The main reason people bring their children to The Governor French Academy is that they believe they will receive teaching that is effective. The Academy performs this service under the following philosophical principles.

INDIVIDUALIZATION. Each student is an individual whose particular needs must be addressed with an understanding of the student’s strengths and weaknesses.

COMMON GOALS. There are definable educational goals that can be established for the purpose of preparing Academy students for college. These goals lie within the disciplines of English, Mathematics, Science, Foreign Language, and Social Studies.

DIAGNOSIS. Teachers are expected to perform the dual processes of diagnosis and prescription as they plan lessons aimed at achieving their goals for each student. Different students require different methods as the students approach the Academy’s general goal of college preparation.

So how do teachers become most effective? The Academy espouses the following ten strategies:

1. The entire school is to be thought of as a single classroom. The Academy’s physical arrangement should be as open as its methods.

2. The physical arrangement of the Academy and its philosophy will require a greater degree of cooperation than one usually finds in schools.

3. All classes shall have aspects of team teaching.

4. The collegial nature of the teaching that is fundamental to the Academy’s success will require a different type of coordination than one usually finds in schools. The Academy’s administration will be more effective facilitating teacher actions than directing them. Direction should only be required in extraordinary circumstances.

5. Continuing effort shall be expected of all the Academy’s teachers in their efforts to diagnose what should be learned, what can be learned, and how a student learns most effectively.

6. The Academy believes that development should be a fundamental part of each child’s learning. Developmental factors need to be addressed in order to completely diagnose a student’s learning.

7. The Academy believes that most students learn in a progressive, interlocking chain that leads from basic, mechanical tasks to conceptual understanding. The motto of this belief shall be, “Skills first, concepts later”.

8. Teachers should function under the understanding that students learn by means of different styles and at different rates. This understanding is the foundation for each teacher’s method of instruction.

9. The Academy believes that a student’s self-esteem develops as the young person masters measurable skills. The Academy also believes that student motivation cannot be generated by teachers alone. Students who begin to achieve through the mastery of skills have an intrinsic reward that should motivate them.

10. The Academy cannot help every child. When Governor French cannot effectively educate a student, good practice dictates that the student should be referred to an organization that can reasonably be expected to help

Ten Guidelines for Academy Teaching

Academy teachers should:
° Assign work that is specially directed to the mastery of skills.
° Seek ways to teach those who are not learning.
° Reward real achievement, no matter how slight.
° Grade what students learn, not what they do not learn.
° Grade so that a balance is established between the delivery and the reception of education.

Academy teachers should not:
° Assign work that is not graded and returned.
° Test material that is not specifically given in class.
° Move on before necessary material is mastered.
° Grade students in a way that gives the least credit to the mastery or skills.
° Direct any verbal and written frustrations to what students are. Teachers should address what students do.