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Cedar RootsCommunity School

Our educational philosophy

Grounded in research, rooted in place

Cedar Roots was designed for the SFU Professional Development Program (PDP) project “Imagining Future Schools BC.” This page explains the educational ideas behind it, and where they came from.

What we believe

Learning is personal, social and placed

We believe students learn best when they are known well, when they have real choices, and when their learning is connected to places and people that matter to them. We also believe that strong knowledge and skills — taught clearly and practised well — are what make that kind of learning possible.

The frameworks below are not a menu of trends. Each one shaped a specific decision about Cedar Roots: its timetable, its spaces, its assessment and its relationships with the community.

Theoretical foundations

Nine connections

For each framework: the key ideas, and how they show up at Cedar Roots.
  1. 01

    Place-based education

    Key ideas

    Place-based education uses the local community and environment as a starting point for teaching concepts across the curriculum. Writers such as David Sobel and Gregory Smith describe how learning rooted in familiar places can increase engagement and civic participation, while David Gruenewald argues for a critical pedagogy of place that also asks questions about history, power and the land.

    (Sobel, 2004; Smith, 2002; Gruenewald, 2003)

    At Cedar Roots

    The shoreline, forest, garden and neighbourhood are regular learning sites, and students investigate real local questions — including the history of the Ioco area and how the land has been used and cared for over time.

  2. 02

    Experiential learning

    Key ideas

    John Dewey argued that education should be grounded in experience, but that not all experiences are equally educative — they need to connect and build on one another. David Kolb later described learning as a cycle of concrete experience, reflection, conceptualization and active experimentation.

    (Dewey, 1938; Kolb, 1984)

    At Cedar Roots

    Field studies, labs, building projects and service are always paired with structured reflection in field journals and portfolios, so experiences are connected to big ideas rather than left as one-off events.

  3. 03

    Constructivism

    Key ideas

    Constructivist theories hold that learners actively build understanding rather than passively receiving it. Jean Piaget focused on how individuals construct knowledge as they interact with their environment; Lev Vygotsky emphasized the social and cultural nature of learning and the role of more knowledgeable others in supporting learners just beyond what they can do alone.

    (Piaget, 1952; Vygotsky, 1978)

    At Cedar Roots

    Mixed-grade advisory groups, peer mentorship and collaborative projects create many opportunities for students to learn with and from others, with teachers carefully scaffolding new challenges.

  4. 04

    Student-centred pedagogy

    Key ideas

    Student-centred approaches give learners meaningful choice and responsibility. Self-determination theory (Ryan and Deci) suggests that motivation grows when people experience autonomy, competence and relatedness.

    (Ryan & Deci, 2000)

    At Cedar Roots

    Flexible pathways, inquiry projects and goal-setting in advisory give students real autonomy; strong teaching builds competence; and a four-year advisory relationship supports relatedness.

  5. 05

    Universal Design for Learning

    Key ideas

    Universal Design for Learning (UDL), developed by CAST, is a framework for designing instruction that anticipates learner variability by offering multiple means of engagement, representation, and action and expression. In BC, educators such as Shelley Moore have also shaped conversations about inclusive classrooms designed for all learners.

    (CAST, 2024; Meyer et al., 2014; Moore, 2016)

    At Cedar Roots

    Teachers plan lessons with flexible options from the start, and the building itself — from quiet rooms to adjustable furniture — is designed to reduce barriers.

  6. 06

    Inquiry-based learning

    Key ideas

    Inquiry-based learning engages students in asking questions, investigating and constructing explanations, building on ideas associated with Jerome Bruner. Research also cautions that minimally guided instruction can overload novice learners (Kirschner, Sweller and Clark), and that clear, explicit teaching is essential for building knowledge (Rosenshine).

    (Bruner, 1961; Kirschner et al., 2006; Rosenshine, 2012)

    At Cedar Roots

    Inquiry is structured and gradually released: students first learn key knowledge and skills through explicit instruction, then apply them in increasingly independent inquiry, ending in a Grade 12 capstone.

  7. 07

    Indigenous perspectives and reconciliation

    Key ideas

    The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action include calls related to education. BC's curriculum integrates Indigenous perspectives across subjects and is informed by the First Peoples Principles of Learning articulated by the First Nations Education Steering Committee (FNESC). Indigenous scholars such as Jo-ann Archibald (Q'um Q'um Xiiem) and Marie Battiste have written about Indigenous approaches to education and decolonizing schooling.

