The educational program of Trillium Charter School is based upon constructivist, experiential, and authentic philosophies of learning. These educational philosophies in turn align with our mission statement and its commitments to learners as individuals, to families and communities, and to a sustainable relationship with the Earth.

Constructivism

Constructivism as a theory of learning focuses on each learner as a unique individual and acknowledges that the personal experiences and situation of each learner will affect his or her learning. This variation is embraced as positive. Instructors are seen as facilitators or guides in the learning process. Learning is active and social, and learning experiences are designed so that students can learn on their own, from their peers, and from other members of the community as well as their teachers.
Just as each learner is shaped by his or her background and experiences, learning needs to occur in a specific context. Just as the world presents itself in multidisciplinary ways, learning should cross disciplines. Skilled teachers present their learners with real-life tasks that capture their intrinsic motivation, require them to make connections, and allow them just enough challenge to both facilitate success and stretch their capabilities.

Experiential Learning

Experiential learning describes learning in which the learner is actively involved in a learning experience. The experience must require the learner to use decision-making, analytical, and other problem-solving skills to participate in the experience. Finally, the learner must reflect on their own processes and growth in the course of the learning experience.
Experiential learning focuses on addressing the intellectual curiosities of a learner or group of learners. It also stresses the importance of a positive learning experience and includes project-based learning, service learning, discovery learning, and outdoor education.

Authentic Education

Authentic educators espouse the idea that learners should become “cognitive apprentices” in the fields that they study. In order to learn to about the weather, we should learn to use meteorological tools. In learning math, we should learn to think like mathematicians. A music class should teach us how make music, and in reading we learn to think about texts the way that good readers do.
Implied in authentic learning are important constructivist and experiential concepts: that learning should be centered around real tasks that students can experience; that learning should be guided with carefully gauged amounts of teacher support; that students should work together in their explorations, and that students have access to the necessary resources to pursue meaningful problems and solutions.

Connections to our Mission:

Trillium Charter School’s Mission Statement reads: Our work at the Trillium Charter School is guided by three commitments: to each learner as an individual, as a member of families and communities, and to the Earth. Our mission and our educational approaches are deeply entwined.
Our commitment to respecting each learner as an individual and approaching each learner’s education with this respect is embodied in the way we teach. While we always have the mastery of New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards (NJCCCS) as our goal, we tailor the ways in which we work toward these goals according to individual interests, preferences, styles, and levels.
Our educational program also acknowledges, encourages, and utilizes the families and communities to which we as individuals and a school belong. We invite family and community members to teach us and to learn beside us. We contextualize our learning in real life situations that exist in our families and communities, and hope to offer solutions to the challenges we face. We value our diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences for the learning opportunities they provide.
We also fulfill our commitment to the Earth in part through our educational program. Much of our project-based learning will focus on environmental issues in our school and in our communities. To shift the way we use natural resources is such an important task for this generation of learners, and we are happy to focus on this authentic challenge in the course of our studies. 

Note: This is the opening text to Section 3 (Educational Program) of the implementation plan in the application for the Trillium Charter School submitted to the New Jersey Department of Education in March 2009.