Oil City Elementary Magnet School, Oil City, Louisiana

A focus on the environment turned around a school in danger of closure. Now enrollment and test scores are up, and Oil City is celebrating its prestigious National School Change Award.

Want to track down some Oil City students and teachers? Look for them outside!

In a typical week, they might be tending plants in the school’s greenhouse, developing a learning station about decomposition along the nature trail, or measuring angles in the outdoor math lab.

Oil City is a Title I school in rural northwest Louisiana. In 2001, faced with declining enrollment and a possible closure, teachers and the administration worked together to create a school with an environmental focus.

The Situation
Oil City was on the way down. A nearby academic magnet school drew away many students. Test scores on the state’s School Performance Scores for those who remained were low. Almost one-third of the teachers were transferred elsewhere.

But community support to keep the school open energized the staff who remained. They presented a proposal to the superintendent and school board to turn Oil City Elementary into a school that uses the environment to teach math, language arts, and other subjects. The school board agreed—with no extra funds, but at least with a promise to provide bus transportation for any kid in the district who wanted to attend and 20 extra instructional days.

The Solution
The environmental focus and the emphasis on hands-on, outdoor learning energized Oil City. Enrollment is up by about one-third, to 385 kids, and the School Performance Scores now surpass the state average. In 2004, the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry named it one of the “top 10” most improved schools in the state. In 2006, it won the National School Change Award from the American Association of School Administrators, Fordham University, and Pearson Education.

Fortunately, a school does not have to be in the dire straits of an Oil City to gain from its experiences. Some suggestions from principal Mike Irvin:

Train the teachers: All teachers received training in PLT. Teachers continue to keep up with environmental issues and how best to present these issues to their students.

Inspire the kids: Teachers in each grade level choose an environmental theme at the beginning of every year, for example, related to forests, wildlife habitat, or another concept. Hands-on learning, field trips, and other activities revolve around the theme. Kids clamor to find out their theme for the year.

GreenWorks! program, helped pay for the greenhouse, a learning pavilion at nearby Caddo Lake, and other improvements. But it’s not all a question of what the community can do for the school. Students developed a butterfly garden for the hospital and care for flowers in concrete planters downtown. Families are involved in all aspects of school life.

Partner with the community: Grants from community groups, as well as PLT’s GreenWorks! program, helped pay for the greenhouse, a learning pavilion at nearby Caddo Lake, and other improvements. But it’s not all a question of what the community can do for the school. Students developed a butterfly garden for the hospital and care for flowers in concrete planters downtown. Families are involved in all aspects of school life.

Learning outside turned Oil City from a school on the way out to a place where things are happening for teachers and kids—inside the classroom and out.

Learn more
Check out the April issue of Science and Children, PDF (506 KB) published by the National Science Teachers Association, for an article about Oil City Elementary Magnet School.