Edina High School’s administration has implemented a new policy—the Word Wall—which is designed to meet new literacy goals. Zephyrus: How was the Word Wall policy conceived?
Jeff Pope: We started it as part of our building goals… We looked at things that have caused students problems in reading, and [those problems come down to] understanding terms… Students need to be able to decode what they’re reading.
Z.: What feedback is the administration getting from teachers on the implementation of the Word Wall?
J.P.: It’s been a very new thing this past year… Ultimately, I would say that yes, we are seeing success in the classroom, and we’ll see more data behind this from standardized testing.
Z.: Do you anticipate bringing the Word Wall back to EHS for next year?
J.P.: For sure, yes. A next step [could be coming up with] vocabulary words that are more specific to what is being taught. English or social studies might be using very different words [that are] important to learn in their classrooms. Their subject areas are going to be different than what’s going on in forensics or chemistry… so specialization could definitely be a new avenue for the Word Wall.
This piece was originally published in Zephyrus’ print edition on March 27, 2025
