The Bernstein Model
Leonard Bernstein was an artist, teacher, and scholar committed to communicating what he learned through his scholarship and artistic work. He observed that the artistic process of creating and experiencing art is a fundamental way of learning and one transferable to any discipline. Bernstein epitomized the lifelong learner. As he commented, “The greatest gift my father bestowed on us children was to teach us to love learning.”

The Bernstein Units of Study
At Phenix we have implemented an exciting, new form of learning called ‘Artful Learning’.  It was inspired by Leonard Bernstein's vision that music and the arts could be used to improve a child's academic achievement and instill a love of learning. Artful Learning uses powerful arts-infused curriculum units developed by teachers to engage and excite children. The Artful Learning Framework - Experience, Inquire, Create and Reflect - encourages and supports best teaching practices and improves the way students, and teachers, learn.
           
The Artful Learning Model is the only arts-based comprehensive school reform design endorsed by New American Schools. The GRAMMY Foundation provides quality implementation support to Artful Learning schools.
           
The Bernstein Model serves all students, especially at-risk students, but it also successfully challenges average and currently high achieving students. It addresses traditional standards for basic skills and addresses the “basics of the future” including learning to learn, learning to love learning, creativity, problem-solving, and the character education and relationship skills for successful citizenship and employment.
       

What is the Bernstein Model and what leads to the improvements in student achievement?

• The Artful Learning Model assists teachers to become proficient in reliably producing engagement by students. This engagement, done with arts-based skills, which are grounded in classroom research, builds a joy in learning leading to a love of learning. Classrooms systematically employ key, proven approaches to strengthen understanding, retention, transfer, and application:

Experience: Students are introduced to a “masterwork” for exposure to rigorous and important ideas and classic works, creating an engaging experience.

Inquire: Students are interested when they are invited to inquire and build their own understanding around significant questions.

Create: Students love learning when they actually create something; they enjoy active, hands-on involvement in producing something of value.

Reflect: Students learn more and can apply it when they reflect thoughtfully, through deepening questions, on what they understand.
           

• The above classroom initiatives occur within school level initiatives that are again research-based, primarily from the Effective Schools Research, combined with “best practices” from sites emphasizing the power of teacher leadership specifically, and transformational leadership generally. Proven school level initiatives include support for each school to address:
  
  
  1. Clear Mission
  2. Curriculum Standards – Instruction – Frequent Assessment – (And alignment of all three)
  3. Community & Family Involvement – Shared Leadership – Culture of Continuous Improvement

As an example of the importance of the above school level initiatives, “Shared Leadership” is taken very seriously in a Bernstein School, and specifically means strong teacher leadership in designing, evaluating, and adjusting the improvement initiatives.

           
• A climate of continuous improvement, which envelopes all stakeholders in a community of learners - students, families, teachers, administrators and the community - leads to continued improvement of teaching and learning for all.