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Academics

Academics in Tandem: Independent Thinkers, Learning Together

At Tandem Friends School, we believe that academic excellence is less about checking the boxes and more about embracing the beauty and power of ideas, self-expression, and lifelong learning. 
 
Here, students are challenged to develop critical intellectual and creative skills while examining their own strengths and inclinations.
 
  • Our progressive, purpose-based approach to learning gives students agency to explore their passions, make their own choices, and find meaning in their pursuit of knowledge and their contributions to the world.  
  • TFS teachers and students collaborate in the learning process — in the classrooms, on the stage, in the athletic arena, and out in the community — forming authentic, trust-fueled relationships. 
  • Experiential education puts learning in greater context, with opportunities that combine community building, subject-area education, outdoor education and service-learning, both on campus and during life-altering overnight trips. 
  • An intentional balance between student learning and living ensures that TFS students enjoy what Quaker educator Parker J. Palmer terms “an undivided life,” characterized by authenticity and wholeness. 

Grounded in adolescent development, TFS educators understand how to break down the false dichotomies that exist between creative expression and academic rigor, encouraging students to pursue passions and interests across disciplines.
 
The result? Students who become purposeful learners, big dreamers, and independent thinkers with a lifelong respect and enthusiasm for discovering knowledge.
 
Find out more about how your child will learn in Tandem.