Passionate, expert teachers who believe that with the right support and encouragement, any student can excel
Our Teaching Philosophies
The spark of a masterful teacher who loves their material is a key driver in student success. We believe academic degrees or experience in disciplines taught, whether calculus or beginning Mandarin, and passion for that subject are the most important tools to inspiring deep content understanding in students. Our selective hiring process screens for candidates who are committed to sharing their expertise and helping students become the best versions of themselves. All final candidates are invited to conduct a Teacher Demo, where they are given the opportunity to teach a lesson, challenge students, and show their subject expertise, while also demonstrating their ability to communicate high-level subject matter to young students. Our students take these sessions seriously; they know their feedback weighs heavily in our hiring decisions.
Learning at the highest international levels is hard work. Our teachers strive to make it rewarding.
Our students grow to delight in working hard and tackling challenges head-on; they know their teachers and peers are championing them along the way. Our world-acclaimed academic program asks a lot of our students and our teachers’ work hard to help them understand success in school isn’t about being the best, but giving your best and discovering the joy that the learning process offers. It turns out, when students love to learn, they excel. BASIS Independent Schools students are both among the highest achieving in the world and among the most satisfied with their teachers. The 2021–22 OECD Test for Schools (Based on PISA) places BASIS Independent students among the highest in the world for knowledge and critical thinking in reading, mathematics, and science.
Our teachers try new techniques and collaborate toward the best outcome for their students. Both new and seasoned BASIS Independent Schools teachers have professional training that takes place throughout the school year via a peer-mentoring program and collaboration with Subject Advisors (SADs), other experienced teachers, and on-site managers. SADs are typically veteran faculty who share pedagogical best practices and are the developers and gatekeepers to their discipline’s core curriculum. SADs partner with teachers to brainstorm ways to optimize their approach and teaching techniques. As collaborators, they inspire teachers to present material to students in ways that are challenging, fun, and meet learning objectives.
The balance between autonomy in the classroom and shared accountability is what maintains academic quality control across all BASIS Independent Schools. Subjects taught and standards for the scope and sequence of instruction in that subject are defined centrally, but pedagogic autonomy is given to teachers to develop innovative ways to meet (and exceed) these standards. We don’t hand a teacher a fully written curriculum for a course, but rather freedom and guidance in line with these shared classroom principles:
- With hard work, dedication, and the support of parents and teachers, students can achieve more than what is typically expected of them.
- Instructional time is precious. Every minute of every class should be filled.
- Mastering the basics is the precondition for going beyond them.
- Homework, as long as it is an extension of what is being learned in the classroom, is valuable. Practice leads to mastery.
- Summative tests that assess content mastery and learning skills (BASIS Independent Schools Comprehensive Exams and the College Board Advanced Placement Exams, for example) are foundational for learning.
- The evaluation of teacher performance is based both on classroom instruction and on student learning results on assessments.
Teaching Roles
Present in all grades 1 and above, Subject Expert Teachers (SETs) are the shepherds of academic content and are focused on high-level mastery. SETs use their passion for their subjects to inspire students while teaching them at a higher level than what is expected of students of a particular age. SETs almost always hold advanced degrees in or have a great deal of experience in their discipline.
Present in most grades 1–4 classrooms, Learning Expert Teachers (LETs) are masters of the learning process and of social-emotional growth in students. They accompany their students all day, from class to class, and ensure that the SETs are reaching each and every child in the class. LETs also play a lead role in literacy and Connections classes. The partnership of one LET and SET in each classroom and for each subject forms the Symbiotic Classroom of our primary program.
Unlike the Primary, Middle, and High School Programs, the Early Learning Program is primarily self-enclosed. Students don’t move classrooms for each subject and remain engaged in their vibrant, specialized classrooms throughout the school day. ELTs lead our kindergarten and younger classrooms and are responsible for delivering most of the content to students by bringing their own pedagogical expertise to the classroom, with the consistent support of an Early Learning Teaching Fellow.
The key differentiator of Early Learning Teaching Fellows from Teaching Fellows is demonstrated expertise and experience in early childhood education. They, too, are “teachers in training” and offer in-classroom support to Early Learning Teachers.
These invaluable educators support SETs as “teachers in training” under the mentorship of a more experienced teacher. They contribute in the effort to build and maintain a strong, positive, achievement-oriented school culture, and they assist with any issues relating to the well-being of students. Our Teaching Fellows have the same type of contagious passion and intellect as our SETs and are a significant part of our classroom structure.