School of Rigor

Academic rigor is instruction designed for our students that is intellectually challenging. It results in the development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills. A combination of student autonomy and rigorous instruction provides the ingredients for an inquiry-based learning environment that motivates students to love learning. Students visualize a purpose for school. Years of research by renowned educators such as Robert Marzano and John Hattie have concluded, “Rigorous teaching and learning cultivates the capacity of children to set learning goals, self-monitor their learning, and persist through challenging academic tasks.” The following graph illustrates the progression of learning in a School for Rigor. The premise of this research states that students who are given more autonomy to be responsible for their own thinking and problem solving, coupled with developing a more rigorous instructional environment, students’ are better prepared intellectually for the real world.

Mr. Koss