Dalton Plan
Encyclopedia
The Dalton Plan is an educational concept created by Helen Parkhurst
.
Inspired by the intellectual ferment at the turn of the 19th century, educational thinkers such as Maria Montessori
and John Dewey
began to cast a bold vision of a new progressive approach to education
. Helen Parkhurst
, the teacher
who had actually taught the Gold medal winning glass-enclosed Montessori classroom at 1915's Panama-Pacific International Exposition
in San Francisco, after splitting with Montessori, caught the spirit of change and created the Dalton Plan, aiming to achieve a balance between each child's talents and the needs of the growing American community.
Specifically, she had these objectives: to tailor each student's program to his or her needs, interests and abilities; to promote both independence
and dependability; to enhance the student's social skills and sense of responsibility toward others. Parkhurst developed a three-part plan that continues to be the structural foundation of a Dalton education—the House, the Assignment, and the Laboratory.
The Dalton Plan takes its name from an early trial of the system at the High School
of Dalton, Massachusetts
in 1920.
Today, The Dalton School
educates students in accordance with some of the precepts of the Dalton Plan developed by Helen Parkhurst.
Czech Republic
Netherlands
Helen Parkhurst
Helen Parkhurst was an American educator, author, lecturer, the originator of the Dalton Plan and the founder of The Dalton School....
.
Inspired by the intellectual ferment at the turn of the 19th century, educational thinkers such as Maria Montessori
Maria Montessori
Maria Montessori was an Italian physician and educator, a noted humanitarian and devout Catholic best known for the philosophy of education which bears her name...
and John Dewey
John Dewey
John Dewey was an American philosopher, psychologist and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. Dewey was an important early developer of the philosophy of pragmatism and one of the founders of functional psychology...
began to cast a bold vision of a new progressive approach to education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
. Helen Parkhurst
Helen Parkhurst
Helen Parkhurst was an American educator, author, lecturer, the originator of the Dalton Plan and the founder of The Dalton School....
, the teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
who had actually taught the Gold medal winning glass-enclosed Montessori classroom at 1915's Panama-Pacific International Exposition
Panama-Pacific International Exposition (1915)
The Panama-Pacific International Exposition was a world's fair held in San Francisco, California between February 20 and December 4 in 1915. Its ostensible purpose was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, but it was widely seen in the city as an opportunity to showcase its recovery...
in San Francisco, after splitting with Montessori, caught the spirit of change and created the Dalton Plan, aiming to achieve a balance between each child's talents and the needs of the growing American community.
Specifically, she had these objectives: to tailor each student's program to his or her needs, interests and abilities; to promote both independence
Independence
Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state in which its residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory....
and dependability; to enhance the student's social skills and sense of responsibility toward others. Parkhurst developed a three-part plan that continues to be the structural foundation of a Dalton education—the House, the Assignment, and the Laboratory.
The Dalton Plan takes its name from an early trial of the system at the High School
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
of Dalton, Massachusetts
Dalton, Massachusetts
Dalton is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. Dalton is the transition town between the urban and rural pieces of Berkshire County, Massachusetts. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 6,892 at the 2000 census.- History...
in 1920.
Today, The Dalton School
The Dalton School
The Dalton School, originally called the Children's University School, is a private university-preparatory school on New York City's Upper East Side and a member of both the New York Interschooland the Ivy Preparatory School League...
educates students in accordance with some of the precepts of the Dalton Plan developed by Helen Parkhurst.
Schools
Today there are a number of schools around the world that utilise variations of teaching methods based on the Dalton Plan. Most of the schools below interpret the Dalton Plan according to their needs which in some cases retain only a minimal part of the original Dalton Plan. Currently, the only schools that have strong affiliation with Helen Parkhurst's Dalton School in New York are Dalton Tokyo and Dalton Nagoya.Czech RepublicCzech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
- ZŠ a MŠ Chalabalova, BrnoBrnoBrno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
- ZŠ a MŠ Husova, Brno
- ZŠ a MŠ Křídlovick, Brno
- ZŠ a MŠ Mutĕnická, Brno
- ZŠ Rájec-Jestřebí
- Gymnázium Slovanské námĕstí, BrnoBrnoBrno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
- ZŠ Benešova Třebíč
- Základní škola, Brno
- Základní škola Brno, Brno
NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
- Dalton basisschool de Twijn, UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
- Dalton basisschool Rijnsweerd, UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
- Dalton Den Haag, Den Haag
- Daltonexpertisecentrum, Instituut Theo Thijssen, Hogeschool, UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
- Daltonschool De Klipper, Berkel en RodenrijsBerkel en Rodenrijsthumb|250px|right|Town signBerkel en Rodenrijs is a town and former municipality in the Western part of the Netherlands, and is located in the Dutch province of South Holland.- History :...
- Daltonschool Hengelo Zuid, HengeloHengeloHengelo is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands, in the province of Overijssel. The city lies along the motorways A1/E30 and A35 and it has a station for the International Amsterdam – Hannover – Berlin service.-Traffic and transport:...
