We respect and embrace all kinds of diversity at Elizabeth Academy. However, our inclusive focus is on disability, specifically intellectual disability. Our curriculum is enhanced by the neurodiversity of our classrooms— giving a voice to students who have traditionally been marginalized by society. Ours is an educational model of reciprocity; meaning that all students benefit from embedded models of peer leadership in an educational setting.
VALORIZATION ~ Internalizing VALUES, finding oneself “strong and worthy”
Valorization is a word Maria Montessori uses to describe the phase of development when an adolescent is in search of personal identity, a process the adolescent goes through to find and internalize core values, emerging with integrity and confidence, seeing himself as a strong and worthy person. Montessori philosophy is based on the “Four Planes of Development,” from birth to age 24, with adolescence occupying the fourth and last plane. In this phase, children experience a dissonance in their identity. For the first time, they see themselves outside of their roles of daughter, son, brother, and sister, and begin to see themselves as something beyond that— individuals who must integrate all of their separate identities to move forward in a larger community.
The awareness of this plane of development is integral to effectively guiding youth to find their sense of purpose in the world. At Elizabeth Academy, we recognize that our students are going through the process of valorization, and need the guidance of parents and teachers more than ever. They seek to find meaning and connection with parents, teachers, the community, and their peers. Our secondary program is designed to guide adolescents through that process.
Our academic courses are rich in content, with lessons favoring the advanced student, but also leveled (“differentiated”) to enrich and inspire all students in the classroom. Beyond that, students who need further support may see private therapists who engage with them (and the rest of the students) in the classroom to supplement and support their academic studies. With small class sizes (15 students or less) and 2-3 teacher/guides in each classroom, we are able to support students in their work and maximize student engagement. This collaborative teaching model is an interdisciplinary approach that incorporates integrated therapies (as needed), as well as arts to expand learning and apply concepts to multiple disciplines.
We are committed to providing a balanced education— one that credits the importance of building conceptual understanding and knowledge as well as skill-building. There is a strong emphasis on individualization in the area of building student skills within their “Zone of Proximal Development”— where all students are given assignments and tasks that honor their ability level with content that is rigorous, yet appropriate for their learning style and level of development. Assuming capability before limitation, students are stretched, regardless of their chronological age, or grade level.
Inclusive Education benefits Academically ADVANCED Students!
It is a well known fact that inclusion benefits students with disabilities. “The academic impacts of inclusion have been studied in many ways with many different populations of students around the world. Multiple systematic reviews of the scholarly research literature indicate that students with disabilities who were educated in general education classes academically outperformed their peers who had been educated in segregated settings” (Baker, Wang, & Walberg, 21995; Katz & Mirenda, 2002).
And there is also strong evidence that Inclusive Education greatly benefits neuro-typical and academically advanced students!
Recent research indicates neuro-typical (and advanced) students “benefit from participating in interactive learning activities with peers with special educational needs in different ways: (1) they learn to respect others, accept differences, and acknowledge different abilities, thereby creating opportunities for new friendships to develop; (2) they learn about abilities related to helping others participate and learn, to be patient and to gain the satisfaction in helping others learn and behave better; and (3) they benefit from the cognitive effort required to explain themselves and from the contributions of peers with special educational needs from which they can learn” (Rondem et al., 2021, p 1)
