With expected stresses associated with adjustments in the home, "we have outlets for kids ... so they have some alternate things to do," he said.
What are you most proud of: "Everyone on staff is willing and prepared to help support our families during the deployment and during the war," Lee said. "And I'm equally proud of the fact that our teachers look at the whole child, addressing the academic as well as the social and emotional needs of each student, through their instruction and through activities."
Best-kept secret: Even Start Family Literacy Program. The federally funded program at the school helps parents work toward their high school diploma and work on parenting skills.
Everybody at our school knows: Educational assistant Pat Ganaban. The retired information manager for the Air National Guard coordinates the school's nature garden projects.
Our biggest challenge: Building an awareness about the public school system. "If people came and saw how hard teachers work and the efforts and challenges they face, they would have a different perspective of the public education system," Lee said.
What we need: "We need the parents to become participants in their children's education. The community members also need to become more participatory ... (and) get involved through volunteer projects in the school community."
Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com.
