A Unique Educational Approach

That title feels a little misleading to write because alternative education has seen exponential growth within the last 5-10 years and it is almost guaranteed that another school has built on the same principles that we have. Nonetheless, the foundations and structure of BHA came from pulling in what we thought were the best parts of educational practices and was unlike anything we had come across. No two people think the exact way, which means that no two children (or adults for that matter) will learn or experience learning in the exact same way. Working on that premise, we began to build a system of learning that allows for students to learn using and engaging with multiple learning styles. The premise of our structure has four components: Concept Mastery, Multimodal Learning Opportunities, Individual Paced Progress, and Collaborative Work. 

Concept Mastery just means that our students must demonstrate a specific level of proficiency before moving on. We don’t want students to simply memorize and recite information, we want them to understand the concept being taught and also be able to use it in real world scenarios. This lessens the chances of students having knowledge gaps which cause them difficulties in the future. 

Multimodal Learning Opportunities allow for all types of learners to engage with the material. Additionally, it means that students are using multiple senses, which connects learning with more parts of the brain, improving retention and encouraging children’s agency within their own learning (For more information on Multimodal Learning read Bouchey, et al, 2021). 

Individual Paced Progress provides students with the flexibility to spend more time on the concepts that take more time to master and to cruise through the ones that don’t take as much time. This doesn’t mean that students are left to themselves and just do whatever they want, but it does mean that they are not required to chase after an arbitrary measure of where “the class should be”, nor will they be slowed down by that measure.

Collaborative Work relates to our classroom design of having multiple grades within each class. It allows students space to work together solving problems and gathering information. It works to break down the idea that students have to be at the same level in all subjects at the same time. For example, a student who excels at reading can read advanced books, but struggles in writing can take more time to work on those concepts at a pace that matches their ability.  Also, students who have mastered concepts can provide support and encouragement for those that may be struggling. 

So, what does that actually mean?

Designing and implementing the design of such a school is an ongoing balancing act. There are certain structures in education that we want to make sure our students are prepared for. For example, BHA does not require any standardized testing throughout the year, but we don’t want our students to fall apart during the SATs or panic at the sight of a scantron once they get to college. So in as many ways as we can, our teachers and principal work to give students the freedom to learn in the modes of their natural strengths, while still providing the structure and other modes that they will encounter throughout their lives. With that said, I often borrow a metaphor from a mentor of mine: “We are building this plane while flying it.”. On a practical level it means that while we have a firm foundation and a strong vision, we continue to build and adjust the teaching techniques and learning experiences within the school and individual classrooms.