Dalton School

The Dalton School is committed to providing an education of excellence that meets each student's interests, abilities and needs within a common curricular framework and reflects and promotes an understanding of, and, appreciation for, diversity in our community as an integral part of school life.

First, Dalton is a place of belonging. Our students come from across the city—and beyond—bringing a huge range of histories and experience. That kind of diversity and inclusivity is a constant source of inspiration and innovation. It makes us stronger, smarter, and more attuned to each other’s needs. We spend a lot of time thinking about—and practicing—the best ways to build a flourishing community.

Second, Dalton defines excellence on its own terms. We’re always asking: What does excellence look like—in a classroom, on a basketball court, on a robotics field, in a service learning experience, on a global trip? We know there are no definitive answers to those questions—and so we keep searching, and finding pleasure in the search.

The Dalton School is committed to providing an education of excellence that meets each student’s interests, abilities and needs within a common curricular framework and reflects and promotes an understanding of, and appreciation for, diversity in our community as an integral part of school life. Dalton challenges each student to develop intellectual independence, creativity and curiosity and a sense of responsibility toward others both within the School and in the community at large. Guided by the Dalton Plan, the School prepares students to “Go Forth Unafraid.”

As a progressive school guided by the Dalton Plan, we are an intentionally diverse community committed to a tradition of life-long learning and educational innovation. The following are major principles that inform the daily learning environment at Dalton:

• Valuing all dimensions of each child – intellectual, social, emotional, aesthetic, physical and spiritual.
• Cultivating values of respect, integrity, compassion and justice to encourage community responsibility, combat prejudice and engage students as participants in a democratic society and global community.
• Developing intellectual independence and risk-taking through inquiry, direct experience and collaboration.
• Valuing all disciplines – the arts, sciences, humanities and physical development in an interdisciplinary curriculum, mindful of our historical emphasis on music, dance, theater and visual arts.

Dalton continues to welcome the challenges and opportunities of working as a community to adapt to rapidly changing times. Dalton is focused on incorporating the wealth of new information into our curriculum, on implementing new methods of teaching and learning, and on instilling community values in our students. We are aware that our world is changing and sources of information are exploding. It is essential that we prepare students to enter a society that is very different from the one in which many of us grew up. A global perspective is required. This means new courses, such as our recent introduction of Mandarin Chinese, and broadening our English and History requirements to include more understanding of non-Western cultures. This means helping students develop greater knowledge of geography, emphasizing the ability to work collaboratively, and increasing the incorporation of technological advances into all aspects of our curriculum. An initiative to facilitate the achievement of these goals and others is already underway. On a rotating basis, departments are engaging in curricular reviews with the help of noted scholars to assist in analysis and assessment.

Though tools of the Dalton Plan (House, Assignment, and Lab) are in place, we are refining them to meet the needs of today's students. We want to assure more varied approaches to teaching and learning in accordance with children's individual needs - a concept fundamental to Parkhurst's thinking. We will continue to emphasize the importance of faculty professional development. Over the past twenty-five years, research has uncovered information about how the brain works, various types of intelligences, different learning styles - sometimes gender specific - and varied ways to teach and to assess. Our outstanding faculty constantly review what we teach, how we teach, and how to collaborate with one another across disciplines.