Methods at SSA: Small 5-Person Classes Mean More Benefits!
We limit our class size to just five students to maximize direct instruction.
Capping keeps students engaged!
We foster a collaborative environment.
Find out more on our blog!
The Advantages of Our Small Class Sizes
No more than five students in a class
At SSA, we cap our class sizes at 5 students. A major advantage of this is that it is a lot more fun to teach, since the kids are a lot more engaged. Because when they get the sense that what they’re doing actually matters and it is really an experiment, they just light up! They try harder, they’re more engaged, and they’re more interested.
Capping keeps students engaged
When students feel like it’s only the teacher playing a role in the classroom, they will just passively take in the information, but if, while the teacher is there with the information, it is the students’ job to answer the next question (which happens frequently), the student will learn more actively! The teacher can say: “Ok, what can I do next with this information?” and foster a learning environment that is significantly more independent than many schools currently have the ability to do.When a teacher has 30 kids in class, they can’t ask the question, “What is the next thing to do?” and have every kid really engaged by that, because there are just too many people. If you have classes capped at 5, it’s no problem, because there’s a one in five chance a certain student is going to be answering the next question. Each student builds a rapport with each of their classmates where they want each other to succeed and are hanging on one another’s every word, thinking: “Wait, what did Ethan just say? How did he know that? Oh, wait!”
A collaborative experience
With small class sizes, students can bounce things off of one another to make the most of peer-learning. Schools often use partner learning, and you may end up getting paired with someone who is either not interested or doesn’t understand. But if you’re in a small group of maximum five students and one teacher, the teacher’s always guiding and making sure that the trajectory is going towards the solution to the problem. There is space for you to ask questions, share thoughts, and make mistakes. The teacher is down for you to make mistakes because the teacher also wants you to understand the liminal space: what works and what doesn’t. So, these small groups can turn into something incredible, where all of the questions about a particular concept that’s being explained can bubble up and students can explore the topic directly with the teacher. It’s like they’re doing a science experiment all the time!Stay tuned for more tips on increasing retention! For more studying and test-prep tips, check out our blog: https://www.socraticsummeracademy.com/blog.
