TAMWORTH LEARNING CIRCLES Student Handbook Click Here to download a printable PDF version of the school handbook. |
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Table of Contents (Click on a heading to jump directly to section.) 1. Introduction |
13. Recycling |
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TAMWORTH LEARNING CIRCLES is an educational non-profit 501(c)3 corporation, governed by a board of trustees. It is designated a private school approved by the State of New Hampshire Department of Education.
In 2008/09, we look forward to a century of change and challenge, over the whole planet. We are rightly apprehensive, but strengthened by an unshakeable belief in human potential. Our children have to be prepared for a world of new cultures, new opportunities, new balances of power, new work, new knowledge and skills, new pressures, new dangers. Underlying all this will be all the ways we remain the same: the torch we carry sheds the light of all the nameless hunters and gatherers, farmers, warriors and nurturers, the pious religious, singers, desperados and travelers we have been, the torch of Socrates and Jesus and Galileo, of Confucius and Buddha and Black Elk and Newton and Shakespeare, Mohammed and Beethoven and the few thousand other known names from the peoples and cultures of this seething planet whose inspirations can help us chart the way ahead. Our children will need to be tough, compassionate, flexible, creative and versatile; they will need much stamina. These qualities are their inheritance, and they will have too much grit, too much will to survive and too much native wit to succumb easily: they just could do with a little help. After all, education is basically about coaxing out what is already there. TAMWORTH LEARNING CIRCLES is an educational enterprise dedicated to nurturing the intellectual, creative, social, moral, and physical growth of its students in a safe, stimulating environment. Each individual is given close personal attention, with all participants sharing responsibility for the health and well-being of the group, the school aspires to the highest standards possible in academics, honest and ethical behavior and creative achievement for each student. TLC aims to graduate students who are academically competent and independent, and able to function successfully in higher education; articulate, tolerant and well-informed citizens who see their personal responsibilities and opportunities to serve in a global context as well as contributing to the democratic process and general well-being of their own country; and creative individuals with deeply explored channels of communication and artistic self-expression. TLC offers a favorable starting place for exploring life, knowledge and the wider world with friends, good companions and firm, loving mentors. NONDISCRIMINATION POLICY AS TO STUDENTS TAMWORTH LEARNING CIRCLES admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admission policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs. TAMWORTH LEARNING CIRCLES serves young people of any age for whom its academic programs and social environment are appropriate, from ages 5-20. Enrolment is encouraged from families of all races, religions and cultures, without discrimination. Prospective students at any academic stage or level of social maturity may apply, except those in need of extensive special education services or sheltered behaviorally controlled settings not offered by the school. Admission in all cases will be at the complete discretion of the administration and teaching staff, who will base their judgment on the candidates’ individual qualities and suitability for membership of the group. TLC has a self-imposed maximum of 24 students present at any one time in the school building, in order to preserve its intimate scale and unique atmosphere. When there is full enrolment, a waiting list of provisionally accepted students will be established. Prospective students will normally be considered on a first come, first served basis. THE COMMUNITY GOALS OF TAMWORTH LEARNING CIRCLES A learning community is not an arena for the entirety of life. Nevertheless, it can embrace many more aspects of life than simply being a school where young people go to learn, to be instructed, and to take part in a limited range of other structured and unstructured activities such as team sports and peer group socialization. TLC is an enterprise of a particular kind. For years, the word “school” was absent from the name because it was misleading. The hidden agenda of school as a place of rights and entitlement, for the acquisition of certain highly-valued kinds of knowledge and skills which are then tested competitively, is too narrow for our aims. These features need to be present - young people have rights, are entitled to privileges not accorded adults; there are indeed some kinds of knowledge and skills which schools should impart; and testing is an important way to assess many skills and knowledge. There are, however, three equally important goals to add to rights and entitlement: Responsibility, Action in the World, and Voice. It is a part of the TLC mission that each individual should take responsibility for the health and well-being of the group. Any TLC member needs to be respected and trusted: from that starting point, taking on personal responsibility is a graduated goal which grows with maturity. The skill of the teacher resides in assessing