At the bottom of the school’s heraldry is Transcendere–“to surmount” or “to overcome”. To achieve this, we expose our students to an education that is firmly grounded on the Humanities or Classical Education.
Our students see the best and worst of man through his actions in time (History), his thoughts and desires immortalized in writing (Literature), and his creativity and greatness expressed in Art.
These fields permeate all the disciplines taught in the school, whether they be of a liberal or practical nature. The modern application of this thinking is known as the Paideia Principle.
Bannister Academy’s Preschool provides a nurturing environment for children as they strive towards early developmental milestones. Using a thematic approach, our preschool students engage in activities that increase their literacy, numeracy, critical thinking and general knowledge skills. Consistent with our educational vision, emphasis is placed on engaging students in active learning to create a smooth transition into the school’s elementary program.
The class time in preschool is divided to the following activities:
Preschool Routines
Students get to practice tracing or writing their name and then play with their chosen toy.
Students learn fundamental lessons through dancing and singing.
Hands-on learning of different subject matter is carried out, and includes Math, Science, Reading, Filipino, and Social Studies.
Snacks give students a chance to develop their self-help skills.
Coaching happens as well as active exploration of different centers in the classroom.
The teacher introduces a concept and the students are able to exercise critical thinking.
Gross motor skills are enhanced and socio-emotional development is promoted.
Students learn how to dress up, care for themselves and value the importance of rest.
Students get to explore their imagination through stories read by the teacher.
Lessons are reviewed before they leave school.
Each activity is designed to keep the preschoolers engaged throughout their half-day class. They learn how to socialize, do basic academic skills, and take care of themselves (doing certain tasks like changing clothes, tying their shoelaces, etc.). Throughout all these activities, the children are assisted by their teacher and a teacher aid.
Our Grade School lays down the cornerstones for fundamental language and critical thinking skills. Emphasis is therefore placed on developing critical thinking and effective communication skills among students through active learning. The small class sizes allow our teachers to devote more individual attention to our students, providing a solid academic foundation in a personalized and caring learning environment.
Subjects in the Primary School are divided into three main components: Language Arts, Math and Sciences, and Makabayan. This is the main division followed by all the levels until Junior High School. In Primary School, these subjects are taught with an emphasis on the didactic stage or the grammar stage, where students are given the basics of each discipline, committing these to memory with the view towards mastery.
In Intermediate School, subjects are taught with an emphasis on the dialectic stage or the logic stage, where students are taught how to work with concepts, using those that they have previously mastered and those that they will learn in these levels, making a connection between them. Handling concepts and making connections between them is the goal for mastery in these levels.
Note that, while Grade 7 belongs to high school, it is grouped under the intermediate level because the skills developed in Grade 7 still fall under the dialectic stage. Grade 6 is still the last level for grade school.
The High School program at Bannister Academy provides rigorous intellectual preparation for college studies leading to professional life. Our Humanities-based curriculum helps students acquire the knowledge they need to develop into lifelong learners, productive professionals and responsible citizens. Our holistic and eminently personal approach to education makes the Bannister student a confident, well-rounded individual who can make principled decisions and act on them effectively.
In Junior High School, subjects are taught with an emphasis on the rhetoric stage, where students are taught how to process previously learned concepts and to express them with clarity, both in speech and in writing. Students learn to argue and discuss, listen to and process ideas. Mastery is shown in how well students know subject matters, as evidenced by how well they can explain and how they can understand ideas.
Bannister Academy’s senior high school follows the Department of Education’s General Academic Track. Aligned with the school’s Mission and Vision, the goal of our senior high school program is to equip the students with both academic and inter-personal skills that will help them for a life in the university and thereafter. This is achieved by a specifically-designed curriculum, one-on-one mentoring, and exposure trips and mini-internships in different industries as early as Grade 11. Our curriculum incorporates all strands of Dep Ed’s senior high school (STEM, HUMSS, and ABM) while keeping a distinctly Classical approach to each subject.