Limor Dankner: On Community and Life-long Learning
Brought to you by Milken Community SchoolsThe middle school years are not easy. It’s a turbulent time of transition and growth in every way – physically, emotionally and academically. But it’s also a wonderful time of discovery and curiosity.
For Limor Dankner, Middle School Principal at Milken Community Schools, these years are golden. Students are so eager to learn. What they need most is an environment where they are encouraged to think critically, explore their growing interests and most importantly not be afraid to ask questions.
“Identities are formed at this time based on the connections students make or fail to make,” says Dankner, whose career has focused on gifted education. “We want our students to emerge as leaders and explorers.”
Milken’s main mission is to create “empowered learners.” What this means is giving students a voice. “We want our students to have control of their learning,” says Dankner, who is adamant about making schoolwork relevant to a generation of students who are tech savvy, digital-natives, growing up with social media, virtual gaming and have instant access to information.
“Our incoming 7th graders are different thinkers and they are looking for different experiences,” says Dankner. “As educators we need to engage them differently.”
To better nurture students’ curiosity, Milken offers a robust selection of electives ranging from investment banking and software programming to film making and creative writing. The school also incorporates its unique “X-Learning” educational philosophy in every aspect of its curriculum, shaping school culture and attitudes about teaching and learning.
The X-Learning pedagogy takes students on a journey of discovery in every single class. Whether it’s math, history, language, environmental sciences or visual arts, students are moving beyond rote memorization of facts and standard test taking and becoming truly engaged with their fellow students and teachers in connecting their interests, real world problems and what they are learning in the classroom.
In addition to their daily classroom experience, students also participate in a “passion project” of their choosing. They spend the year working with teachers, mentors and other students to gather data, conduct experiments or design prototypes of a product or program. Milken’s Innovator’s Xpo is a celebration of the students’ creative explorations at the end of each year.
Milken’s focus is simple – Ignite curiosity in every student, every day. Then step back and allow them the freedom to create by providing the tools and resources to build what they imagined.
“It’s incredible what the kids come up with,” says Dankner. “We have had students who had their short stories published and others who created bacteria-repellent door handles and running shoes that can charge your phone. This is what happens when students see themselves as problem-solvers and innovators.”
Milken, is an academically rigorous 7-12 independent college-prep school infused with Jewish values. Community giving is at the core of its culture.
“More than anything, we want our students to know that they belong to something greater than themselves and that they can make positive changes to the world starting right now,” says Dankner, who has two children who graduated from Milken and one graduating this year. “Social justice, ethics and helping humanity is ingrained in our culture. We are a community and empathy is at our core.”
For more information, visit milkenschools.org.