EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY

The goals of an OCA education are to support our students in developing identities as Torah-observant Jews who appreciate Hashem’s role in all aspects of their lives and to equip them with the foundational knowledge and skills for a lifetime of learning. At OCA, we are guided by the philosophy that learning is an active, constructive process in which students create personal meaning out of their learning through social interaction, physical engagement, creative expression, and personal reflection. Through this approach, OCA aims to foster a love of learning that our students will carry with them throughout their lives. 

Components of OCA’s constructive approach to learning:

• Social interaction among students, teachers, peers and families
• Experiential learning, interactive questioning, and collaborative problem-solving
• Connecting new learning to prior knowledge and daily life experience across the curriculum
• Expressing knowledge through oral and written language, creative arts, drama, and multimedia tools
• Developing a strategic approach to learning through reflection, self-assessment, and flexible thinking
• Building strong relationships and healthy social-emotional skills