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“We want students to be able to use their learning in life, and not just learn for the sake of school,” said Lower School Principal Wendy Titus. “The goal is for students to be able to make connections, collaborate and transfer their learning to impact the world around them.”

Rupp’s environmental science class last fall set out to research our national park system by designing sustainable solutions to combat major threats facing our parks. This project was the culmination of a unit on biomes, climates and habitats. Students picked a park that interested them, reached out to an expert for their park (such as an author, blogger or ranger), gleaned feedback on a major threat, iterated solutions, and then presented their ideas to Park Ranger Jake Bowling of the Kennesaw Mountain park system, who provided real-world feedback.

“This project was fun and creative, but it was also more challenging than a traditional test, because you had to think through your plans and designs from every angle,” said NCCS junior Blake Dean, whose project entailed combating the overpopulation of invasive Burmese pythons in the Everglades, which are decimating native wildlife. Dean’s solution of creating a business to entice hunters to address the issue was a favorite of Bowling.

“I’m a hunter, so I was able to use my prior knowledge of hunting to create a solution to a real problem,” Dean said. “Even though the project took a lot of effort, I think you actually learn more and remember what you learn better this way than by taking tests on paper. Instead of just studying for that moment, and then moving on, I still remember that whole unit.”

“This generation of students can spot inauthenticity very quickly,” Rupp said. “They purposefully seek truth and will call you out on anything inauthentic, so they relate really well to meaningful, relevant learning. The Project Based Learning that we have adopted at NCCS is tangible. It’s real, and all types of learners respond well to that. It’s also intrinsically motivating to work toward solutions for real-world problems. Our goal is to train up a generation that is equipped and energized to bring solutions to our world.”

Students installing water filters in Haiti on Spring Term. A Global Classroom

Every fifth- through 12th-grade student at NCCS participates annually in Spring Term, a week dedicated to taking what students have learned in the classroom and applying it throughout the world. From Haiti to Hawaii, Spring Term options include overseas mission trips, cultural immersions, service projects, arts explorations and more. Students might spend the week installing water filters in a developing nation, researching an endangered species in Georgia’s Golden Isles, or gardening at a monastery in Italy. The goal of the week is authentic life change, both for NCCS students and for the people whom they are serving.

North Cobb Christian School was voted top private school in the 2021 Around Acworth Readers’ Choice Awards. NCCS has an enrollment of more than 1,000 students in preschool K3-12th grade.