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Educational Philosophy

Page history last edited by PBworks 16 years, 1 month ago

Educational Philosophy

 

Integrate Where & When It Makes Sense

Woodlawn is committed to an integrated and innovative approach to learning and teaching. It is not enough to simply memorize rote facts and statistics. We strive to go beyond mastering the fundamentals in each subject area by engaging our students in group discussions, in-depth research projects, presentations, and performances that often times cross disciplines. Because our world is integrated, we believe our curriculum should be, too. To make learning relevant and meaningful, content from different subject areas is often linked around common themes so that students learn how to make connections between subjects. Students ultimately gain a deeper understanding of subject matter by using it in real world contexts.

 

We ask an overarching Big Question in each grade level. This Big Question guides each curricular area and allows for interdisciplinary projects. Faculty frequently revisit these questions throughout the year in order to promote personal and academic development in our students.

 

2nd Grade: What is my role in the community?

3rd Grade: How do communities change over time?

4th Grade: How does where and when we live influence how we live?

5th Grade: What is the world made of?

6th Grade: What does it mean to be part of a society?

7th Grade: What does it mean to be human?

8th Grade: How did we get here?

9th Grade: What does it mean to be civilized?

10th Grade: How do individuals change the world?

 

Woodlawn, like all responsible, independent schools, has standards and objectives that we set for each grade level. These contain the content and skills our students must master before advancing. We continually check and revisit these standards to be sure we are fulfilling the objective of these tools for learning. Coupled with that is the the heart of our program: the ability to intrigue and challenge students, as well as educate them.

 

Promote Active Learning

Life is interesting and so should be learning! We believe that students learn best by experiential, hands-on learning. We encourage inquiry and creative problem solving. While you will still find traditional aspects of school at Woodlawn (i.e. tests, textbooks, and an occasional worksheet), we do not focus on teaching to any one test. Rather than a quest to cover as much material as we possibly can, we believe in spending our time exploring topics and ideas in depth. Real novels, primary sources, projects, experimentation, and intellectual risk taking are the cornerstones of our philosophy. We want our students to continually ask, “Why?” The culminating project at each grade level forces the student to consider all he or she has learned and apply and synthesize that information in a creative way.

 

Offer Students Choices

Our teachers strive to create an atmosphere in the classroom that is student-driven, providing students the opportunity and ability to seek out information and become independent, lifelong learners. Offering choices is an important way to motivate students and get them interested in a project or subject matter. Variety is the spice of life and it should be no different in the classroom. Teachers use different kinds of instructional strategies and products to make for a more engaging study. Asking students to work in different ways allows them shine and go beyond in their areas of strength while also allowing them to develop new skills in the areas where they’re less able.

 

Partner With the Community

We also enrich our academic curriculum with a strong focus on community service and frequent field trips. This provides the students with ways to use what they are learning at school in the real world. Community service strengthens the community and nurtures a sense of empathy in students. 3rd graders take monthly visits to a residence for alzheimer patients, 8th graders spend afternoons with aging seniors at a state run institution, and 5th graders educate their peers and community on recycling as they take part in a school wide effort to collect recylable materials. As we persistently push our students out of their comfort zones, we see them working side by side, conffronting their own fears or prejudices, and developing a greater sense of appreciation for all they have.

 

“On our first visit to the senior center, the students were somewhat skittish. They stuck close together, were rather quiet, and had a bit of shock in their eyes,” relates an 8th grade teacher. “By the end of the year, they were actually looking forward to their visits. The students brought games, played their guitars, and sat on the beds with their new friends telling them stories or just simply listening. They wandered the halls freely and unafraid. Most kids today would be afraid to help an aging senior navigate down the hallway of a crowded senior residence—not our students.”

 

“We figured out pretty quickly that they liked sweets,” laughed an 8th grade student. “After that we were sure to always bring candy and home-baked goods.”

 

Instill Social Conscience and Encourage Social Responsibility

A curriculum that prepares our students for the 21st century must promote a moral and ethical code of behavior. Students, as our future leaders, need to be able to resolve conflicts, have a strong ecological foundation, embrace and respect diversity, and commit to a sense of balance and wellness... all while maintaining a healthy dose of adolescent idealism. These are challenges that face almost all preadolescents and teenagers. Cynicism and indifference have replaced the passion of learning in today’s classrooms. Students are faced with complex choices and often need someone to help them manage these pressures. Developmentally appropriate adult intervention and guidance is at the heart of our Life Skills classes (for lower school students) and our Brown Bag Forums (middle and high school students). Students need a safe place to ask questions, find information, practice honest communication skills, admit struggles, stand up to a friend, or to seek help. It is here where students begin to develop their own ethic of citizenship and begin to make the world a better place.

 

Value Multiple Perspectives

Religious conflicts, rich nations/poor nations, the future of the planet... these topics and more are often at the heart of our classroom discussions. Our students need the understanding and tools to argue with fact and present positions respectfully.

 

Hire Passionate, Knowledgeable Teachers

At Woodlawn, we believe that teachers are the single most important factor in determining the success of a school. As a result, we are committed to holding teachers to a high standard; in return, teachers are given more ownership than they would expect in a typical private school. Here, teachers are critical in creating the curriculum, shaping key policies such as the admissions process, and even the hiring of their own peers on the faculty. Our teachers also hold themselves accountable for being an expert in their specific field of study by being committed to ongoing professional development.

 

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