STANDARDS-BASED LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
The Learning 21 (L21) Wheel is the heart of our curriculum model and visually conceptualizes everything that's important to us. At the center of L21 is our standards-based curriculum. The standards are more than lists of facts to memorize; throughout the school, the standards focus on what is most important in each discipline, those deeper and more complex skills like interpreting mathematical or scientific data, using evidence to construct an argument, analyzing a historical source or literary text, using models to explain scientific or mathematical reasoning, or connecting with an audience in theater, music, or visual arts. The standards set rigorous goals for our students to meet, and our curriculum ensures that the students can achieve them.
The goal of a standards-based learning environment is for the curriculum, instruction, assessment, and reporting all to align to make the learning journey transparent to all. Teachers use these standards to create their assessments, and report on them in report cards. The report cards are opportunities for students to learn where they are as they progress towards these worthy goals. This alignment allows for students, teachers, and parents all to be clear on the key goals for each class.
The standards in our core subjects are based on the following:
- English: Common Core （http://www.corestandards.org/ ）
- Math: Common Core
- Science: NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards) （https://www.nextgenscience.org/ ）
- Social Studies: C3 Standards (College, Career, and Civic Life) （https://www.socialstudies.org/standards/c3）
- Health and Physical Education: Ontario, Canada Standards （http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/elementary/health.html）
- Visual and Performing Arts: National Core Arts Standards （https://www.nationalartsstandards.org/）
- World Languages: American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages （https://www.actfl.org/ ）
- Chinese: American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, Common Core: English Language Arts and Chinese National Curriculum Standards （ http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/）