    (TRC, 2015; FNESC, n.d.; Archibald, 2008; Battiste, 2013)

    At Cedar Roots

    We commit to learning about these perspectives with humility. Cedar Roots does not claim to implement specific Indigenous pedagogies; any such work would depend on genuine relationships, appropriate permissions and guidance from the local Nations.

  8. 08

    Environmental and sustainability education

    Key ideas

    Environmental and sustainability education aims to build ecological understanding, a sense of care for the natural world and the skills to act on environmental challenges. Richard Louv's work popularized concerns about young people's reduced time in nature.

    (Louv, 2005)

    At Cedar Roots

    Stewardship projects, the school garden, long-term monitoring and a building designed to reduce environmental impact make sustainability part of daily life, not just a unit of study.

  9. 09

    BC's curriculum and core competencies

    Key ideas

    BC's redesigned curriculum is concept-based and competency-driven, organized around big ideas, curricular competencies and content. The core competencies — Communication, Thinking, and Personal and Social — are developed across all areas of learning.

    (BC Ministry of Education and Child Care, n.d.-a; BC Ministry of Education and Child Care, n.d.-b; BC Ministry of Education and Child Care, n.d.-c)

    At Cedar Roots

    The timetable, assessment practices and portfolios are designed around the curriculum's flexibility, with regular student self-assessment of the core competencies.

Thinking critically

Tensions we take seriously

Good school design means acknowledging trade-offs. These are some we wrestled with.

  • Inquiry and explicit instruction

    Open-ended inquiry can engage students but may overwhelm those without the background knowledge to succeed. We address this by sequencing explicit teaching before increasingly independent inquiry.

  • Outdoor learning and equity

    Not every student has the gear, experience or physical access to enjoy outdoor learning. A gear library, accessible routes and adapted activities are essential, not optional.

  • Flexibility and consistency

    Flexible pathways must not become lower expectations. Every pathway leads to the same BC graduation requirements, with careful tracking by advisory teachers.

  • Ambition and humility

    A school cannot claim to be ‘land-based’ or ‘community-centred’ simply by saying so. These commitments depend on relationships that take years to build.

References

Sources and further reading

Course readings

Add the SFU PDP course readings that informed this project.

  • [Add course reading — author, year, title, source]
  • [Add course reading — author, year, title, source]

Explorations

Add the citations or summaries for Explorations A, B and C.

  • Exploration A — [add title and citation]
  • Exploration B — [add title and citation]
  • Exploration C — [add title and citation]

BC Ministry of Education and Child Care

Confirm current page titles and links before submission.

Foundational works

Real, published works referred to on this site. Verify editions and page details against your own copies.

  • Archibald, J. (Q'um Q'um Xiiem). (2008). Indigenous storywork: Educating the heart, mind, body, and spirit. UBC Press.
  • Battiste, M. (2013). Decolonizing education: Nourishing the learning spirit. Purich Publishing.
  • Bruner, J. S. (1961). The act of discovery. Harvard Educational Review, 31, 21–32.
  • CAST. (2024). Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 3.0. udlguidelines.cast.org(opens in a new tab)
  • Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. Macmillan.
  • Gruenewald, D. A. (2003). The best of both worlds: A critical pedagogy of place. Educational Researcher, 32(4), 3–12.
  • Kirschner, P. A., Sweller, J., & Clark, R. E. (2006). Why minimal guidance during instruction does not work: An analysis of the failure of constructivist, discovery, problem-based, experiential, and inquiry-based teaching. Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 75–86.
  • Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Prentice-Hall.
  • Louv, R. (2005). Last child in the woods: Saving our children from nature-deficit disorder. Algonquin Books.
  • Meyer, A., Rose, D. H., & Gordon, D. (2014). Universal design for learning: Theory and practice. CAST Professional Publishing.
  • Moore, S. (2016). One without the other: Stories of unity through diversity and inclusion. Portage & Main Press.
  • Piaget, J. (1952). The origins of intelligence in children. International Universities Press.
  • Rosenshine, B. (2012). Principles of instruction: Research-based strategies that all teachers should know. American Educator, 36(1), 12–19, 39.
  • Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78.
  • Smith, G. A. (2002). Place-based education: Learning to be where we are. Phi Delta Kappan, 83(8), 584–594.
  • Sobel, D. (2004). Place-based education: Connecting classrooms & communities. The Orion Society.
  • Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. (2015). Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to action.
  • Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.