What is Opening Minds?
Our signature classes go beyond the curriculum and offer a space to think deeply and critically on highly intellectual pursuits without the fear of grades. They are a way to expand students’ intellectual horizons and develop their appetite for learning.
- The main goal is to make sure that students learn to ask questions, notjust find answers. They may not be able to solve something as the subject should be difficult for them: this is a way to start understanding how to overcome difficulties and learn to solve problems collectively and individually.
- Students must lead the way and be actively involved. It's all about discovering and cultivating the joy of learning.
- Opening Minds are a way to nurture the variety of interests and talents of our students and to build their confidence
- They are taught by our own teachers and constitute an important part of the mandatory curriculum.
- Students must sign up every semester for two different discovery classes per week, around 15 sessions per semester
- They are mandatory for all students from 6e to 3e. All levels are mixed together.
- Students' work in those classes does not incur formal grades. Comments and guidance are frequent
- Teachers are encouraged to teach something related to their subject at the highest possible level, equivalent to the first or second year of a university course level.
- Students’ interest will be apparent from the number of students who sign up. Classes only go if students sign up in sufficient numbers.
- The content must be difficult and the subject specific, even intriguing, in order to appeal to the students’ curiosity:
- This is a dream class for the teacher as well: a subject they feel passionate about, a small group of 15 students max, in a low-stress atmosphere (no marking, no grading).
Main educational goals of the Opening Minds classes
• Critical thinking
• Collaboration (in order to try and solve the problem together)
• Creativity (in the solution found)
• Understanding how we explore and learn what we don’t know.
