Hannah Emmanuele
Science Leadership Academy is often cited as one of the “most amazing schools in the world” where learning is deeply ingrained in the school’s culture. The school has received world-wide recognition for reinventing the traditional school model and creating a rigorous, innovative learning environment.
How do we learn? What can we create? What does it mean to lead?
These three essential questions form the basis of instruction at the Science Leadership Academy (SLA), a Philadelphia high school opened in September 2006. SLA is built on the notion that inquiry is the very first step in the process of learning. Developed in partnership with The Franklin Institute and its commitment to inquiry-based science, SLA provides a rigorous, college-preparatory curriculum with a focus on science, technology, mathematics and entrepreneurship. Students at SLA learn in a project-based environment where the core values of inquiry, research, collaboration, presentation and reflection are emphasized in all classes.
The school’s main focus is on hands-on science learning and creating new knowledge. Learning is not measured through tests and grades but rather by how effectively students develop and present their work to authentic audiences. Each student does work that matters and is community connected in a variety of settings. Visitors often cite the unusual and infectious enthusiasm SLA students have for school and the work they do. “Learning here is not just something that happens from 8:30am to 3:00pm, but a continuous process that expands beyond the four walls of the classroom into every facet of our lives.”
Considering the learning culture, the SLA playbook is simple: respect yourself, respect the community, and respect the school as a place of learning. Everything else flows from there and the students are the drivers. No handbook of rules handed down from administrators, no signed contracts, no list of behavior consequences.
SLA students built a solar distillation system for a hospital in Sierra Leone. The school has two patents pending for a flow process bio-diesel generator.
SLA opened a second high school this fall, SLA-Beeber, and plans are underway to open a Middle School next year.