the degree of responsibility of which the individual is capable, and helping it increase at the interfaces of the wider community and society. Consulting colleagues, working collaboratively, negotiating roles and taking part in group projects, are as important to the life of TLC as circle listening and discussion. Planning, organizing, managing and completing tasks are key attributes of the independent student, who needs to be a problem-finder and -setter as well as a problem solver. Responsibility for the self demands high self-expectation. Taking responsibility for others has to begin from an assumed respect for others, including those of other cultures, and from the desire to serve others beyond self-interest. Volunteer service will be a credited graduation requirement of TLC. The individual student and TLC itself need to be active in the world; a school should not be an inward-looking institution. Action in the World brings empowerment and nurtures compassion; it also validates learning. Action in the World assumes that young people have a contribution to make, and engages them through a sense of effectiveness and commitment. Volunteer service is Action in the World; so is conducting a Science Experiment, or a series of observations which contribute data to Science at large, and to the wider enterprise of Science. Addressing issues of climate change and global warming involves changing aspects of the physical environment of school and extending lessons learned to the wider community. Artistic and other creative projects are action to enrich our environment and the life of others around us. Taking part in forums of discussion and influence is also action: making a voice heard. Young people’s voices need to be heard beyond the confines of their own schools and other organs of “youth” expression. Further, students need to believe that there is a true interest in what they have to say. TLC needs to develop a website and publications which will ultimately have a sphere of influence commensurate with whatever quality and value students can attain - ultimately, quality will tell, and true value will emerge. Working at the skills of having Voice are key activities of TLC. Having a voice is the prime Action in the World for young people, however much else they need to be doing. Young people are “qualified” to take part in public life as members of the human community: they should not have to wait until they are 18 - or even later. The pursuit of these goals embraces many of the academic activities and projects through which the individual creates and learns. The teachers and adult volunteers at TLC assume benign authority: they do not shirk their responsibility to steer and nurture the life of the community. They communicate high expectations of mutual respect, considerate behavior, integrity and individual responsibility applying to all community members. It is their duty to set and patrol well-judged boundaries of activity and behavior, while allowing young people to develop their own voices, have a measure of control and independence to explore the interface between freedom and responsibility. All members of the community are expected to conform to the highest standards of civility and honesty, and to help ensure that established standards of conduct are honored. Lying, cheating and plagiarism are unacceptable. Language and behavior must be suitable for people of all ages and backgrounds. Physical violence, invasion of intimate personal space, the theft, destruction or mutilation of school or personal property, name-calling, verbal abuse, profanity and obscene language are unacceptable. Bringing, secreting or possessing on school grounds any of the following is unacceptable in any circumstances: alcohol, illegal drugs, medicines not permitted specific individuals, guns, fireworks, any article or substance judged to be a weapon, any tool or device judged to be dangerous introduced without written permission in the hands of the teachers. In class, the mutual respect demanded everywhere extends particularly to the manner in which students listen to each other and freely exchange ideas. Awareness of the rights and needs of others with whom they share school life should be second nature. There is no tolerance of bullying, teasing, harassment, hazing, habitual exclusion of individuals, cliques or other undermining of a student’s self-esteem at TLC. TLC’s relationship with the participating family is seen as a partnership depending on shared responsibility and cooperative planning. Parents who energetically participate in their children’s education maximize the contribution of school. TLC staff aim to challenge, stimulate, support, nurture, guide, empower, equip and inform their students, but they cannot do the whole job; this can be achieved only by working with actively sympathetic families who embrace their ideals and the ethos of TLC. At TLC, the discipline ultimately aspired to is that within, not imposed from the outside. The aim is to nurture better nature until it becomes second nature. Daily life functions without punishments and specific rewards for good behavior. All members of the community are held accountable for their own behavior. A student who transgresses established community standards will be confronted directly and immediately. The teachers will deal with misbehavior clearly, justly, without exception and without delay. In any case where a student’s transgression demands a