Complementary Approaches to Helping Every Student Succeed
There are many paths to personalized, whole-child, and competency-based learning. In this project, we explored two innovative approaches to transformative learning: community schools and competency-based education. Though these approaches differ in their design principles and frameworks, they share a common focus on supporting every single student, and a willingness to rethink how school is designed to make that happen.
Through this project, we visited four schools across the United States, each of which is enacting the principles of community schools and competency-based education in their local context in transformative ways.
Learn About These Transformative Learning Communities
Learn About Our Guiding Frameworks
Community Schools
Competency-Based Education
An approach to education that transforms a school into a place where educators, local community members, families, and students work together to strengthen conditions for student learning and healthy development.
An approach to education that supports every student in developing essential knowledge, skills, and dispositions through policies, pedagogy, structures, and culture.
- Integrated systems of support
- Expanded and enriched learning opportunities
- Powerful student and family engagement
- Collaborative leadership and shared power and voice
- Rigorous, community-connected classroom instruction
- A culture of belonging, safety, and care
- Essential competencies
- Student agency
- Timely, differentiated support
- Personalized pathways
- Responsive pacing
- Meaningful assessment
- Equity