The Capabilities Approach Seminar augments Walker’s rigorous academic program by allowing students to transcend boundaries and horizons. The learning that takes place in Seminars challenges their assumptions about gendered mindsets and what girls can do and be, and reminds them that their potentialities are not fixed but always a moving horizon as they learn. The skills learned and the process of acquiring those skills help students take responsibility for their own learning, develop a growth mindset, and increase their confidence, self-esteem, and ability to collaborate. Over the course of their Upper School experience, students engage in four areas of capabilities that influence their learning, growth, and transformation: · Their physical relationship to the world (Agencies); · Their engagement and negotiation with the world (Fluencies); · Their experiential relationship to the world (Discoveries); and · A self-selected capability in their senior year. Seminar courses are required for graduation and complement Walker’s rigorous academic program without impinging on other study time. They are held to the same standards as all course work, done with integrity, respect, confidence, courage, conviction, and love of learning. Seminar courses appear on student transcripts with grades of Meets Expectations/Does Not Meet Expectations.
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