I AM A:

TEACHER
SCHOOL LEADER
SYSTEM LEADER
+1 (619) 768-2752

Resources

search

High Tech High Graduate School of Education
High Tech High Graduate School of Education
Get Started
High Tech High Graduate School of Education
Get Started

SEARCH

How to Create the Right Community Partnerships for You

Community Partners Mapping Tool

By

PUBLISHED February 3, 2025

A blue and white badge reads M.Ed. in Educational Leadership Alumni with a square logo containing the letters E, D, and L on the left.
Logo with yellow border. On the left, yellow square with white letters SDTR. On the right, black text reads San Diego Teacher Residency Alumni on a white background.

PUBLISHED February 3, 2025

Four people sit around a table discussing, with papers and a purple model car on the table. One person holds a green bottle; another wears a Yale sweatshirt. The group appears to brainstorm ways to create community partnerships, as suggested by their engaged expressions and collaborative atmosphere. The background features posters and a window.

Share this

Community partnerships in project-based learning, deeper learning, or career technical education can be understood across two variables: the nature of the relationship between students and the partner, and the context for working together. 

The relationships between students and their community partners exist across a spectrum. At one end, students are in a receiving role and learn from the community partner’s expertise; at the other end, students and their community partners engage in a reciprocal relationship and contribute meaningfully to each other’s work.

The varying contexts for students to connect with community partners impacts their experience differently, and creates opportunities for everyone involved. Again, thinking across a spectrum, at one end of the range, community partners meet with students within their academic context—typically this means visiting the school. At the other end, students visit community partners in their authentic contexts, which can include a job site, a natural environment, or, for some assignments or projects, the work might take place at the school.

Explore the two-by-two grid below to get a sense of how these variables may converge or diverge. Some educators may want to push their students’ interactions with their community partner toward the top right corner, prioritizing collaboration and reciprocity. Others may recognize the left side of the grid as familiar, as this is where many classic “guest speaker visits” or field trips may land. Great teaching and learning often feature experiences from all four quadrants. There is value in each area and each of the ways described below in which a community partner may interact with students. 

Our aim is for educators to use this graphic organizer to create a balanced approach to community partnerships that meets the needs of diverse learners who are growing and changing over the course of a project or unit. There are many ways to do this, maximizing the dynamic possibilities for engagement and learning that each quadrant offers. What might it look like to start a new unit through a field experience, with students either in a receiving role or a reciprocal relationship? How might experts regularly offer examples, feedback, or instruction throughout the course of a unit? Where and how might a community partner engage with students at the culmination of their learning?

Use the attached graphic organizer to plan for upcoming learning experiences or to reflect on one you recently taught or observed.

 

 

See community partnerships in action in this video.

TAGS

Most Recent Articles

A man with a mustache sits at a table, gesturing with his hand. He faces a laptop displaying a presentation on model critiques. Other people are visible in the background, suggesting a group setting or workshop focused on continuous improvement.
Spread What Works More Effectively With Model Critiques
A Model Critique is a protocol for quickly studying a high-quality piece of work and identifying the elements of quality that make it “work”. In Continuous Improvement, you should use it when a Networked Improvement Community has identified an effective practice that they want to spread.
Unboxed Staff
A man reads from a book to an outdoor audience seated at tables outside a rustic café with red windows, under a large tree on a sunny day, turning the gathering into a simple way to connect over stories much like sharing a creative project.
A Simple Way to Turn an Assignment into a Project
A project feels big and ambitious to students because of the audience they’re showing the product to, and the venue where they’ll share it.
Alec Patton
Black ink drawing of a bird with textured wings and chest, standing on a branch, viewed from the side. Created as student work, the illustration features an open beak and a plain white background, highlighting the commitment to leave no student behind in creative expression.
Leave No Student Work Behind
This article is an edited excerpt from an episode of the High Tech High Unboxed podcast. You can listen to the full episode here. In this excerpt, Andy Sprakes, co-founder and chief academic officer at the XP School Trust in Britain tells Unboxed editor Alec Patton about the mistake he has never forgotten from his first-ever project, and how that mistake shaped the school’s entire culture.
Andy Sprakes
A child leans on a table and looks at a piece of paper while an adult sits across from them, likely discussing a Learning Target. Colorful papers and a grid are on the wall in the background.
What’s a Learning Target, and Why are They So Powerful?
A learning target is an “I can” statement written in student-friendly language (for example, “I can graph linear equations.”
Ron Berger
A man with a mustache sits at a table, gesturing with his hand. He faces a laptop displaying a presentation on model critiques. Other people are visible in the background, suggesting a group setting or workshop focused on continuous improvement.
Spread What Works More Effectively With Model Critiques
A Model Critique is a protocol for quickly studying a high-quality piece of work and identifying the elements of quality that make it “work”. In Continuous Improvement, you should use it when a Networked Improvement Community has identified an effective practice that they want to spread.
Unboxed Staff
A man reads from a book to an outdoor audience seated at tables outside a rustic café with red windows, under a large tree on a sunny day, turning the gathering into a simple way to connect over stories much like sharing a creative project.
A Simple Way to Turn an Assignment into a Project
A project feels big and ambitious to students because of the audience they’re showing the product to, and the venue where they’ll share it.
Alec Patton
Black ink drawing of a bird with textured wings and chest, standing on a branch, viewed from the side. Created as student work, the illustration features an open beak and a plain white background, highlighting the commitment to leave no student behind in creative expression.
Leave No Student Work Behind
This article is an edited excerpt from an episode of the High Tech High Unboxed podcast. You can listen to the full episode here. In this excerpt, Andy Sprakes, co-founder and chief academic officer at the XP School Trust in Britain tells Unboxed editor Alec Patton about the mistake he has never forgotten from his first-ever project, and how that mistake shaped the school’s entire culture.
Andy Sprakes

Related Content

A young girl leans over a steaming mug in a festive cup, set inside a large foil tray in a classroom—a perfect Lesson Launch that adds a real Wow Factor. Science supplies and posters are visible in the background, setting the scene for an engaging experiment.
Lesson Launch: The Wow Factor
Much like a movie’s opening scene, the launch of a lesson should grab everybody’s attention, spark curiosity, and get students asking questions.
Michelle Jaconette
Five adults sit around a table in a classroom, writing on papers during a coaching huddle. A whiteboard with faint drawings and a backpack on a chair are visible in the background.
A Meeting I Actually Look Forward To: The Coaching Huddle
Every two weeks, my Network for College Success (NCS) colleagues and I connect with each other to learn and grow our practice as Transformation Coaches.
Elizabeth (Beth) Brown
Three stick figures play with a fourth, tossing them into the air. An empty chair sits below them, suggesting the airborne figure was sitting before being lifted—symbolizing the lively energy and collaboration found at a Student Led Conference. The background is plain white.
Student Led Conference Model Agenda
Are you planning this year’s SLCs? Save time and make sure you’ve covered everything, with this SLC agenda!
Randy Scherer
A boy wearing glasses smiles while holding up a paper, showcasing his self-assessment. Other students beside him also hold papers, and they appear to be looking out a window. The scene is bright and cheerful.
Self-Assessment Strategies for Students
How can assessment practices be designed to best support student learning? In school, the term “assessment” is often shorthand for “grades”—or, perhaps, tests, quizzes, rubrics, and similar evaluative tools. However, thinking of “assessment” as interchangeable with “test” or “grade” limits the potential for assessment practices to lead to meaningful and deeper learning.
Sarah Strong
Skip to content