Curriculum

Curriculum at the Parker School integrates the academic disciplines through “Domains”—Arts and Humanities (AH),  Mathematics, Science, and Technology (MST); Spanish and Wellness (W). Students progress through three Divisions: I (roughly seventh and eighth grades), II (roughly ninth and tenth grades), III (roughly eleventh and twelfth grades). Class groups include a heterogeneous mix of 15 to 30 students whose ages span several years, and who work with one or two faculty members toward mastery of common standards. Each year’s coursework revolves around a school-wide “Essential Question,” as well as on specific concepts and content in the academic Domains, which reflect the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks.

The Parker School Curriculum integrates the academic disciplines through interdisciplinary "Domains":

• Arts and Humanities
• Math, Science and Technology
• Spanish
• Wellness

Each year’s coursework revolves around a school-wide "Essential Question," such as:

        What is community? [1995–96]
        What is change? [1996–97]
        What is balance? [1997–98]
        Where are the patterns? [1998–99]
        What's the limit? [1999–2000]
        What really matters? [2000-2001]
        Where's the truth? [2001-2002]
        What are the possibilities? [2002-2003]
        What's next? [2003-2004]
        What is unique?  What is Universal? [2004-2005]

Senior Projects

Division III students at Parker will culminate their studies with a capstone Senior Project, a topic or project they choose to explore independently with the guidance of an outside mentor, sometimes in a workplace internship. Presented to a public audience as part of a student’s Graduation Exhibition, the Senior Project makes an intellectual and personal bridge between high school and the world beyond.

Service to the Community

Students in all Parker Divisions serve on vitally important school operations committees (including an elected Community Congress and a student Justice Committee) and live by a Parker School Constitution which the student body wrote and approved. They offer their services to the school community in many other ways, from peer tutoring to hosting outside visitors to maintaining the school’s computer systems. In addition, advisory groups and elective classes go into the surrounding communities to work with nursing homes, shelters, and other service organizations. 

All Division III students will commit two hours per week to in-school service.  In addition, all adults involved in daily functioning in the Parker school will serve as mentors to one or two Division III students. Some students may work with the Technology Coordinator on computer maintenance, others may work with Division I teachers as classroom aides/tutors, or as school ambassadors in the Regional Teachers Center.

Advisory

The advisory program exists to enable advisors and students to know each other well so that students make the most of their experiences as members of the Parker community. The advisor to advisee ratio is 1:12 and students are placed in a new advisory each year in order to support the program's philosophy and purpose.

Assessment

Parker's Criteria for Excellence

Students are assessed on content and skills using standards drawn from state and national frameworks. Parker School has rigorous performance standards in:

Reading
Writing
Listening
Oral Presentation
Research
Artistic Expression
Scientific Investigation
Mathematical Problem-Solving  and Communication
Systems Thinking
Technology
Wellness
Spanish

Since Divisions are two-year curricular cycles, it takes most students two years to meet each Division’s standards. High school–level academic work starts when a student enters Division II. Division III includes advanced and independent studies. To see what student work looks like when it meets each Division's standards, we publish Exemplars of student work in academic areas.

Parker School Habits of  Learning

These are the habits that the Parker community expects its students to develop and exhibit in their academic work and in daily life.

• Inquiry
  In both school work and daily life, you show intellectual curiosity and wonder about the world. You ask thoughtful questions, and seek out their answers.
• Expression
  In both school life and daily life, you communicate honestly what you know or want to know, and what you believe or feel.
• Critical Thinking
  In both school life and daily life, you analyze, synthesize, and draw conclusions from information. You generate solutions to problems using both creative and rational thought. You keep an open mind and appreciate different points of view. You seek out excellence.
• Collaboration
  In both school life and daily life, you contribute to the overall effort of a group. You work well with diverse individuals and in a variety of situations, using effective communication skills (consulting, listening, speaking).
• Organization
  In both school life and daily life, you sift through ideas and data, arranging them wisely and making sense of them. You come to school prepared with what you will need. You set reasonable goals, then plan and manage your time so as to meet them. You persevere in the face of obstacles.
• Attentiveness
  In both school life and daily life, you focus on the task at hand, observing and taking in the information you need to do it well.
• Involvement
  Both in school and in the larger community, you take the initiative to participate in the process of learning. You contribute your questions, ideas, and actions in group discussions, activities, and projects.

• Reflection
  In both school life and daily life, you review and think about your actions and the work you produce, with the purpose of learning more about yourself and the work.

Promotion and Graduation by Portfolio

Student work is assessed at Parker via portfolios, using school-wide standards and rubrics. To advance through its six-year program of studies, students are required to meet the school’s standards for Divisions I, II, and III; each may do so at the rate appropriate for his or her individual development. Students demonstrate mastery of curricular standards in each Division through "Gateway Exhibitions" in which they present and defend their academic portfolios. The final Gateway is graduation, for which students present special Graduation Portfolios in several areas.

In Year-End Assessments, teachers evaluate student progress in narrative form, and assess their work (as "Just Beginning," Approaches," or "Meets") relative to the curricular standards for their Division. The Parker transcript shows these assessments as well as the dates on which the student advanced from Division to Division in each area. A narrative evaluation by faculty, summarizing the student’s high school career and academic potential, accompanies the Parker transcript, as does the student’s reflective self-summary.

Parker doesn’t use numbers, rank, or traditional A–F grades. Narrative assessments at mid-year and year’s end contain the student’s academic evaluations. Parker’s transcript form simply documents the student’s progress through our academic program, using the following code:

JB = Student is Just Beginning to work toward a Division’s standard
A = Student’s work Approaches the standard for a particular Division
M = Student’s work Meets the standard for a particular Division

Because motivation and hard work predict success in college and later life, the transcript also indicates student's progress and effort.

Performance on Outside Measures

The Parker School does not rank its students, nor does it award letter grades, honors or prizes. However, Parker students do take the required Massachusetts state assessments (MCAS) at grades 8 and 10, as well as Stanford 9 achievement tests and the usual array of college entrance examinations such as the Scholastic Assessment Tests (SAT).

 

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