response beyond the scope of normal student-teacher interaction, the first recourse is to parents. Only in very serious cases will a student be excluded from TLC, temporarily or permanently. Wherever possible, a decision to exclude the student would take place only after a discussion with the family. Where violence or danger to any member of the community is involved, exclusion may be immediate at the discretion of the staff. TLC will also not shelter students from legitimate police action. It may be salutary here to note that none of these measures have been necessary during the first twelve years of TLC. STUDENT CELLPHONES, PERSONAL COMPUTERS AND OTHER PERSONAL ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT At TLC we work on our students’ abilities to concentrate, and to listen to and interact with the other members of their learning community at a respectful level. TLC assumes that these virtues come to very few of us as a “given”, but they are precious and important and are key means of becoming effective learners and citizens. We are well aware of the pervasive and complex world of communication and entertainment to which most of our students have easy and frequent access. We recognize the adverse effects of fragmented attention, the isolation produced by screens and headphones, and the way these devices are used by many young people as a cocoon to block out the surrounding world. Computers are hugely beneficial and open up a vast world of interaction and knowledge. However, we see it as our job to combat their deleterious effects. As teachers we wish to maintain high standards of use and control without becoming Thought Police. There may be times when learning takes place through computer games, or when teachers give the green light to a particular game on a particular occasion. However, this is an area many students have trouble with: they cannot see the difference between playing cards or a board game at recess on a wet day, and playing a computer game. There is a difference. Games can create social interaction; they can also isolate. TLC is not the place for students to conduct their private lives by phone or computer. Email and text messaging belong to life outside school. Student cellphones must be handed in at the beginning of the school day, and collected at the end. A school phone will always be available for emergencies. Other non-urgent calls may be made at recess times, with the permission of a teacher. Unauthorized use will not be permitted. Student personal computers are a family choice: they are not mandatory at TLC, and some students do not have them. They are wonderful servants, used properly. Computers in school are for school use: they are not for private communication, games or recreational surfing. Personal and school computers should not be on during recess unless permission has been obtained from the teacher - there needs to be clear time without them. Improper use of personal or school computers will result in the temporary withdrawal of the student’s computer privileges; repeated offences will be regarded as a matter to discuss with parents. We hope that our students experience consistency from home and school on an aspect of their lives which is becoming increasingly important. Listening to music does not belong to a different category in this respect. We have a recess practice of having one room where music may be played, and one quiet room for those who prefer private talk and reading. There is also a general rule of “no screens with music” at recess. Private music through headphones while reading or just for listening is permitted at recess. The use of headphones during class is however prohibited. Many students believe that they need music to help them concentrate. Our job is to facilitate a good learning environment, and to nurture a student’s ability to create a circle of concentration. Students need to experience a quiet group working atmosphere, and how to deal with mild distraction. PRODUCING AND SAVING WORK - THE PAPER TRAIL Much experience has taught staff that we cannot trust the retrievability of electronically-stored student work. We need it on paper. We may upload and download it, we may send out disks and CDs, we may link our machines in all kinds of exotic and exciting ways, but from early in the process until the end we need it on paper. Work we cannot see cannot be acknowledged or graded. Students using computers for schoolwork will be required to be able to print out their work at home or in school. It will be a condition of students using personal computers in school that they either:
Students bring their own lunch and snacks. We currently provide the use of a microwave oven in school. While we regard nutritional education as within our concerns under Health Education, we do not have a list of permitted foods and drinks - families and students vary in their habits, and we do not feel that our own views should be imposed. We do however reserve the right to ban particular items. Microwave popcorn, for example, has limited nutritional value, and recent research has shown that the bags are lined with toxic chemicals to prevent sticking. Also, with soda machines disappearing from public schools all over the country, we wish to follow suit. So, please, no microwave popcorn or sodas. Recycling packaging, wrapping, composting and trash are permanently on the TLC community agenda. Students need to understand the reasons for careful