What Does Self Directed Learning Mean?
Philosophy speak:
STELLER RUNS ON THE EXCITEMENT AND ENERGY OF THOSE WHO HAVE COMMITTED THEMSELVES TO SELF DIRECTED LEARNING.
This sounds marvelous doesn’t it? But what does it mean? Unfortunately, there isn’t one clear-cut answer to this question. At Steller, “self-directed learning” has several meanings. In recent years, Self-Directed Learning has come to mean the SDL classes within the schedule, which have their very own section in this book. However, every aspect of Steller life is centered around self-directed learning.
Students…
Choose which direction their education will take. For example, if you are interested in science, you can read books and write papers about science for language arts credit, study how technology has affected people’s lives for social studies credit, paint abstract pictures of cell mitosis for elective credit, and go on nature hikes for PE.
Are expected to organize themselves. Teachers will not always be looking over your shoulder to make sure you get your work done. You will need to figure out on your own how much time you will need to complete your research paper or study for that big test. Don’t worry, the teachers aren’t going to abandon you, but it will usually be up to you to go to them when you need some extra help.
Weigh the consequences of the actions. We have no bells, and attendance isn’t taken in many classes. It will be up to you to get to class on time, and decide whether you want to go to class at all. Of course, there are consequences for these decisions. You will miss work and activities in class which will affect how you do in the rest of the course, and penalties can occur. If you consistently make bad decisions, you might end up on Probation and eventually be asked to consider leaving for another school more suited to you. You will be expected to weigh the pros and cons on your own.
< - Previous | Table of Contents | Next - >
