The Thomas Jefferson STEM School’s curriculum is centered on the Total Immersion Approach in English at all preschool levels, transitioning to a communicative approach at subsequent grade levels.
This communicative approach is based on three fundamental principles.
Communication (activities that encourage interaction), tasks (activities that engage students in work related to their own experiences and interests), and meaning (activities involving the real-world use of English). This means that students “learn by doing” and use English as the language of instruction from the very beginning of their learning; for example, when solving logic problems, participating in debates, or conducting street surveys. Furthermore, the school employs strategies based on the “natural approach,” developed by Krashen and Terrell (1993) in the United States. These authors emphasize the importance of fostering fluency in the initial stages of learning, leaving accuracy for when students are more familiar with the language.
The mistakes students make are considered part of the language acquisition process. Therefore, Krashen and Terrell recommend against constantly correcting students, as excessive correction can seriously limit their future communication efforts by introducing doubt about the accuracy of their answers and negatively impacting their self-esteem.
The school develops students’ skills in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing creatively, emphasizing clarity of thought and spelling in English.
This is a gradual process that begins when students enter TJSS. As they mature, they gain confidence in an environment conducive to expressing themselves in English. Therefore, translation is not used as a teaching method, and these skills are developed in all English classes through various activities such as listening to poems and plays, spontaneous classroom interaction, reading aloud, paired dialogues, imitating bilingual and native speakers, participating in and performing plays, singing, playing games, mime, and many other activities.
It is essential that the child be exposed to the language in the most natural and pleasant way possible, in order to overcome personality factors such as shyness.
From grades 1 through 6, students’ communicative language skills are strongly developed, with 6th grade being the level where oral and written production should be spontaneous for the learning goal to be fully achieved.
In grades 7 and 8, students further improve their grammar and refine their language skills through listening comprehension exercises of all kinds: songs, stories, and other exercises. They also engage in role-playing and dramatizations, enriching their vocabulary with words provided in personalized booklets and using customized workbooks with answer sheets. These activities allow students to progress at their own pace within predetermined standards. This culminates the formative process in elementary school.
During high school, students develop their writing skills with a literary purpose through essays, narratives, analytical papers, and other writing activities. These creative writing classes are taught by a native English speaker, while the Grammar and Speaking classes are taught by a bilingual teacher.
TJSS is organized according to the guidelines of the Chilean-American educational systems.
The educational cycles begin at the preschool, pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten levels, followed by eight years of primary education and four years of secondary education.
Student evaluation is conducted every semester, and the academic year is governed by the regulations issued by the Chilean educational authorities.
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