practice in this regard. The rules are under continual development. Our dress code is - whatever works and is decent by our standards. Students should be able to go outdoors comfortably in almost all weathers. Adventurous younger students especially need a change of clothes if they get wet outside. TLC is a no-outdoor shoe building - slippers or socks must be worn. Decency for teenagers in school means more than simple public decency. We do not have to have exhaustively detailed rules for our small community, but the ability of large amounts of skin to distract should be obvious. We cannot keep up with the detail of fashions, but have to rely on our own perceptions and common sense. Boys will be told not to flaunt themselves bare-chested. We ask mothers to assist their daughters in dressing appropriately. It is much better if such questions can be resolved at home - it is difficult to address them with appropriate tact and privacy in school. All difficulties and complaints which cannot be resolved quickly through direct contact and communication between parents and staff should be reported to the Executive Director. In the event of the parent or the member of staff being dissatisfied, or where the Executive Director has a conflict of interest, the matter should be addressed in writing to the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees. The Chair of the board has the discretion to attempt to deal with the situation on his/her own, to consult other Board members, or to call a meeting of the Board. Any decision which has involved the Chair or the whole board will be recorded in writing. A letter of response will be sent to the complainant. At TLC, small multi-age group classes and individual, tailor-made programs are designed by teachers dedicated to rigorous intellectual and expressive excellence. Students aged 5-20 are challenged by a stimulating range of creative opportunities to learn. Our groups are small societies where the individual path is nurtured, and all participants are encouraged to assume appropriate responsibility within their circle. The combination of individual and intensely shared tasks is particular to TLC. TAMWORTH LEARNING CIRCLES offers a comprehensive curriculum in the arts, humanities and sciences. Much of the work is conceived in terms of open-ended tasks, with ramifying opportunities for older and more advanced students. Particular emphasis is placed on world history and the nature of the world today, poetry, dramatic production and performance (which includes much work in art and music), creative writing, astronomy, biology and ecology. All these specialities feature in the curriculum each year, alongside standard school subjects such as English Language and Mathematics. Great emphasis is placed on the acquisition of research skills and effective oral and written communication. Course outlines and retrospective descriptions are included in annual curricula, period plans and reports. TLC looks to the wider world, and its international focus is reflected in annual student trips abroad, and in students learning modern foreign languages such as Spanish and French. Latin is also offered as an extra subject. To distinguish and analyze the different areas of student growth and learning, TLC uses the following categories: 1. THE SOCIAL SELF Our aim is to nurture the social awareness, confidence and skills necessary for the individual to function effectively and happily in society. At TLC the staff and community address the questions, problems and learning processes involved in the socialization of children and adolescents. It is our belief that intellectual growth needs to keep in step with social growth as much as possible. Questions of morality are on our agenda; the rights and responsibilities of the individual feature largely in our discussions. Each individual member of TLC is expected to serve the wider community by volunteering or taking on unpaid tasks for others. There will be a formula for recording such service based on hours, which are required for graduation. Some people seem to be naturally blessed with outgoing personalities and easy articulateness. Even the person for whom these skills do not come easily can be helped to become adequately proficient at them. At TLC we work at the arts of conversation, discussion, persuasion, debate and dialogue. All are important in a democratic, cooperative society. The issues of competition in a competitive world are also frequently discussed and debated. While recognizing that there may be competitive aspects of an individual’s life, and that in some areas competition may be a matter of survival, we regard it as a hazard to be faced, rather than a desirable model for the conduct of human affairs. Our aim is to encourage a drive to excellence within the person, not one imposed from the outside. If competition is to be faced, we regard it as our task to prepare our students by nurturing a strong self with a positive self-image and a highly-motivated attitude to work. To elevate competition to the status of an end in itself is a grave mistake, which can stunt the overall growth of the person. 