Constructivist+Schools

​Here is the info I found online about Contructivist Schools. In Schools and Projects ** The following schools and projects incorporate aspects of constructivist theory:  (I deleted all the dead website links.)

 Dalton School, New York http://www.dalton.org/

Well-known constructivist private school, considered to be one of the most innovative reform models in education. According to the Web site, "Inspired by the intellectual ferment at the turn of the century, educational thinkers such as Dewey began to cast a bold vision of a new progressive American approach to education. Helen Pankhurst caught the spirit of change and created the Dalton Plan." You can read about such aspects of the school as the "House," the "Assignment," and the "Laboratory."

Greater Brunswick Charter School, New Jersey A charter school based on "broad themes of child-centered learning in the vein of constructivism" and other innovative approaches to learning stemming from the work of Howard Gardner and Maria Montessori. Students "direct their own learning" via Personal Education Plans.

Schools affiliated with the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow

ACOT is a project in which international schools explore computer-mediated constructivist projects. The following are four of the sites:

__ Dodson ____ Elementary School __, Nashville, Tennessee

The constructivist Dodson School "teaches academic and life skills. Its curriculum is as vast as the world around us and as small as the needs of a single child," according to its statement of philosophy. The school also houses the Teaching and Learning with Technology Center that serves the Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools. The Web site has good links to projects.

Francis W. Parker School, Chicago, Illinois http://www.fwparker.org/

Established in 1901, this independent school prides itself in the teaching of "critical thinking, providing not only a framework for students to learn about the world, but also a self confidence that will sustain them through risk, challenge and uncertainty." This statement reflects the constructivist approach to teaching and learning. Community building is also a major emphasis of this school.

Foxfire Schools http://www.foxfire.org/

Foxfire Schools are an exciting experiment in democratic and constructivist learning in rural, Appalachian Georgia. Their thirty-year history illustrates how schools in economically distressed areas can excel based on participatory democracy. The mission of these schools is "to teach, model, and refine an active, learner-centered approach to education which is academically sound and promotes continuous interaction between students and their communities so that students will find fulfillment as creative, productive, critical citizens." The Foxfire projects became a model for schools nationwide to implement learning strategies that build minds, communities, and inroads to historical and cultural continuity. One of the most famous is Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School, Rabun Gap, Georgia (http://www.rabungap.pvt.k12.ga.us/Rabun%20Gap/RGNS_Frame.htm) -- the school where students have preserved the historical traditions of Appalachia through Foxfire writing projects that have gained national prominence.

__ Reggio Emilia Schools __, Reggio Emilia, Italy

Schools in the community of Reggio Emilia, Italy, are based on a child-centered philosophy developed there. They emphasize a wholistic approach to critical and creative inquiry, with themes drawn from the works of John Dewey, Lev Vygotsky, Jean Piaget, and Jerome Bruner. These include "approaching old activities in newer ways," "exploring hundreds of languages," and "collaborative learning." Reggio Emilia-style schools have sprung up elsewhere. The Web site is unofficial, but schools submit explanations of their teaching pedagogy there.