The Most Leading School in Arizona.

www.theknowledgereview.com

2021 | VOL-09 | ISSUE-03 THE

MOST LEADING

SCHOOL

IN

ARIZONA

ducation ersonilized History and Techniques of Gamifying Education issecting the ech Effect of Online Learning

Casas

Christian School Cultivating Smart, Industrious and Spiritually Fulfilled Individuals

EDITOR’S NOTE

THE PIONEER OF QUALITY EDUCATION IN ARIZONA

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earning and education is of prime importance in Arizona. The economy is strongly supported by graduates from local colleges and universities.

Globally competitive education is highly valued in the state, and it strives to give better opportunities to its brightest students. In this perspective, Arizona has introduced many programs, which would help in keeping the students engaged during the summer breaks. This proves that the authorities in Arizona are very serious about educating the youth.

Time and again, Arizona has proven that it provides a rich environment for students to learn, grow, and excel in their endeavours. Many leading institutions are working with utmost dedication to strengthen educational standards and create a challenging and stimulating educational environment. They are also offering discounted educational services to ensure the betterment of not only the students, but the teachers as well. The concerned authorities of the state are also emphasizing on improving parental and community involvement in the schools, while ensuring the generation of tax revenue for educational purpose.

Arizona is committed towards enhancing educational activities, while providing the students with better

career opportunities and quality of life. With highquality education, it aims to provide the students with lasting experiences and excellent learning options. The prominent schools of the state are devoted towards the overall development of the students.

With the objective of transforming the youth into the leaders of tomorrow, these schools always come up with innovative teaching-learning procedures. They give the students every opportunity to explore themselves and unleash their potential. These schools also offer an array of extra-curricular activities so that the students can grow not only as professionals, but also as better human beings.

These leading schools possess all the credentials to offer top-notch education facilities. With well-qualified teachers, career-focused and personalized approach, and excellent infrastructural facilities, they are building a bright career pathway for every student.

One such exceptional school, which is giving wings to the students’ careers is Casas Christian School. It provides a rich academic and spiritual experience that lays a foundation for a lifetime of excellence while also creating an environment where each student can excel

in an engaging, appropriately modified, Christ-centered climate. It is a K-8, dually accredited school with almost five decades of rich experience.

Hence, in this issue of The Knowledge Review, we recognize the tireless efforts of the school. Accordingly, we present to you this special edition, which focuses on the impressive journey of Casas Christian School, its celebrated journey, major achievements, and its future plans.

So, let’s explore this renowned school by flipping through the pages. Have a great read! T R

al Ananda Kam

Das

Ananda Kamal Das ananda@insightssuccess.com

CONTENTS asas hri ian chool

08

ducation ersonilized

History and Techniques of Gamifying Education

CXO

24

Article

Cultivating Smart, Industrious, and Spiritually Fulfilled Individuals

20 issecting the ech Effect of Online Learning

September, 2021

Editor-in-Chief Senior Editor Managing Editor Assisting Editor Contributing Writer

Sumita Sarkar Anish Miller Aditya Umale Abhishaj Sajeev Nidhi, Vinayak

Quality Control Darshan Parmar

Visualiser David King Art & Design Head Priyanka Rajage Art & Design Assistant Rahul Shinde Co-designer Paul Belin Business Development Manager Phill Miller Marketing Manager Mary D'souza Business Development Executive Chris Green Technical Head Jacob Smile Assistant Technical Head Prachi Mokashi Technical Consultants

Amar, David, Robert

Digital Marketing Manager

Alina Sege

Digital Marketing Manager

Amol Wadekar

SME-SMO Executives

Atul, Gemson

Research Analyst Eric Smith Circulation Manager Tanaji

Casas Christian School

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Cultivating Smart, Industrious, and Spiritually Fulfilled Individuals

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hildren are God's apostles, they say. Their rightful education is one of the most important duties of not only their parents, but also of the community as a whole. Since the majority of a child's day is spent at school, it is important to consider the influence a school has on his or her life. The school environment has a great impact on how a child develops.

Throughout centuries, a Christian education has enabled students to not only learn about the world around them, but also cultivate a deep and lasting relationship with God. The values, morals and perspectives inculcated in a Christian school helps children grow into perseverant and welleducated students with sufficient proficiencies and strong moral fibers. This is the promise of a good Christian education which the Arizona-based Casas Christian School has successfully delivered since its inception.

While most educational institutions still follow an outdated, mostly ineffective learning model, Casas Christian School in Oro Valley, Arizona, is revolutionizing how students learn and believes that in doing so they point them to God in a more profound way. But along with a strong faithbased education, Casas also offers a rigorous academic training whilst catering to mental and emotional well-being, physical proficiency and scientific training, aided by the integration of latest technological tools and devices.