2. THE CREATIVE AND EXPRESSIVE SELF Developing the means and skills of self-expression and creativity should be a prime aim of education. Group means of expression such as dance or drama are as important, in our belief, as individual modes of expression. “The Arts” are too limiting a label for these vital channels between self, others and the world. Of these channels, the central and most important is: 3. LANGUAGE Developing the means, range and effectiveness of linguistic communication involves many complementary areas of competence and endeavour: a high level of reading ability; speaking and writing clearly and effectively; learning different modes of writing ; broadening the range of vocabulary and language employed; exploring, reading, responding to, analyzing and writing about literature; reading and writing poetry and fiction; learning at least one foreign language; using language as a central component of acquiring a Voice in the world. 4. THE WORLD AS IT IS Current Events circles, long a feature of TLC life, are one part of our examination and formulation of opinion concerning what is happening and what is the present state of the world. Knowing the world entails knowing its physical and human/political geography, and the whole diversity of human societies and cultures. Our website will contain the TLC response to the World As It Is as an important channel for the individual as well as the group. 5. THE WORLD AS IT WAS It is said that History is safely behind us, but of course it is not - it is with us. We cannot understand the World As It Is without studying the World As It Was. One way we study this is by History Backwards - taking the present and working back into the past to understand the origins of the World Now. This applies to the local level of our world as well as to the nation and the whole planet. 6. WORLD OF SCIENCE AND MATH One of the seemingly unique qualities of being human is that we have the capacity for rational, logical and analytical thought. Our reasoning approach to the world is manifest in the areas of Philosophy and Science. In Science, this reasoning takes the form of careful observation, meticulous measurement, the testing of ideas, the judicious review of these tests, and adjusting the ideas to fit the evidence created by such careful observation and review. In short, it is a way of looking at and interpreting our world. It is by no means the only way, but it is a powerful tool of inquiry and has long been embraced by our culture as a cornerstone of our enlightenment. Science is a process, and at TLC we are committed to teaching each student the intricacies of the scientific method, offering opportunities to put that method into practice through laboratory and field research, and assisting them in honing the intellectual tools needed to interpret what they have found. This is what makes science exciting, and such a worthwhile human endeavor. TLC awards internal letter grades for work. These are: O- Outstanding; VG - Very Good; S - Satisfactory; NI - Needs Improvement ; - Unsatisfactory (Rarely used) It is important to recognize that each student’s work is a “work in progress.” All work evaluated as less than “O”can be reworked and improved by the student and returned to the teacher for an improved valuation. These grades will be awarded to the individual in terms of their own personal development. Written comment will be added on matters such as effort and individual improvement. This system of evaluation and comment is designed to discourage meaningless competitiveness. It is not for external reference. The prime method of keeping the record of achievement at TLC is the individual portfolio of work, which has been found to be a powerful vehicle of individuality, achievement, skills and abilities in approaching tertiary institutions. In addition to oral reports at meetings with parents, each student will receive an annual written individual report, with other interim reports on the semester and/or period. Annual reports will be accompanied by letter grades, aligned to State and National standards - A,B,C,D and F. Incomplete work will normally be automatically be assigned to the workload of the following year. CREDITS AND GRADUATION FROM TLC High School credits are awarded for high school-level work. Credits are not tied to grade age. In a multi-age setting, each student’s work is evaluated on its merits, and its level. A credit is awarded for a notional FIFTY hours’ satisfactory work. The work may take place in class, partly in class and partly elsewhere, or wholly outside formal class, for example in a Period Seven project. Credit is not assessed on “seat time”, hours of classroom instruction, but on monitored work. Hours are only one measurement - the material of a course or project must be satisfactorily completed for a credit to be awarded. In some subjects it will be possible to earn extra credit by completing pre-planned and agreed extra work. Extra credit will not be awarded by simply counting extra hours. CREDITS REQUIRED FOR FINAL HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION:
INTERIM PERIOD FOR CREDITS 2007-9 The new system of credits is designed for students who will graduate from 2009 onwards. Before then, the credits we previously awarded under the Maine system will apply. A full Maine credit signifies 80 hours classroom time. Transcripts created before 2009 will carry a note to explain these credits. COURSE CATALOG (For Graduation from 2009) NOTE: Each academic year, a plan of the year’s curriculum is published. The year of classes is divided into six periods, for each of which a more detailed plan is published. The following is an outline of the credited subjects at TLC. For Period Seven, there may be other individually planned subjects.
