Theory

Teachers study and implement Jean Piaget’s constructivist theory in order to provide an appropriate learning environment, understand the nature of knowledge, teaching, and learning, as well as to develop a relevant and challenging curriculum.

Our shared knowledge about teaching and learning shapes our program, our roles as educators, and the environment in which learning happens. The beliefs and practices of The New City School educators are founded in current research and educational theory, and they compliment our own experiences as parents, teachers, and learners. They include:

Learning is mental action.
Knowledge is a consequence of mental action.
Learning comes from resolving challenging issues and solving relevant problems.
People do not and cannot absorb knowledge…learners construct reality (truth) as they question and act on the environment in order to make sense of it.
Learners thrive in an environment where teachers respect them and take them seriously; in order to earn the trust of students and families, teachers must understand their students’ needs and interests.
People are competent learners. Throughout life, people (babies, children, youth, adults) know how to learn and continue to do so, even without “instruction” and often in spite of it.
We use our senses, experiences, and logic to build physical, social, and logico-mathematical knowledge. These are the three types of knowledge, according to researcher and biologist Jean Piaget.
Learners are not “blank slates” for teachers to “write on.” Children have knowledge, beliefs, life experiences, and culture that they bring with them to school and that they call on as they earn.
Intellectual growth is not linear; it often occurs as a sudden or dramatic leap of understanding, causing the learner to reexamine what s/he believes.
Learning is social; people teach and learn from one another and learners develop confidence as they play a variety of roles, from novice to expert, in the contexts of classroom and living.
Young children learn through play; they need time to grow through pretending, exploring, practicing, and inventing. The learning environment should be free of stress in order for the learner to thrive.
Learning cannot be forced, but it can be reinforced.
Knowledge is in the individual mind; it does not exist separately from or outside of people’s thinking, and it neither begins nor ends in the school. For more information about learning theory, please visit the Wikipedia entry on constructivism.