Expeditionary Learning Schools

Expeditionary learning schools
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Expeditionary Learning Schools are models of comprehensive school reform based on the educational
ideas of German educator Kurt Hahn, the founder of Outward Bound. There are more than 150
Expeditionary Learning Schools in 30 US states and the District of Columbia. They are exemplified
by project-based learning expeditions, where students engage in interdisciplinary, in-depth study of
compelling topics, in groups and in their community, with assessment coming through cumulative products,
public presentations, and portfolios. According to the ELS Web site students undertake tasks requiring
perseverance, fitness, craftsmanship, imagination, self-discipline, and significant achievement.[1][2][3]
Contents
 1Design principles
 2Expeditionary Learning Schools Outward Bound
 3History
 4Results
 5See also
 6Notes
 7References
Design principles[edit]
According to the ELS Web site the following design principles serve as a moral and cultural foundation for
each Expeditionary Learning School. They express the core values and educational philosophy of
Expeditionary Learning.[1]
The Primacy of Self-Discovery states that learning happens best with emotion, challenge and the requisite
support. People discover their abilities, values, passions, and responsibilities in situations that offer
adventure and the unexpected. The primary task of the teacher is to help students overcome their fears and
discover they can do more than they thought they could.
The Having of Wonderful Ideas places emphasis on fostering curiosity about the world by creating learning
situations that provide something important to think about, time to experiment, and time to make sense of
what is observed.
The Responsibility for Learning argues that learning is both a personal process of discovery and a social
activity. Therefore, every aspect of an Expeditionary Learning school encourages both children and adults to
become increasingly responsible for directing their own personal and collective learning.
Empathy and Caring believes that learning is fostered best in communities where students' and teachers'
ideas are respected and where there is mutual trust. Older students often mentor younger ones, and
students feel physically and emotionally safe.
Success and Failure states the fact that all students need to be successful if they are to build the
confidence and capacity to take risks and meet increasingly difficult challenges. But it is also important for
students to learn from their failures, to persevere when things are hard, and to learn to turn disabilities into
opportunities.
Collaboration and Competition positions Expeditionary Learning schools as integrating individual
development and group development, so that the value of friendship, trust, and group action is clear.
Students are encouraged to compete not against each other, but with their own personal best and with
rigorous standards of excellence.
Diversity and Inclusion believes that both diversity and inclusion increase the richness of ideas, creative
power, problem-solving ability, and respect for others. Schools and learning groups are heterogeneous.
The Natural World helps create a direct and respectful relationship with the natural world, which refreshes
the human spirit and teaches the important ideas of recurring cycles and cause and effect. Students learn to
become stewards of the earth and of future generations.
Solitude and Reflection argues that students and teachers need time alone to explore their own thoughts,
make their own connections, and create their own ideas. They also need time to exchange their reflections
with other students and with adults.
Service and Compassion places emphasis on strengthening students and teachers through acts of
consequential service to others. One of an Expeditionary Learning school's primary functions is to prepare
students with the attitudes and skills to learn from and be of service.[4]
Expeditionary Learning Schools Outward Bound[edit]

The organization Expeditionary Learning is the primary organization working with schools to design and
implement their programs. EL provides schools with curricular and instructional frameworks, along with
strategies to change the culture of school communities. EL develops new schools and helps existing ones
transition, entering into multi-year contracts with schools and school districts.[5]
History[edit]
In 1992, Outward Bound’s Expeditionary Learning proposal was one of 11 selected for funding from almost
800 solicited by the New American Schools Development Corporation (NASDC) for comprehensive school
reform (citation: ELS website). ELS was launched in 1993 with 10 demonstration schools in five US
cities: New York City; Boston; Portland, ME; Denver; and Dubuque, IA.[6]
Results[edit]
The New York Times wrote positively about Expeditionary Learning Schools, and The Rand Corporation,
The American Institutes for Research, The National Staff Development Council, and The Center for
Research on the Education of Students Placed At Risk (CRESPAR) have all evaluated ELS models and
practices, and cite positive outcomes such as higher student achievement and participation, and a more
positive and productive school culture.[7] The 2002 CRESPAR analysis of 29 comprehensive school reform
models awarded ELS the highest rating given to any model created in the previous ten years.[8] In February
2009, President Barack Obama visited Capital City Public Charter School, an Expeditionary Learning School
in Washington, DC, and said the school "is an example of how all our schools should be."[9]
See also[edit]
 The Kurt Hahn Expeditionary Learning School
 Outward Bound USA
Notes[edit]
1. ^ Jump up to:a b ELS website, archived 5 April 2010
2. ^ Kearns, David T
3. ^ Berends, Mark (2002)
4. ^ Expeditionary Learning - Design Principles
5. ^ Murphy, Josheph F. and Amanda Datnow (2002)
6. ^ ELS Website
7. ^ The Kauffman Foundation Website
8. ^ Borman, Geoffrey, et al.
9. ^ Capital City PCS Website
References[edit]
 Berends, Mark (2002), Facing the Challenges of Whole School Reform: New American Schools After a
Decade. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation.
 Bodilly, Susan (1998), Lessons From New American Schools' Scale-Up Phase: Prospects for Bringing
Designs to Multiple Schools. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation.
 Borman, Geoffrey D., Gina M. Hewes, Laura T. Overman, Shelly Brown (2002), Comprehensive School
Reform and Student Achievement: A Meta-Analysis. Center for Research on the Education of Students
Placed At Risk, Report # 59.
 Capital City Public Charter School
 Expeditionary Learning - Design Principles
 Expeditionary Learning Schools Outward Bound
 Herszenhorn, David M., March 20, 2006. "A New York School That Teaches Teamwork by Camping".
The New York Times.
 The Kauffman Foundation
 Kearns, David T, "Toward a New Generation of American Schools". The Phi Delta Kappan, Vol. 74, No.
10 (Jun., 1993), pp. 773–776.
 Mosle, Sara, "A City School Experiment that Actually Works". The New York Times, May 28, 1995
 Murphy, Joseph F., and Amanda Datnow (2002), Leadership Lessons from Comprehensive School
Reform. Corwin Press.

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