MATH (9 credits) TLC predominantly uses the Saxon series of textbooks. At High School level, the books used are Algebra 1, Algebra 2 and Advanced Math, which includes Pre-Calculus. A feature of this series is that it follows the European practice of combining Algebra and Geometry, so that there is not a separate year of Geometry. Trigonometry is also included. On average, each book in the Saxon series attracts one credit - the Algebra 2 book is worth 1 1/2 credits. Students who are not able to tackle this course are given a course in basic and business/consumer math, and are able to earn credits up to a “C” grade. SCIENCE (16 credits) Science course offerings have been divided into the three major disciplines: Earth Science (ES), Biology (LS) and Physical Science (PS). Nearly all the science courses at TLC contain a laboratory and/or field study component. Students are required to complete the minimum requirements of the lab/field study components of each course. Students learn the scientifc method; they use laboratory and field research equipment and learn the intricacies of taking measurements and collecting data. THE PHYSICAL SCIENCES The two major branches of the physical sciences are chemistry and physics. The science of Chemistry explores the composition, structure, properties and reactions of matter, especially of atomic and molecular systems. Physics involves the science of matter and energy and the interaction between the two. These two branches are offered in two different semesters. Students are required to complete two semesters of chemistry and two semesters of physics to graduate from TLC. Older students may complete these requirements while in the School to College program. Please note that neither course is a prerequisite of the other, as they both include review of basic concepts in atomic structure and chemistry nomenclature.
Chemistry courses: 1. The Structure, Properties and Reactions of Matter This laboratory course covers major topics of basic chemistry, including pure substances and mixtures; physical and chemical properties and reactions; atomic theory and structure and present ideas about the atom, molecules and isotopes; endothermic and exothermic reactions; valence electrons and chemical reactions; an introduction to the periodic table; electron configuration and core notation and writing and balancing chemical equations. A minimum of 12 laboratory assignments must be completed. 2. The States of Matter and the Energy of the Nucleus This laboratory course continues our exploration of chemistry. Topics covered include chemical composition; predicting chemical reactions; chromotography and spectroscopy; acids and bases; chemical quantities; the nature of energy; the states of matter, including gas laws and the intermoleculart forces of liquids and solids; solutions; oxidation-reduction reactions; radioactivity and nuclear energy. A minimum of 12 laboratory assignments must be completed.
Physics courses: 1. The Physics of Motion This laboratory course includes an in-depth study of motion, including Newton’s laws of motion (inertia, force and acceleration, action and reaction); momentum; energy and circular motion. A minimum of 12 laboratory assignments must be completed. 2. The Physics of Energy This laboratory course investigates Sound and Light with focus on vibrations and waves; sound; light; color; reflection and refraction; lenses; diffraction and interference. We then investigate Electricity and Magnetism with a focus on electrostatics; electric fields and potential; electric current; electric circuits; magnetism and electromagnetic induction. A minimum of 12 laboratory assignments must be completed.
THE LIFE SCIENCES By combining the biology courses of the core curriculum with the various studies in our “Naturalist in Training Program”, TLC is able to offer a wide range of experiences that reveal the wonders of the living world through laboratory and field studies.
Biology courses: 1.The Nature of Life: Characteristics, Cells, Genetics and Evolution This course introduces students to the charactistics of living things; the chemical basis of life; the structural units of life; the functions of the cell; the cell and its environment; cell growth and reproduction; principles and mechanisms of heredity; the diversity of life; the theory of evolution; mechanics of evolution; genetics and evolution and the classification of living things. This course will include laboratory experiments and field observation. 2.The Earth’s Catalogue of Living Things This course serves as an introduction to the amazing array and diversity of living organisms on Earth and how Science has categorized them. We survey the realm of Microbiology and viruses, bacteria, infectious diseases, heterotrophic and autotrophic protists, and the fungi; the structure and function of multicellular plants; invertebrates and the world of vertebrates. We conclude with an examination of the patterns of behavior of living things. This course will include laboratory experiments and field observation.
THE EARTH SCIENCES Geology: The Dynamic Earth This survey course examines the physical and ever-changing aspects of our home planet, the forces that shape it and the consequences of those changes. We explore the inner structure of the Earth; plate tectonics; volcanoes and earthquakes; mountain building; deserts and wind action; glaciers and glaciation; mass wasting, weathering and erosion; weathering and soils; geologic structures; atoms, elements and minerals; sedimentary, metamorphic, igneous rocks and the rock cycle.
FOREIGN LANGUAGE (8 credits) High school language traditionally carries one credit for each year, I, II and III. TLC expects 2 credits to be earned each year. Spanish will be taught throughout the school, as befits the second language of the country. French and Latin will also be offered as extras - other languages will require individual projects. Traditionally, credits have been linked to satisfactory completion of textbooks, but we are planning to devise our own tests with elements of spoken and written content strongly aimed at cross-cultural understanding.
VOLUNTARY COMMUNITY SERVICE (4 credits) Voluntary service is required of all TLC graduates. The school encourages the productive involvement of its students in their communities. While there will be some opportunity for service projects in the normal run of TLC activities, most students will fulfil their obligations with individual projects, especially Period Seven projects. Voluntary service can also be credited for service done by students in other settings, including places abroad. We regard community service as an important component of the empowerment and socialization of young people. Individual and group projects should contain the all-important planning phase, where students can thrash out the moral and cultural issues that are often involved in the process of helping others: we shall be less interested in “of the shelf” activity, or work for an existing organization, unless the student has a real say in the whole process. The final report and reflection will be an essential step in securing credit.
HEALTH AND HEALTH SCIENCE(2 credits) TLC organizes First Aid and CPR training and refresher courses for its students each year. There is also an abiding interest in diet and nutrition throughout the school, and a number of science classes and projects have been concerned with this subject. Guest speakers and medics have also given courses in sex education. These disparate elements will be integrated into a regular unit each year. (See also Physical Education below.)
PHYSICAL EDUCATION (4 credits) A minimum of four credits in sports and/or outdoors activities will be required for graduation from TLC, taken together with the Health credits, to develop the student’s understanding of personal health and fitness. While TLC does organize activities such as recreational soccer, hiking and cross-country skiing, students are encouraged to take advantage of the great range of local opportunities in outdoor activity and individual and team sports in local schools and clubs. Family activity is also valid, if it is properly recorded and verified. There is equally ample scope for students who are uninterested in organized sports, as well as for those who are passionately involved.
COMPUTER AND RESEARCH SKILLS (2 credits) A high level of computer and keyboard skills is essential for our students: study skills also involve the ability to deal with a huge and bewildering volume of data and material. Each year, all students will be able to take a test to ascertain the degree of competency in the field. Failure to complete the test satisfactorily will necessitate the student taking a remedial class in this essential area of literacy.
UNITED STATES AND NEW ENGLAND HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY(4 credits) Each year there will be a class on a chronological segment of US History, from the late colonial period to the present. There will also be a tested unit on the political and physical geography of the US. Other credits may be awarded for individual projects, which may include the fruits of travel within the country, and which may be directed at a historical or geographical topic, or a combination of the two. The US history will also involve study of the Constitution, the political, administrative and judicial systems and processes of the both the US and the State of New Hampshire. New Hampshire and New England history will be addressed primarily in the context of the history of the whole country. Each student will also be required to write a paper on a New Hampshire person or subject, based on individual research of local sources. Part of the US history credit will stem from the Current Events and Contemporary History work, and it will also feature in the World History of the last 200 years.
WORLD HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY (5 Credits) The TLC study of World History is tied to a six-year cycle, with topics as follows: 1. Early people to 500 BCE 2. 500 BCE to 500 CE 3. 500 - 1500 CE 4. 1500- 1750 CE 5. 1750- 1914 CE 6. The Twentieth Century
In addition, each year there will be a particular study of one major country or area of the world - for example, India, China, the Islamic World. World Geography connects with World History and Science. Earth Science and Cartography are integral to TLC courses in these subjects. Students should acquire a good working knowledge of maps and map-making. More advanced students may tackle the “Learning the World by Heart” curriculum, where they become able to draw parts or all of the world from memory. Concepts of economic geography also underpin much of the History and Current Events we study at local, national and international levels.
