When we start with learners, we start from a place of possibility.
With learners at the center, we define the desired outcomes, design meaningful learning experiences, and create the enabling conditions to bring our vision for learners to life.
Our framework is designed to align with the world we live in and develop learners who will become engaged and productive citizens.
A learner-centered environment is intentionally designed to create experiences for learners to:
know who they are,
thrive in the community,
and actively engage in the world as their best selves.
Central to this approach is creating learning experiences for learners of all ages to develop necessary skills, demonstrate competence at their pace, and work with others to engage in authentic work. At the Learner-Centered Collaborative, we identified four aspects supported by the learning sciences that work together to create a learning model: authentic, personalized, competency-based, inclusive, and equitable.
Personalized learning is the purposeful design of blended instruction to combine face-to-face teaching, technology-assisted instruction, and student-to-student collaboration to leverage each student’s interests for deeper learning.
A studio is a 6-12 week problem-based unit that is designed to assess competencies often across multiple disciplines. It follows the Studio Cycle where students begin with a problem frame and culminate with an authentic implementation of their solution.
Studios at Carolina Achieve will be based on community and local industry challenges. They will be developed in consultation with school partners to connect students with people in the greater community.
Competency-Based Learning builds the foundation for all knowledge growth in a school. Students learn to become masters at each level of their education before advancing to the next piece of subject matter. In this style of education, Competency-Based Learning ensures that students will not be subjected to gaps in their knowledge of the curriculum. Our teachers can go at the student’s pace without advancing too quickly where more knowledge is imparted before mastering the core components being taught. This empowers the structure of the classroom, as teachers support their students to have critical thinking, engaged conversation, and experiments that demonstrate a full understanding of the curriculum.
Why is Competency-Based Learning important?
Students advance upon demonstrated mastery.
Competencies include explicit, measurable, transferable learning objectives that empower students.
Assessment is meaningful and a positive learning experience for students.
Students receive timely, differentiated support based on their individual learning needs.
Learning outcomes emphasize competencies that include the application and creation of knowledge, along with the development of important skills and dispositions.
Mastery of competencies is tracked and validated outside of traditional time-based courses and credits. Mastery credits are earned when students complete their competency requirements (e.g. body of work, portfolio system, evidence pieces, etc.).
Mastery is on a continuum of readiness which requires students to demonstrate proficiency of a competency multiple times in multiple ways.
The definition above is from Building 21 and the Aurora Institute.
Our unique school design comes from many different schools and programs. We utilize their language and graphics to ensure continuity of thought. Here are some that inspire us: