Jubilee Christian College: Christian School of Distance Education uses the School of Tomorrow curriculum. This curriculum is currently being used in more than 5000 schools in over 100 countries around the world. It has also been used successfully by thousands of families who have chosen to educate their children at home.

Rationale

The School of Tomorrow curriculum was born out of the necessity to meet the individual needs of children. In conventional classrooms there can be as much as 40 IQ points difference in students and as much as 80% difference in reading ability.

The conventional secular method of teaching is for the teacher to aim teaching at the majority of his pupils. This means that the top students are working below their capacity and getting bored. The lower level students, being left behind, become frustrated and shut off. In fact the great fallacy of this system is that it has been estimated that in a class of 30 students, only four are regarded as average.

The teaching method in conventional schools does not lend itself to personal tuition. The teacher is involved with the teaching material, presentation and research. But with the School of Tomorrow curriculum, the teacher is freed from such, because the pupils have the material before them. This makes the curriculum ideal for Distance Education.

In the lecture system, the child who has been absent through illness, does not have the chance to catch up on missed work. With the School of Tomorrow curriculum, they resume exactly where they left off. This prevents gaps of knowledge in their learning.

The School of Tomorrow curriculum is unique in that it provides the individual student with the opportunity to develop his/her abilities to the maximum potential. The total curriculum covers an equivalent study programme from Pre-Reading to Year 12 in a conventional school. An 80% pass mark is required in most units of study (called a PACE — a Packet of Accelerated Christian Education) before a student is permitted to proceed to the next PACE. In certain subjects and levels the required pass mark is 90%. The Home Educator's Manual will give supervisors all necessary details.

The curriculum covers five core subjects: namely Math, English, Social Studies, Science and Word Building (Spelling). At Secondary School level the student is able to choose from over 30 elective courses from several categories including Art, Bible, Business, Computer, Science, Languages, Literature, Government and History. Keyboarding skills are required of all students.

The curriculum starts with a simple concept which is then built upon and expanded. There are three new concepts introduced in each new PACE.

The child is working from a known concept, and gradually bringing in the unknown, as the known is built upon. It is generally accepted that something must be taught and applied five to seven times before it is retained by the child.

The strength of the School of Tomorrow curriculum is the reinforcing of concepts year after year, line upon line, precept upon precept. It is important to apply the School of Tomorrow teaching principles since they have been formulated through trial and error, and have been revised by top educators in various fields. School of Tomorrow and Jubilee Christian College are able to draw upon the most advanced learning discoveries, and up-to-date sources, and incorporate them into our learning methods.

As home educators, a training course is provided to you so that you can become familiar with the procedures. Regular contact with the College can be arranged. However, the success of the curriculum depends on the children taking responsibility for their learning. You, the home educator, are there to help them learn to learn.

The curriculum is internationally focused. It also contains Australian content. No section of the curriculum is the result of one person’s perspective and experience and is therefore not limiting in its scope and sequence.

The ‘teacher’ is written into the whole programme, and instructs the student off the written page. Thus a student is able to receive all the instruction needed to understand the concepts being taught in each PACE. As the students grasp each concept they are able to progress through their study programme.

Students are able to progress at their own rate, and you the teacher, are freed to give greater assistance to children who need it. Furthermore, students are able to work at their own level of achievement in each subject area, and are not forced to conform to a peer group as in a conventional environment.

Accelerated learning is the natural outflowing of an individualised, self-instructional curriculum. Students are able to progress at their own rate of achievement without the undue pressures associated with the conventional learning environment. Their learning is ‘accelerated’ in that they are free to advance in their academic programme according to their own rate of learning.

Whilst maintaining the core curriculum throughout, the programme allows for, and encourages involvement in extra curricular activities in which students receive tuition to enhance and enrich their talents. As parents, you know your child’s strengths and weaknesses, their talents and interests. Home school can allow your child more time to develop these talents and abilities.

The curriculum booklets and programme are Christian in philosophy and promote Christian values of self-motivation and discipline. We have discovered that students who use this curriculum are ideally suited to tertiary studies in that they have learned how to discipline their lives to meet assignment goals and stated objectives.

A commitment to excellence is evident with the academic requirement that students must attain a pass level of 80-90% to progress to the next component of study in each area. Therefore learning has not been divorced from life. Jubilee Christian College students have a mature and balanced ‘World View’ and have the confidence to meet new challenges and undertakings.

 

A full list of available courses and subjects can be found in our Distance-Ed Prospectus .