Why CCS? Established in 1970, Casas Christian School (CCS) is unique as a readiness program that is also a missional school. Most programs take a curricular-driven approach to learning. Since it believes that all students are fearfully and wonderfully made individuals, Casas Christian School's philosophy is that you cannot believe that and still articulate to students the idea that where they actually are at in life, does not matter. Because 'missional schools' are unique in themselves – anyone can enroll even if they have different belief systems.

Hence, it becomes more vital to create environments where anyone and everyone can belong even if they do not all believe the same way. The school takes a student-centered approach that really does allow its learners to grow despite where they fall in their learning continuum.

At Casas, the educators and accompanying staff strive to provide a rich academic and spiritual experience that lays a foundation for a lifetime of excellence while also creating

The Most Leading School in Arizona

At Casas, we strive to provide a rich academic and spiritual experience that lays a foundation for a lifetime of excellence while also creating an environment where each student can excel in an engaging, Christ-centered climate

an environment where each student can excel in an engaging, Christ-centered climate. The school is passionate about relational, readiness-focused, and relevant learning experiences that provide a strong foundation and built-in support for all learners.

The Student-centered Approach As mentioned above, Casas really does emphasize on taking a ‘whole child approach’. Academically, the school has created a category of its own called ‘Student Instructional Support’, and the teachers are part of this instructional makeup at CCS. Where many programs struggle with teacher-student ratio, CCS classrooms often have two qualified educators pouring into the individual needs of those students. Whether they are multiple years ahead of the grade level norms, the institute simply says, “You’re fearfully and wonderfully

Casas Christian School hopes to continue being an instructional model that other programs study from and provide best educational practices to their programs as well

made, so what’s next for you”. If they may be multiple grade levels approaching the grade level norms, it simply says, “Ok, you're fearfully and wonderfully made, so what's the next growth goal for you?”

This approach allows students to be known, valued and appreciated while also ensuring growth! Removing labels from children goes such a long way in allowing them to love learning again while also creating a really special culture at Casas. Spiritually, where sometimes in Christian schools, aspects of faith are regulated to only certain times of day, CCS takes a cross-curricular approach to faith integration.

Elaborating on how faith integration takes place in a fruitful manner, the Principal of CCS – Josh Kempf, said “We do not want our students to believe that things of God only exist in the Bible class, or in a chapel. We do not believe there is a ‘sacred’ and ‘secular’ so, we integrate faith intentionally and strategically across our day in a collaborative manner.”

The Steadfast Leader of CCS

Due to the potency of our instructional program, we see our school being a model for other institutions to follow

Prior to coming to Casas, Mr. Kempf was Head of School at an International School in Southern China for over a decade, and during that time his readiness philosophy and missional objectives were really honed. Now, as principal of CCS, his role uniquely still allows him to be the first touch base for all new families, allowing them some crucial time to communicate with the leader of the school from the very beginning.

He loves this aspect of his job, and certainly, this is a large component to the school’s growth over his time as principal. Despite his age, the CCS community seems to connect to his relational leadership style and approachability.

Professionally, Mr. Kempf was recently named to the ACSI Regional Commission where he will now use his expertise to support other Christian schools in the Southern Arizona region. Mr. Kempf’s passion for creating an environment where Christians learn to love God and love other people well. It is contagious and it is something that he hopes most to see his students grow in for the future.

“Casas believes teaching its students to ‘love well’ - the very best articulation of what God calls us to do,” noted Mr. Kempf. “Preparing them with service opportunities, missions experiences all while creating a culture of grace and compassion prepares the students in all ways for their next steps in the world,” he added.

Standing apart There are only five per cent of Christian schools in the country that allow people of all kinds to enroll, regardless of faith background or religious affiliation, Casas Christian

School being one of them. So, Casas naturally stands out in this regard naturally.

There is also no other program calling themselves a ‘readiness level’ program, boldly striving to broaden the reach of the educational experience for students while removing many of the grade level aspects that either hold them back or restrict growth for learners. Casas Christian School hopes to continue being an instructional model that other programs study from and provide best educational practices to their programs as well.

One of the most impactful aspects of student life at Casas is ‘Warrior Week’. A chance to collaborate with other students and faculty, focus on school spirit and class unity, this fun week of competition is one of the highlights in the CCS school culture each year.

The Challenges of Today Due to the sustained growth over the past five years, the challenge that Casas now faces is one of space restrictions.

The school leadership is once again evaluating the feasibility of adding a high school which would provide the kindergarten through high school continuum which the community desires.

