Why SEEQS?
Meaningful Learning Experiences
SEEQS students do real work with real-world impacts, driven by their own passions, and supported by invested, award-winning educators. They leave SEEQS with the knowledge, skills, and tools to make valuable contributions in whatever they choose to pursue next. Our whole school is designed to help develop 'whole' students!
How We Learn
At SEEQS, powerful core learning in math, science, social studies, English, and the arts combines with project-based experiences that allow students to apply what they have learned to real-world situations. This page explains each section of our innovative school model.
(Watch a 3-minute video explaining this model here.)
SEEQers will be stewards of planet Earth
and healthy, effective citizens of the world.
A strong school community forms the soil in which everything else can grow.
Deliberate community-building and community-maintenance create an intellectually safe environment and set the stage for collaborative co-learning. All students are part of a multi-aged advisory cohort that serves as a “home” community-within-a-community. We use the RULER approach for social-emotional learning, and the philosophy for children (p4c Hawaiʻi) approach to help students develop ability to think deeply and learn to use that ability in responsible, caring ways. We use restorative practices rather than punitive ones, and we strive to foster a school community where every individual understands their role in the health of the overall community and is invested in doing their part to contribute. Read more…
Related School Structures: Deliberate Community-Building, Multi-Age Advisory Cohorts
Rigorous academic content courses enable students to cultivate the knowledge and skills of the disciplines.
Empowered teachers, teaching to their passions, engage students in academic content courses that cultivate the knowledge and skills of the disciplines. 70-minute blocks allow for deep investigations, robust discussions, and diverse teaching and learning strategies. SEEQS students consistently demonstrate academic achievement on state-mandated standardized testing. However, SEEQS prioritizes real-world learning experiences, and accordingly, believes that an authentic demonstration of the mastery of skills and concepts is most compelling. Student-led conferences, public project exhibitions, and Portfolio Defenses all provide students with ample opportunities for this. Read more…
Related School Structures: Academic Content Courses, Multi-Age Classrooms, Student-Led Conferences, Portfolio Defense
Interdisciplinary project-based EQS courses empower students to apply their learning in real-world contexts.
All students participate in interdisciplinary project-based courses designed to help them deeply examine complex sustainability issues. These courses are co-taught by teachers with expertise in English, Science, Math, Social Studies, and Arts. They focus on interconnections between humans and the environment, engage community members as partners in learning, empower students to choose the focus of their projects, and motivate students through authentic project exhibitions. Read more…
Related School Structures: Essential Question of Sustainability (EQS) Courses, Community Partnerships, Public Project Exhibitions
Through it all, students develop proficiency in the SEEQS Sustainability Skills.
At SEEQS, one of our core values is Living Sustainably: helping ensure that the planet can continue to support life as we know it for humans and other living species. In order to help create and maintain a sustainable world, SEEQers are working to master the skills of Reasoning Analytically, Managing Effectively, Communicating Powerfully, Collaborating Productively, and Thinking Systemically. This is an important step toward becoming stewards of planet Earth and healthy, effective citizens of the world. Read more…
Related School Structures: The SEEQS Sustainability Skills
Rooted in Vision & Values
The SEEQS educational philosophy is based on decades of research on how people learn. We are guided by five core principles:
Real-world situations and real-world contexts enable real-world learning.
Learning occurs when learners take ownership of their learning.
Everyone is a teacher; everyone is a learner, all of the time.
A learning environment is composed of its community members, cultural values, and physical surroundings.
Improvement of the organization requires consciously collaborative participation by community members.
