Acton is both Self-Paced and Learner-Driven

Learning by doing is emphasized

We have Socratic Guides, not teachers

Older students venture into real-world Apprenticeships

We have strong processes that develop powerful personal growth

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Students progress in the learning design through the completion of badges each year. Badge completion is tracked on software called Journey Tracker, which allows parents to see the work their child has done. In addition, students use learning exhibitions, peer reviews, and goal monitoring. Older students also use portfolios to track their accomplishments, projects, and apprenticeship work.

Badges are learning criteria that are put forth for students to accomplish each year. Badges are connected to traditional subjects such as Mathematics, English Language Arts, Civilization, the Sciences, and the Arts along with non-traditional subjects such as Entrepreneurship, Leadership, and Self-Awareness and Growth. Badges are also created based on specific interests and efforts of individual students. Students achieve badges once they show completion of set criteria or rubric to a level of mastery or excellence. For more information on mastery-based learning, watch the video: Let’s Teach for Mastery by Sal Khan on our Deep Dive page.

Acton Amba is an American school accredited by the International Association of Learner Driven Schools (IALDS), recognized by the Texas Education Agency as a leading authority for private schooling.

William Butler Yeats said, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”

Since we are an American school, we are not affiliated with any Indian school board. We strongly value freedom in education with an emphasis on learner-driven processes, and real-world skills. Therefore, Acton Amba is not affiliated with any traditional education board in order to avoid the limitations that would be put on the learning process.

See the next question for students who choose to pursue further studies in India or other parts of the world post high school.

Acton Amba helps support students for any route they choose to pursue post-graduation.

Universities as well as the needs of the future workforce are changing rapidly.

Our Acton Amba students leave with a rich portfolio filled with a plethora of projects, meaningful academic work, mastery-based transcripts, and real-life experiences through apprenticeships. In addition, Acton Amba students are fully equipped in areas of leadership, team collaboration, communication, resilience, and self-reliance, all qualities that are in high demand in our current and changing world.

Those embarking on the college/university route will have the option of examination through the US College Board, the Indian National Institute of Open Schooling, or the Cambridge Private Candidate Program, depending on the student’s choices and goals. Our students will stand out from the typical college prep crowd and will be equipped to shine in the real world, whether they choose to go to college full-time, part-time, or not at all.

We believe that children learn best when working alongside children younger and older than themselves. Our Elementary Studio is a mixed-age class of children ages 7-10 (generally grades 2-5). Middle and Launchpad (high school) students also learn in a mixed-age environment with children ages 11-17. Grades 6-12 meet together for team discussions and specific quest projects, with older learners leading. Grades 9-12 generally pull out for more advanced work and apprenticeships throughout the year.

Application for admission may be pursued for ages 7-12. Students 12+ seeking admission will need to show experience in learner-driven and self-directed learning.

At Acton, we cultivate self-directed learners. A self-directed learner is guided by his or her own inner motivations to set and achieve learning goals, research questions, solve problems, participate in discussions, and strive for mastery and excellence.

At Acton, we do not teach or give direct instruction for learning. Instead, we have Socratic Guides who create Quests, Writing, and Civilization challenges that are real-world oriented meant to be accomplished through self-direction, and cover all subject areas including essential life skills.

In addition, Socratic Guides do not answer questions. Students learn best and have great joy in their learning when they find their own answers by putting in hard work to seek solutions, and are respected and trusted to do so.

Socratic Guides provide a plethora of resources, ask great Socratic questions meant to help students on their path of self-directed learning, and conduct Socratic discussions to stimulate critical thinking to build and reinforce independent learners. For core skills, such as Mathematics and English, Socratic Guides monitor students as they work towards mastery on adaptive self-paced online learning programs.

Quests bring hands-on learning in the sciences, the arts, entrepreneurship, experiencing history, collaboration, and life skills. Quests expose students to real-world skills by providing them with engaging challenges that are real-world oriented. For example, in an Elementary Studio Architecture Quest, a student not only learns measurements and proportions but also gets to practice reading and understanding blueprints, developing floor plans, and building a model of a structure to scale. In a Middle Studio Biology Quest, a student not only learns about the various bodily systems but also gets to practice patient intakes, physical checkups, and disease diagnosis skills as if they were in the shoes of a doctor in training.

A student’s ability to set and track goals in order to evaluate progress is essential to success in a learner-driven, individualized learning program as it is also an essential life skill. Students practice extensively to develop this mindset by setting specific, measurable goals that are challenging but realistic. Students set weekly and daily goals, track progress and establish a rhythm of meeting with peers to hold each other accountable.

We have seen our younger elementary heroes are the most open and adapting. In the beginning, there may be a few struggles with working in a self-directed manner. However, through patience and persistence, they find their way with purpose and intention on the path of self-direction. Supporting a young child on this path may require parents to change their mindset. Instead of thinking your child is “too young” for certain struggles, we encourage parents to develop a habit of growth mindset praise, acknowledging their child’s hard work towards independence, and creating a home environment that also encourages independence.

In the Socratic method, a guide sets up scenarios, finds an inspirational video, or conducts an activity. Then students are asked questions that do not have a “right or wrong” answer. Instead, the questions are meant to stimulate critical thinking and independent learning. Acton uses the Socratic method rather than lectures because through discussions and actively supporting their views and beliefs, students gain greater self-awareness. Socratic discussions also hone a student's critical thinking and speaking abilities while gaining a better understanding of a topic rather than passively taking notes during a lecture.

The Hero’s Journey is a powerful outlook to have for all individuals as they forge forward in life, facing challenges, struggles, trials, failures, successes, and growth. It is immensely powerful for young minds to think about their educational adventure in this manner. It helps individuals navigate the world by discovering their unique gifts, talents, and passions and then developing the habits of mind, character, and behavior that allow them to chase down their dreams with energy and joy. Who am I and where am I going? What makes me special? What gifts do I have? How can I use these gifts to do something great, even change the world? Every journey has twists and turns and requires hard work, even heroic effort, to overcome challenges along the way.

Bram Stoker said, “We learn from failure, not from success.” As adults we know that it is within failure that we grow, learn, build strength, and rise. It is the perseverance of getting back up when we fall that leads to greater success.

At Acton, we embrace this wholeheartedly. Students develop a powerful growth mindset as they persevere through challenges and struggles they face. We allow children to fail early (at a young age when the impact may not be as high), cheaply (at an age where the consequences are possibly not as costly), and often (in order to keep developing a powerful growth mindset).

We, in turn, expect parents to allow their children to experience struggle and perhaps failure without interfering, cajoling, or solving their problems. We often tell parents that come to us when their child is struggling to “give them a hug, tell them they believe in them, pat them on their back and send them on their way,” to find their own solutions. Which they do!

When, as adults, we try to rescue or save our children from struggles, we deprive them of important life skills and the great joy of hard-earned success—the kind that can only be experienced when putting forth their own efforts of consistency and perseverance.

While Acton Amba is located in the heart of Amba Township within the Dada Bhagwan community, and the owners revere the tenants of the Dada Bhagwan Foundation, the school itself is not a religious school.

We believe that all beings are on a journey towards Self realization, however, this journey is to be pursued as individuals through their own seeking. Therefore, students are not taught specific religious or philosophical content, instead, we provide an environment that inspires self-awareness and the search for knowledge. Students, through Civilization challenges and Socratic discussions, are exposed to a variety of different cultural and spiritual thoughts and ideas. At Acton Amba, we respect all cultures and belief systems and allow students to have discussions as they come up in a healthy, safe, and open manner.