Because of the uniqueness of its readiness philosophy, CCS knew that protecting its in-person model of classrooms will be essential. To accomplish the same, the CCS team created grade-level bubbles within their entire program with multiple new sanitization processes. This allowed them to successfully remain in person for the duration of this school year.

The Trendsetters in Holistic Education

We do not believe there is a 'sacred' and 'secular', so we integrate faith intentionally and strategically across our day in a collaborative manner

Casas Christian School achieved accreditations through not only the Association of Christian Schools International, but also through AdvancedEd. This is done by CCS in order that the families of students have the confidence that after leaving the school, their children’s accomplishments will be recognized everywhere whether they remain in a private, faith-based program or not.

Casas has also been voted as the ‘Best Private School in Tucson’ for three consecutive years (i.e., in all the years they have been nominated).

“Due to the potency of our instructional program, we see our school being a model for other institutions to follow,” said the principal, Mr. Joshua Kempf.

Additionally, the school envisions continued growth as more and more families understand the beauty that is the fact that a missional Christian school, focused on readiness, can offer to the community. Casas Christian School also hopes to be able to add a high school in the future.

Casas Christian School is recognized as THE

MOST

LEADING

SCHOOL IN

Arizona

by The Knowledge Review for instilling values, morals, and perspectives in its students with an exceptional educational experience while enabling them to cultivate a strong and spiritual relationship with God

Sumita Sarkar Editor-in-Chief

Mrs. Samiksha Rakesh Khatri Corporate and Social Trainer, Social Activist, Edupreneur, Principal, Crayons International School

Effect

of

Online

Learning

20 | September 2021

Dissecting the Tech

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nline learning is a learning and teaching method for students in a completely virtual environment.

Online learning (also known as eLearning), which was invented and introduced in the 1990s and used for remote learning, is the most widespread in higher education and allows students from other regions to interact online with academic institutions and other students. It is a means to allow you to study flexibly and strive to earn a degree or qualification at your own pace. Online learning means an internet-based learning environment that connects students from different backgrounds with different perspectives.

Higher education institutions use learning management systems (LMS) to facilitate online learning. Online learning can be asynchronous learning (students do not have to be online at the same time, and discussion threads and emails can be leveraged to complete the curriculum) or synchronous learning (students are online at the same time).

It is conducted for employees of the same or different organizations under one roof. Schools using e-learning techniques are one step ahead of schools still using traditional approaches to learning. Presenting the concept of non-electronic education through books and lectures is equally important, but the importance and effectiveness of technology-based learning cannot be understated or completely ignored. We believe that the human brain can easily remember and relate what we see and hear through videos. Visual material was also found to be maintained for a longer period of time in the brain, in addition to attracting student attention. A variety of disciplines including agriculture, health care, education, services, business and government are adapting to the concept of e-learning that helps the country develop.

A learning system that is based on formal education, but assisted by electronic resources, is known as E-learning.

Classes can take place both inside and outside the classroom, but the use of computers and the Internet forms a major component of E-learning. E-learning may be called the transfer of skills and knowledge in network responsiveness and the provision of training is done to multiple recipients simultaneously or at different times.

Previously, this system was not accepted seriously as it was expected to lack the human factor needed for learning.

However, with the rapid advancement of technology and the development of learning systems, it is now accepted by the public.

1. Cost Savings The most obvious benefit of online learning is economics.

Half-day classical education is a one-hour online learning process. E-learning increases productivity. In 2019, US education costs reached $83 billion! Of that amount, $ 29.6 billion was spent on travel, educational facilities, in-house educational development, and equipment. Online learning can save a lot of money in hiring instructors, booking facilities, printing, traveling, and more.

The introduction of computers laid the foundation for such a revolution, and over time, smartphones, tablets, etc. have fallen into disrepair, and these devices now occupy an important position for classroom learning. Books are gradually being replaced by electronic teaching materials such as optical discs and pen drives. Knowledge can also be shared over the internet which is accessible 24 hours a day, from anywhere. Description: E-learning has proven to be the best tool in the enterprise sector. This is especially true when multinational companies offer educational programs to professionals around the world, where employees can sit in conference rooms or acquire important skills through seminars.

Five Benefits of Online Learning:

2. Increased Convenience and Flexibility The average full-time employee has only 1% of their time devoted to learning. Employees are often busy and struggling to fit continuing education to their tight schedule.

In a study of 204 employees, 93 employees showed that time constraints contributed to the inability or unwillingness to complete the course in one attempt.

