Core Beliefs

Our ultimate goal is to prepare students for college, careers, and active citizenship. With this goal in mind, we believe that:

  • Students must master critical thinking, academic skills, and essential knowledge in each academic discipline.
  • Learning cannot be averaged.
  • Students need time to practice and learn from mistakes.
  • Students should have multiple opportunities to show what they know and can do.
  • Strong work habits and community involvement are critical for success in college, career, and citizenship.

Core Practices

To put these beliefs into practice, we:

  • Report on student mastery of specific skills and concepts within a course; work habits like participation and effort are reported separately.
  • Determine grades based on trends, and take more recent performance into account so that grades reflect a student’s current level of achievement.
  • Design multiple assessments (projects, essays, tests) for students to demonstrate their mastery of critical thinking skills and course content.
  • Require students to complete practice steps before they attempt to demonstrate mastery.
  • Provide more time, more practice, and more opportunities to develop mastery if a student is not ready.
  • Provide detailed rubrics that show students, parents, advisors, and teachers what each grade represents.

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