A World-Class Education
PAID ADVERTORIAL
Model Laboratory School at Eastern Kentucky University is the only K-12 public laboratory school in the Commonwealth.
Students at Model Laboratory School are creating fi lms that tell
imaginative stories. Th ey’re coding HTML, interactive games, and
computer applications. Th ey’re writing, recording, and producing
their own podcasts. Th ey’re analyzing simulations of global economic
markets. Th ey’re comparing perspectives, running their own
businesses, and examining evidence-based arguments.
In other words, students aren’t just reading from textbooks and
answering worksheets: they’re actively engaging in a world-class
education.
So, what makes up a world-class education?
To Superintendent John Williamson, it’s all about teaching transfer-
rable skills through practice, feedback, and more practice. He stated,
“Our entire K-12 curriculum focuses on critical, creative, and
computational thinking so that students thrive in their colleges and
careers. We’re teaching the skills students need to be innovators,
informed citizens, expert communicators, and entrepreneurs.”
By immersing students in hands-on activities and providing them
with feedback and a chance to refl ect— known as experiential
learning— students become the leaders of their own education.
“No matter what grade students are in, we ask kids to solve problems
that are real to them. When students take ownership of their own
learning, they see actual value in what they’ve done,” explained
fourth grade teacher Teresa Viohl. Learning becomes an active and
constructive process as opposed to busy work and memorization.
Model’s innovative practice of experiential education has its roots in
an educational movement called constructivism, led by John Dewey,
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Whether they’re writing, creating, analyzing, or
designing, students are asked to think critically
and creatively across disciplines.