- Dalton Lyceum Barendrecht, BarendrechtBarendrechtBarendrecht is a town in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality had a population of 43,104 in 2007, and covers an area of 21.72 km² of which 1.45 km² is water....
- De Achtbaan, AmersfoortAmersfoortAmersfoort is a municipality and the second largest city of the province of Utrecht in central Netherlands. The city is growing quickly but has a well-preserved and protected medieval centre. Amersfoort is one of the largest railway junctions in the country, because of its location on two of the...
- De Klinker, SchiedamSchiedamSchiedam is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. It is part of the Rotterdam metropolitan area. The city is located west of Rotterdam, east of Vlaardingen and south of Delft...
- De Poolster, AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
- 2de Daltonschool, AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
- 3de Daltonschool, AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
- Erasmus College, ZoetermeerZoetermeerZoetermeer is a city in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of 37.06 km² . A small village until the late 1960s, it had 6,392 inhabitants in 1950...
- Helen Parkhurst College, AlmereAlmereAlmere is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, the Netherlands, bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde. The municipality of Almere comprises the districts Almere Stad, Almere Haven, Almere Buiten, Almere Hout, Almere Poort and Almere Pampus .Almere is the youngest city in the...
- Hogeland College, Dalton vmboVoorbereidend middelbaar beroepsonderwijsThe vmbo education is a school track in the Netherlands. It lasts four years, from the age of twelve to sixteen. It combines vocational training with theoretical education in languages, mathematics, history, arts and sciences...
, WarffumWarffumWarffum is a village in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is located in the municipality of Eemsmond. It was a separate municipality until 1990, when it became a part of Hefshuizen, which has been known as Eemsmond since January 1, 1992.... - Kardinaal Alfrinkschool (voor Daltononderwijs), WageningenWageningen' is a municipality and a historical town in the central Netherlands, in the province of Gelderland. It is famous for Wageningen University, which specializes in life sciences. The city has 37,414 inhabitants , of which many thousands are students...
- Katholieke Daltonschool De Leeuwerik, LeiderdorpLeiderdorpLeiderdorp is a town and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland near the city of Leiden. It had a population of 26,182 in 2004....
- Markenhage College, BredaBredaBreda is a municipality and a city in the southern part of the Netherlands. The name Breda derived from brede Aa and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. As a fortified city, the city was of strategic military and political significance...
- Maurick College. VughtVughtVught is a municipality and a town in the southern Netherlands. It is a town where lots of commuters live and has recently been named "Best place to live" by the Dutch magazine Elsevier.-Politics:...
- Saxion Hogeschool, DeventerDeventerDeventer is a municipality and city in the Salland region of the Dutch province of Overijssel. Deventer is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, but also has a small part of its territory on the west bank. In 2005 the municipality of Bathmen Deventer is a municipality and city in...
- Schooladviescentrum, UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
- Stedelijk Daltoncollege, Zutphen
- Stedelijk Dalton College, AlkmaarAlkmaarAlkmaar is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of Noord Holland. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination.-History:...
- Stedelijk Dalton Lyceum, DordrechtDordrechtDordrecht , colloquially Dordt, historically in English named Dort, is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, located in the province of South Holland. It is the fourth largest city of the province, having a population of 118,601 in 2009...
- Wenke Dalton Consultancy, MeppelMeppelMeppel is a municipality and a city in the northeast of the Netherlands, in the south-west of the province Drenthe.It developed in the 16th century as a transport and distribution inland harbour for turf...
- Dalton Voorburg Lyceum, VoorburgVoorburgVoorburg is a Dutch town and former municipality in the western part of the province of South Holland, the Netherlands. As also Leidschendam and Stompwijk, it is part of the municipality Leidschendam-Voorburg. It has approximately 39,000 inhabitants....
- De Waterval, ErmeloErmeloErmelo is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of Gelderland in the Veluwe area with a population of over 26.000.-Etymology:...
- Jeanne d'Arc, 't Harde't Hardet Harde is a town about 6 km southeast of Elburg, on the edge of the Veluwe forest in the Netherlands. It has a train station with connections to Zwolle and Amersfoort. The village's population is approximately 6000 people.-History:...
See also
- Rosa BassettRosa BassettRosa Bassett, MBE was an English educationist and headmistress of the County Secondary School, Streatham, in London....
, who introduced the Dalton Plan at the County Secondary School, Streatham, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1920–1921. - J. G. JeffreysJ. G. JeffreysJ. G. Jeffreys was an Australian schoolteacher who moved to England and founded Bryanston School in Dorset.Jeffreys first taught in Australia. He came to England in 1921 to teach chemistry at Westminster School in London. The headmaster of the school encouraged him to take a second degree at...
, who introduced the Plan at Bryanston SchoolBryanston SchoolBryanston School is a co-educational independent school for both day and boarding pupils in Blandford, north Dorset, England, near the village of Bryanston. It was founded in 1928...
, in England.