STATEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY, GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FOR LANGLEY FUNDAMENTAL MIDDLE AND SECONDARY SCHOOL
1)The Fundamental Choice program shall be an integral part of the existing school system.
2)The program shall not teach any doctrinal religious beliefs (its philosophy includes tolerance and respect of others.) The program(s) shall operate with a focus and emphasis upon a clearly defined set of goals, objectives, and standards of behaviour, which have traditionally been regarded as foundational to our Canadian society.
3) Specific rules of conduct and behaviour shall not be arbitrarily imposed on pupils without provision being made for them to understand the reasons for and purpose of those rules.
4)The philosophy shall include:
i.) Respect for fellow students, teachers, and parents. This comprises respect for human and property rights of others, respect for roles of legitimate authority in home, community, and country, and respect for the contributions of those more or less capable than oneself in given areas.
ii.) Responsibility for one’s actions – The student shall receive more responsibility as he/she exhibits mature attitudes and self-discipline.
iii.) Purposefulness – The teachers shall be responsible for setting worthwhile goals, challenging yet consistent with the individual’s potential, to advance the highest possible intellectual, creative, physical, social, and ethical development of the students. They shall assist students to understand the purpose of the goals and encourage the students to work towards them. Students shall be helped to learn how to set worthwhile goals for themselves, and to recognize that effort towards such goals is essential and satisfying.
iv.) Concern for others – This shall include helpfulness in school and community; co-operation and harmony between individuals and groups throughout the school; tolerance towards those with whose ideas one disagrees; politeness and kindness. It precludes all kinds of violence, ridicule, and rude, profane or obscene language.
v.) A sense of one’s own self-worth – This shall involve developing an awareness; in each student of the unique contribution he/she can make to his/her own well-being, and that of society, by fulfilling his/her capacity for clear, honest thinking, bodily fitness, and appreciation for non-materialistic concepts such as beauty, truth, creativity, and sensitivity to the needs of others.
5)The discipline within the program shall be of such as will arise from the practical and consistent application of this philosophy to the school society. The school shall provide an orderly, friendly, and just environment. The emphasis shall be upon discipline that is fair, firm and loving, consistent and purposeful, not arbitrary; self-discipline shall be the goal, but sufficient externally-imposed control shall be used to allow all students to develop the objectives set forth for the school. Every effort shall be made to ensure that the students understand the need for all rules and procedures, and their relationship to the promotion of the program’s objectives. Many types of teaching methods and techniques are consistent with the concept of the Fundamental Alternate program, and we feel flexibility in this area should be left up to the professional judgment of the principal and teachers. However, it should be noted that our concern with purposeful goals set by teachers (see section 4: iii) and with the right of each pupil to an environment where he/she is enabled to best put forth effort toward that goal, will inevitably foster considerable attention to carefully planned, structured learning experiences, and to the importance of acquiring basic skills in a systematic, sequential manner.
6)The principal and teaching staff must be fully aware of, and committed to, the objectives of the Fundamental Alternate program philosophy. They shall freely choose to teach within the Fundamental Alternate program. Students can be encouraged to respect, affirm, and act upon those principles for which the program stands only if the teachers themselves by discussion and example affirm them. Likewise, it is obvious that practical and specific application of these principles and standards can be successfully agreed upon and consistently implemented only by those teachers who themselves respect, affirm and act upon them.
7)The principal selected to this school must have the respect and support of the parents registering their son/daughter in the school. Unless this is so, the whole purpose of establishing the Fundamental Alternate program is negated.
8)The school shall have no set “catchment area”. Parents in any part of the district may register their son/daughter here, provided that they are prepared to support its goals and objectives. Parents of prospective students shall be provided with all available information about the school so that principles and philosophies are fully understood prior to registration. The principal shall maintain a registration list within the school. The registration procedure shall be as follows:
- Langley residents with siblings in the same program
- Langley residents
- Non-Langley residents with siblings in the same program
- Non-Langley residents