Kaizen Academy’s approach to learning is simple – put talented and diverse young people together with skilled and dedicated adults, and support from engaged and committed families, and create extraordinary results that speak for themselves.
The newest school in New Providence, Kaizen Academy, promises a unique approach to learning as students explore career options through passion projects delivered through a small, personalized learning experience, said Nicole Seymour, institute principal/president.
Her mission is to inspire young people to learn about themselves and the world around them through differentiated learning methodologies and experiences.
“We deliver personalized learning experiences with each student having their own curriculum designed to cater to their needs,” said Seymour. “Our hybrid model of effective face-to-face and digital instruction is facilitated by small classroom sizes and mixed group learning that is self-directed and mastery based.”
The principal said Kaizen Academy was born out of what she saw as a need to address a problem in the field of education – that for some people, conventional education doesn’t quite work because the assumption that everyone learns at the same pace is a problem. She said everyone is different and learns at their own pace.
“Many conventional systems neglect to address the needs of the advanced or struggling learner. These students tend to be dragged along or otherwise left behind in systems designed to teach to the average student, making school a boring or tedious affair for them. In these systems, identifying and addressing individual needs and potential is challenging. When we take this and add to it today’s virtual learning environment [due to the COVID-19 pandemic], the situation is further exacerbated and many students are even more disadvantaged,” said Seymour.
She said this means many parents are frustrated, some students are missing important concepts and left to struggle, and students who are able to move more quickly are often not being allowed to work at a pace that works for them.
SOLUTION
“Kaizen offers a solution for families who are open to a fresh thought and a new approach. Our curriculum is personalized and students are grouped by ability instead of skill, so they are allowed to move at their own pace. Moreover, the curriculum is self-instructional, which means that even working from home, students are able to work from their books (instead of having to go online) which eliminates the need for the digital access which can be unreliable at times and still requires a teacher’s presence for instruction.”
The principal said their small environment allows them to maintain COVID-19 standards and protocols more efficiently and effectively as well.
They also integrate “purpose path” experiences that are designed to stimulate the individual interests and passions of their students.
“Kaizen is here to revolutionize the learning experiences of primary school children in a time where innovation is how we succeed.”
As the world of education and its students continuously change and evolve, the changes affect how children explore, learn, study and grow, inspiring the need for more imaginative ways to approach an ever-evolving learning experience. She believes Kaizan is the answer to a new educational experience that will transform, ignite and engage.
Transformation, she said, happens with supporting the development of independent learners by employing programming that shifts the focus of the educational process away from the teacher and onto the student, thereby giving them ownership of their progress and success.
Students, she said, are ignited because opportunities to spark a renewed passion for the learning experience will be embodied into the program for each learner.
And that every student will have the opportunity to be actively involved in the pace of their learning, as the teaching, scoring, testing and hands-on learning opportunities will be a daily staple and will support the new learning environment.
PASSION PROJECTS
Seymour said their passion projects will allow students to get first-hand experience exploring their potential career interests and innate talents.
“For example, a student who is interested in dinosaurs will be given the opportunity to speak to a paleontologist and engage in a mock dig to find dinosaur bones. We believe that it is the purpose of education to address the educational needs of students through meaningful and tangible experiences, immersing them in a balanced and varied program designed to suit students’ needs and interests.”
The school recently set up a simulation of “Charlie & The Chocolate Factory” – a passion project learning experience based on one student’s interest in learning about chocolate.
“We extend student learning experiences beyond book knowledge by designing educational experiences specifically around any interest or passions they have. Students create interest boards and keep them up in their offices [desks]. We pull interests and design learning opportunities for the students based on those interests. One student’s interest board included a picture of chocolate. We simulated the ‘Charlie & The Chocolate Factory’ by giving them Wonka Bars and having them find a golden ticket in order to enter the chocolate factory. The school was decorated to resemble the chocolate factory from the movie ‘Charlie & The Chocolate Factory’. This was a surprise introductory learning experience for the students.”
