What is Progressive Education?
The progressive education movement grew from an educational reform movement at the beginning of the 20th century, where new educational philosophers began to argue the goal of education should be more than achievement of baseline level of information. Instead, as educational reformer and philosopher John Dewey wrote, education should be seen not as much a "preparation for life, but life itself."Furthermore, Dewey argued that education should be active and interactive and that the method of education must fit the learner; he saw education as less of "an affair of 'telling' and being told, but an active and constructing process."Today, these elements are still evident in the modern progressive education movement.
At Stevenson, progressive education means...
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Arts Focus - Uniquely PACT
Founded in Stevenson's second year, Arts Focus continues the school's focus on developing social relationships in a project-based learning environment. During Arts Focus sessions, students build relationships across age and social groups and learn the skills and habits of creative work.
Teachers and parents partner to present 15 classes that run for six, four-hour sessions on Thursdays twice a year. The classes incorporate hands-on study with a formal curriculum designed and presented by parents. Regular classes are dispersed and re-assembled, so that each course has an even number of students from each grade level. Volunteer parents partner with teachers to run each class. Each Arts Focus session concludes with a public exhibition at City Hall of student work from each class.
The enhanced arts curriculum is designed to...
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