Global Scholars
The Global Scholars program serves Park Tudor’s highly able and motivated juniors and seniors with a liberal arts program that is competitive with the best schools in the United States and abroad.
The focus for students is:
• becoming a well-rounded person
• becoming a self-directed learner
• becoming eligible for advanced standing in college.
The Global Scholars Program augments the AP program with components drawn from the International Baccalaureate Program and the Alverno College assessment model. A cross-curricular approach is used in the Philosophies of Knowing class, the pivotal class for the two-year program.
Blended with existing opportunities at Park Tudor, such as the community service program and the college application process, the program offers rising juniors who enroll in this two-year course of study a valuable understanding of the ethical, aesthetic, linguistic, and philosophical nature of the human experience.
Major Components
• Philosophies of Knowing Course
The centerpiece of the Global Scholars Program, the course provides an introduction to epistemology by giving students practice in reflecting on how they know what they know. The first year is spent considering the “The Philosophic Enterprise” and “The Role of Language in Human Affairs.” Students move during the second year to the exploration of ethics during the first semester, aesthetics during the second semester. The final portion of the last quarter is spent preparing the presentation of their individual research projects.
Philosophies of Knowing Course Outline (pdf)
• Independent Research
The research component of the Global Scholars Program is also an integral part of the Philosophies of Knowing course. Students begin early in the first quarter of grade eleven to explore possible topics for a two-year research project which is conducted independently under the guidance of a mentor, either a faculty member or a professional person from the community. In the course of the project, students learn various heuristics for identifying an appropriate topic; protocol involved in engaging the services of a mentor; methods for acquiring and validating information from a wide range of sources, including traditional sources in print; current sources available electronically; and the use of human resources as well.
• Self-Assessments
Students engage in a series of self-assessments, intellectualizing their own work habits, the personal qualities they possess which promote or impede effective scholarship, and the readiness they demonstrate for independent work at the college level. These assessments are coordinated with the activities of the school’s college counselor and are designed to dovetail with the college application process. By the time the students complete the Global Scholars Program, they will have compiled a personal profile of themselves which may be presented to university personnel or prospective employers.
• Community Service Work (200 hours over two years)
• Advanced Placement Exams in Five Subjects (including a Foreign Language)
