Frequently Asked Questions
- What is a North Carolina Public
Charter School?
- What is the Mission of Socrates
Academy?
- Is the Academy working in
partnership with other entities?
- Who is managing the Academy?
- What is the tuition for the
Socrates Academy?
- What grade levels will be served by
Socrates Academy?
- How are applications be
considered?
- Are siblings given preference?
- What is the curriculum?
- Why Greek?
- What is the Socratic Method?
- Why Socrates Academy?
What is a North Carolina Public Charter
School?
Charter schools are publicly funded schools operated according to
the Charter Schools Act (1996). Charter schools are non-sectarian,
non-discriminatory, and non-selective in their admissions practices,
and they must comply with the reporting/testing requirements
established by the North Carolina State Board of Education. Charter
schools are charged with bringing new ideas, innovation, and high
standards of accountability to North Carolina’s public schools.
What is the Mission of Socrates Academy?
“To work in partnership with parents and community to encourage our
students to reach their full potential by developing critical
analytical thinking skills and becoming self-confident in a high
achievement, multicultural, disciplined environment. Particular
emphasis will be placed on developing proficiency in mathematics,
reading and writing, both in English and Greek through the use of
the Socratic Method.”
Is the Academy working in partnership
with other entities?
Socrates Academy has established strong partnerships with the UNC
Charlotte College of Education, the Greek Ministry of National
Education, the Hellenic American National Council, and the YMCA.
Who is managing the Academy?
Socrates Academy is managed by its Board of Directors via the
authority vested by the NC State Board of Education, and is
responsible for all aspects of the School’s operations. An Advisory
Board has also been created to identify, consider and discuss issues
at the Academy, and provide advice and counsel to the Board of
Directors. Several committees have also been established to help
achieve the goals of the school.
What is the tuition for the Socrates
Academy?
Like all public schools, there is no charge for attending Socrates
Academy. There is an optional Before and After School Programs
with tutoring and enrichment activities.
What grade levels will be served by
Socrates Academy?
The Academy will add a grade each
year so that by the year 2009 the Academy will be serving Grades
K-5.
How are applications be considered?
The Academy sets an enrollment goal for each grade. If the number of applications exceeds the number of open
seats, a random selection drawing, known as lottery, determines
admissions. If the number of applications does not exceed the number
of open seats, all applicants receive an acceptance letter for
their respective grades. Applicants not accepted are placed on a waiting list in the order their names were drawn.
More details on the admissions page.
Are siblings given preference?
In order to accommodate parents who have more than one child
eligible for academy enrollment, siblings of accepted students are given preference over students who don’t have
siblings.
What is the curriculum?
The Academy’s bilingual, multicultural curriculum follows both
the North Carolina Standard Course of Study (language arts,
mathematics, science, social studies, physical education, art, and
music) and the National Greek Curriculum Standards (language arts,
mathematics, and Greek culture).
The curriculum is an innovative research-based curriculum,
developed by the Socrates Academy Curriculum Committee, which is
made up of several distinguished faculty from UNC Charlotte with
expertise in various aspects of education, English and other
languages, mathematics, and technology. While part of each school day
is taught in
Greek, no prior knowledge of Greek is required. However, due
to the use of a partial language immersion curriculum (classes
conducted in Greek for at least two hours every day), it is
recommended that new students enter the Academy at the earliest
grades possible in order to gain the greatest academic benefit.
Families considering a new admission beyond 2nd grade are advised to
discuss the likely challenges with the school principal.
Instruction relies on the Socratic Method to foster critical
analytic thinking. The program is characterized by high
academic quality and a special emphasis in mathematics, reading,
writing, and character development.
Why Greek?
The Greek heritage belongs to humanity and not just to Greeks. It is
the foundation of our western civilization for architecture,
literature, fine arts, the sciences, our educational and political
systems and much more. A large percentage of English words are
directly derived from Greek, and thousands of terms used in
mathematics, science, and technology are of Greek origin.
By embracing the world-class language, history and civilization of
Greece, Socrates Academy students will be well prepared for higher
education, and develop a competitive advantage in their professional
endeavors.
What is the Socratic Method?
The Socratic Method is the oldest, and still the most powerful, teaching tactic for fostering critical thinking.
It is also know as inquiry-based teaching. In Socratic teaching we focus on giving students questions, not answers. We model an inquiring, probing mind by continually probing into the subject with questions.
Questions are used to arouse curiosity and at the same time serve as a logical, incremental, step-wise guide that enables students to figure out about a complex topic or issue with their own thinking and insights.
See http://www.garlikov.com/Soc_Meth.html for an example of a lesson
taught using the Socratic Method.
Why Socrates Academy?
- High quality multicultural environment that challenges
students to reach their potential
- Safe and disciplined learning environment
- Active engagement of parents and community
- A curriculum that emphasizes analytical critical thinking by
use of the Socratic Method
- Emphasis on character values such as ethical behavior,
responsibility, teamwork, compassion, sharing, and integrity
- Suitable planned facilities conducive to learning
- Small number of students and class size
