General Studies Curriculum

Teaching Methods

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Middle School

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• The instructional material is presented through verbal instruction and written text.  Books written by accredited authors are used over textbooks as far as possible.

• Teachers prepare detailed rubrics which are designed to make the objective of the task clear and guide the student to success.

• Learning is enhanced with the use of video presentations and experiential learning in the form of educational outings, providing real time learning. 

• Students who have passed a unit or have mastered a concept are encouraged to help students who are busy with that section. This reinforces the learning, builds the confidence of the leader, and creates a community of ‘givers’.

• We strongly encourage parents to be actively involved in the learning material.  Parental involvement is directly related to achievement. A dinner conversation, a parent acting as a sounding board, a parent contributing what they know about a subject are all highly valued.

• Students work according to timetables.

High School

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• Our teachers are a ‘guide at the side’ as opposed to the mainstream model of ‘sage on the stage’ - teaching, facilitating, and mentoring students.They teach primarily through one-on-one interaction, specifically when ‘live’ support is required in the form of teaching, explaining, brainstorming, editing, reflecting and encouraging each student as they progress through their individualized coursework selection.

• UNHS course developers, via the online portal, prepare a written study guide that is designed to assist students with learning. Study guides contain study objectives and questions that focus students’ attention on important material to be learned, and provide a clear indication of what students are expected to do. It may also include instructor comments used to elucidate difficult points, exercises and practice problems to prepare students for the unit assessment, thought questions to stimulate students’ interest in the exploring the subject matter further, and a supplementary reading list.

• All courses (which span two terms) are broken down into stimulating sequences of units, which include textbook content reading, videos, research, projects, labs, group collaboration, and regular testing via unit evaluations and progress tests, incorporating the most up to date methods of blended learning.

• Tests, unit evaluations and progress tests, are prepared and marked by UNHS, with the CTTH teacher invigilating and providing feedback regarding academic results, giving support for road mapping remediation or acceleration.

• Students create their own timetables, within consideration of teacher availability and tutorial/group lab requirements. They are required to manage their workload through commitment to projected completion dates set out at the beginning of each semester (Jan to June/July to Dec). The teacher keeps them accountable to an acceptable pace and level. They are also required to continue coursework at home due to the dual curriculum load.  

• Students graduate with an American High School Diploma, which along with their SAT Results (showing they have attained the required passing score) and/ or their acceptance letter to an American University are able to convert this International Qualification to a South African Matric by sending their documents to the Matriculation Board after graduation.