[Week 4] Weekly Reflection October 2nd, 2026

Today, we had the pleasure of visiting Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry (PSII) in downtown Victoria. After spending the morning at PSII, it is clear that this highschool is not a stereotypical experience because it is centred around the individual and one’s own learning experience. For instance, as soon as we walked through the front doors, we observed that the teachers were not doing the traditional, lecture style teaching where they stand at the front of the room, but rather, they were sitting at the students’ desks working with them. Through my observation, it seemed that every student had something they were working on, and they seemed quite focused and ready to learn. I also noticed that there were some kids who would sit by themselves at a table or be working in a different part of the room (in the kitchen), which is different from even a university setting where everyone is supposed to fill out the tables, rather than being allowed to sit where they truly feel comfortable. 

One question that my classmate asked was, “do they still get a proper high school diploma?”, which was a question that everyone was collectively curious about. The answer was yes, they earn the standard British Columbia Dogwood Diploma, but based off of their own competencies that they have established. Something I found interesting about PSII was that this environment is recommended for the autonomy of neurodivergent students who suffer from autism. For instance, if kids are feeling like they need a quieter space, then they have a choice to sit in a separate room, or if kids are needing a dark space, they can move to a room that has dimmer lighting. 

While PSII’s way of learning is seen as innovative, it does raise some concerns in my mind about the accountability that the school has for these kids. For example, if PSII kids need to go somewhere, they use a sign out system and give a brief explanation of where they are needing to go. However, there is no real accountability for where students are going to be at that given time, or if they are being truthful about where they are going. Downtown Victoria is a highly populated area, but it includes some areas that I would consider to be unsafe with a large percentage of unhoused individuals as well as those under the influence of drugs and alcohol.  The PSII students are only in high school and at that age, many students will not have the emotional or intellectual maturity to always be making wise choices. I fear that giving these students too much open-ended freedom could lead to safety risks especially since the learning experience is already very open-ended. I do value the concept of independence especially when working with young minds, but I feel it would not hurt to be more strict with the supervision of the students for their own sake and the school’s liability.

Leaving PSII today, I left with a more open mind to what education can look like in a broader sense, and how you can still get the same credentials that other graduates receive from other schools through a different style of learning. This connects well to High Tech High, which was the video we watched on a high school that follows the same type of learning structure, so it was very interesting to be able to compare the similarities and differences both the schools had. While I support this style of learning, I definitely still have some concerns and questions about it and am still trying to wrap my head around whether learning life skills is more important than stereotypical academic learning.