Going forward, Seymour said the students will have other opportunities to learn about chocolate, including how it is made, where it comes from, and any other questions they may want answered about chocolate. The school has plans to have the students tour the Graycliff Chocolate Factory as a part of their learning.
“This kind of learning opportunity allows for students to extend their learning experiences beyond the classroom, keeping them engaged, and actively involved in their education. The history of chocolate will teach them about the Aztecs and the Mayans and their contribution to the modern world. And how chocolate is made will teach them about more serious global issues like child labor and poverty – lifelong lessons.
CURRICULUM
Kaizen Academy uses the ACE (Accelerated Christian Education) curriculum, known for its emphasis on academic rigor and character building. Learners engage their individualized curriculum on an accelerated path developed through a comprehensive intake assessment.
“Conventional educational programs take the student through a spiral of material while introducing him/her to new skills in sequence. Since students are grouped chronologically, their learning is lock-stepped and so, they receive the same material at the same time. This method has had its challenges over the past few years as we are finding more and more that students’ maturity level and their learning rates vary, even when compared to others of their chronological age. The above-average student may master the skill the first time he is exposed to it; the average student may pick up part of it; and the below-average student will often grasp only a minimum amount or fail to understand it entirely. As the spiral continues, some students stay out in front while others are left behind for a season [or for good].”
Seymour said the ACE program is designed around a format of building skill upon skill, and that the scope and sequence ignores the concept of grade levels and moves with continuous progress beginning with the first skill to be mastered. Depending on the student’s ability and motivation levels, students may move ahead rapidly or take as long as necessary, but each student masters the material.
The principal said as the student moves upward, level, and moves into new concepts, he/she is far better prepared to learn because he has mastered the skill on the previous level. The student is also not lock-stepped with classmates but learning individually and completely before advancing.
She said it is possible for a student to work at different learning levels for each subject as Kaizen assigns their coursework based on individual subject assessments.
“Children have unique backgrounds, abilities, talents, and interests,” said the principal. “An education that recognizes this uniqueness can allow a child to reach their full potential. Our students must earn a score of 80 percent or above to move on to higher-level content. Mastery of learning content at their individually assigned level is essential as students work towards their learning goals in a supportive environment.”
She said several basic principles underlie their educational philosophy – they are aware that each child is unique; that there is individual potential in all children, and excellence in every child; and that children are skilled in how to think critically and logically about the world around them in order to make informed and accurate decisions about their education.
And that the social and emotional climate of the classroom should be such that each child’s contribution is valued, each child takes responsibility for the community by respecting people and property, and each child fully engages in order to take personal responsibility for his/her learning experiences and interests.
“Students are grouped based on ability rather than age, which means that Kaizen Academy does not have grade levels like other schools. Instead, students follow a path of progression based on skills acquisition. As a result, skills are mastered at different rates. Some students may progress through the curriculum at a faster pace than others, but the plan is for all students to learn at a faster average rate than they would in a more traditional school environment.”
The principal said Kaizen Academy is an ideal school for parents who believe their child is being held back by group-based progression at other schools, or struggling in traditional classrooms because they learn at a slower place, or are missing foundational skills.
“Kaizen is all about your child and their growth,” said Seymour. “Our metrics are focused on individual progress rather than solely focusing on the group. The past year has revealed the issues with business-as-usual educational models that cannot adapt to changing circumstances.”
She said their system provides their students with a memorable, interactive, safe, and engaging learning experience whether the learning is happening in person or via a screen.
The school held a soft launch in September with an initial enrollment of seven students. Seymour said they are gearing up to make a larger push into the local educational market for the winter semester with the aim to expand their face-to-face and hybrid programs.
With three learning centers, Seymour said their current overall capacity is 35 students in house, and they can accommodate the same amount of students on the hybrid learning model, as well.
Kaizen Academy executes a rolling admission policy and processes completed applications as long as space is available. Parent interviews, student interviews and a diagnostic test are required for all incoming students.
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source https://thenassauguardian.com/a-mission-to-transform-ignite-engage/
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