CURRENT EVENTS AND CURRENT WORLD KNOWLEDGE (8 credits) Looking out at the wider world with an informed eye is a goal of TLC for all its students. Weekly Current Events circles have been a long-standing tradition, with a wide variety of follow-up work, often in groups. Understanding the world today is a key area of study for us; it will now be completely connected with student participation in the TLC website and related projects. The TLC website will increasingly be run by the student body, with high-school age students taking on the major responsibilities for such components as the newspaper and commentary blog. There will also be opportunities for students in the fields such as art, design, music and creative writing and poetry. Older students will serve on editorial committees as well as taking on specific jobs within the organization.
DRAMA (6 credits) Drama has long been a central activity at TLC, and is at least a full-credit subject each year. It may include music, the visual arts both two and three dimensional, graphic design, dance and many other potential media. Each student is encouraged to experiment and follow their own particular bent or passion: many of these activities will take place outside the physical environment and schedule of the school, but there will be opportunities and short courses arranged from time to time. Within ordinary school time, TLC usually stages two productions each year, to which significant time is dedicated during two of the six periods of classes. There are also a number of school visits to live theatre and other performing arts each year, from which credited work is assigned.
“ENGLISH”, WITH SUBDIVISIONS: ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND WRITING SKILLS (4 credits) CREATIVE WRITING (4 credits) POETRY (4 credits) APPRECIATION OF LITERARY WORKS (4 credits) The subdivisions of the traditional subject “English” have existed at TLC for a long time - and one whole day a week has usually been devoted to Poetry, Literature and Creative Writing. We shall continue with this balance of classes. The fundamentals of English and writing skills will be addressed via weekly essays, with individually-designed spelling and grammar courses and language exercises. The history of the English language will also be explored. The different kinds of formal and informal writing of fact and opinion will be practiced. Poetry involves selecting poems and reading aloud and reciting them in circle, and writing poetry to assigned subjects each week. In Creative Writing students are given writing exercises and also encouraged to write both short and long stories, and to respond to and learn some of the skills of editing. Reading , discussing and analyzing fiction, especially novels, is a core activity at TLC. We aim to embrace classical and contemporary writers, to encourage reading for pleasure and profit, and to help our students realize the importance and potential of storytelling and the creations of the imagination.
OTHER EXPRESSIVE AND PRACTICAL ARTS (6 CREDITS) There is much opportunity for creative art work in connection with other subjects and projects in the curriculum. Occasionally, extra classes in skills such as drawing or pottery are arranged for TLC groups. Many of the possibilities for expressive and practical arts will be developed for the individual. Projects undertaken outside school will be the norm rather than the exception. Similarly, there are many places for music in our work, but many students learn instruments and are members of ensembles outside TLC. All these avenues of expression are open and encouraged for our students. THE “SCHOOL TO COLLEGE” PROGRAM For many years, the founders of TLC have maintained that a properly educated independent student today should be at 16, yesterday’s 18. The last two years of conventional high school should therefore be much more similar to college than the completion of school. How colleges should adapt to these changing circumstances is a subject outside the scope of this paper. At TLC the degree of autonomy and responsibility accorded our students in their last two years should prepare them well for college. By 15 or 16, many young people hanker for change. If they are attending larger educational institutions, they often yearn for personalized programs with greater independence and autonomy in their learning. We seek to meet these needs in our “School to College” program. (See attached specific information). REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTRY TO THE SCHOOL TO COLLEGE PROGRAM A school based on multi-age classes from ages 9-16 does not recognize the concept of Junior High, nor of entry to High School at Ninth Grade. The TLC vision and academic methodology are different from such current practice. TLC students will be eligible for entry to the “School to College” program as they are judged to have sufficient motivation and maturity, and when they have already fulfilled some high school credit requirements. Students transferring from other schools will have their transcripts assessed according to these credit requirements. Gaps in transcripts will need to be filled as part of their proceeding to graduation from TLC. (It should be noted that the range and number of credits required by TLC differ from those of other schools. Students wishing to graduate from another institution they are attending part-time may take their TLC credits with them into their own arena.) For five to nine year-olds This new program provides us with the opportunity to renew our soil and to provide both the shelter and the fertile ground for children at this vital, transitional time in their lives, as they take their first, exploratory steps from home and family to a broader community and a wider world. (See attached literature). |
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