Another 56 people contributed to the disruption. The average full-time employee only has 1% of their time devoted to learning. That's equivalent to another 24 minutes in a week! Online learning allows employees to learn on a personal schedule that works best for them. It also ends in much shorter time than face-to-face learning.

3. Increase employee knowledge Online learning allows people to absorb more information, allowing them to learn at their own style and pace. If you

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need more time on a particular topic, you can do it slowly and as many times over as needed. As you can imagine, these aspects of online learning help maintain knowledge.

WR Hambrecht + Co found that online learning increases the retention rate of learning materials up to 2560%!

Learners actually apply what they have learned.

4. Income increase American Society for Training and Development (2011) conducted a questionnaire survey of 2,500 companies and found that 218 of companies have a comprehensive education program, which is higher than 24%. More research confirms that learners actually apply what they have learned. Of the 204 employees surveyed, 87% said they put their newly acquired skills and knowledge into practice at work. This leads to tangible benefits such as increased sales, process improvements, and customer satisfaction.

5. Ease of Content Updates In today's world, information and knowledge are changing rapidly. In the case of printing, the only way to respond to these changes is to reprint the document. Then it costs quite a bit (not to mention the poor tree). Updating your online courses not only allows you to respond to these changes without breaking your bank, but also simplifies the process. The best part is that changes to online content will be immediately available to all learners.

Five Disadvantages of Online Learning : 1. Need self-discipline and time management skills 41% of 204 employees found their motivation impaired to participate in online learning. Why? I agree that selfdiscipline and time management are always important in connection with learning, but online learning requires less instructor guidance than traditional learning. In general, online learning also removes scheduled meeting times and deadlines. As a result, employees must sit in the driver's seat in connection with ongoing education. Face-to-face interactions are essential to bring data to life.

2. Reduced social interactions Imagine a traditional classroom with lively group discussions and students raising their hands to ask instructors. Of course, these moments don't happen

22 | September 2021

naturally in online learning. For some individuals, these face-to-face interactions are essential to bring the material to life. Nevertheless, it can bring a lot of social interaction to online learning through competition, scheduled Q&A sessions with teachers, and discussion channels.

3. Not suitable for all topics What do you want to learn through online learning in government guidelines on how to fly and treat chemicals?

Our choice and we imagine your choice, the latter. It is safe to say that you do not want to be a passenger on a plane with a pilot who has never boarded a plane in a flight simulator. Complex subjects that require a physical environment, surgical techniques and practices are recommended for direct visits. But in an environment with high turnover, more repetitive items are naturally benefitted by online learning.

4. Lack of practice-based learning E-learning is no substitute for knowledge gained from practical experience. Online learning is often theory-based and lacks practice-based learning. It means theoretical knowledge and facts, theory, reasoning, but is based on practical knowledge and practical efforts and tasks. For example, online learning is a great tool to learn aspects of football theory, such as the history and rules of the game.

However, it cannot be used to provide practical knowledge, such as how to actually play a game. These skills must be acquired on site. Therefore, it is important to keep in mind that online learning cannot exchange the knowledge gained through hands-on experience.

5. Reliance on technology The employment of the younger generation and the widespread adoption of technology have made eLearning more popular. However, not everyone incorporates technology into their daily work. A 2016 survey found that 26% of adults had no computer knowledge. Therefore, it is important to assess whether employees are computer savvy and whether they have appropriate settings for online learning. Do your employees have convenient access to electronic devices or the Internet? If the course has video or audio, will the speakers work? If accessing online learning becomes a burden, sync can crash.

Education Personalized

History and

Techniques of

Gamifying Education

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ike every regular day of online classes, students were staring at their phone’s screen with their minds somewhere else and eyes constantly visiting the clock as the teacher explained some new concept that was too boring for them to pay mind to and was bouncing off their heads. Some of the students were worried about the upcoming exams and the pressure of scoring the passing marks as they could not understand any topic, and some were waiting to exit their zoom class so that they could go and play.

Due to the lack of communication in this new education system, the enthusiasm for learning is decaying. Education has become nothing but a competition of passing and scoring better than others. The very core reason for

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studying is hardly remembered, which is making studies nothing but a burden.

The Ancient Fact Earlier, learning and the ability to implement were more important than scoring and competing with others. One of the oldest Indian education systems – the Vedic education had four main books composed (not written). Just for information, these four books are older than their written scripts because earlier students used to recite every piece of information, and nothing was in the written format.

The first one was ‘Rig Veda’ which was full of information and so it was hard to remember, due to which as a solution the second book was composed and named as ‘Sam Veda.’

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It consisted of a musical flow full of rhyming hymns. The intention of composing it was to help students learn and understand better by making the education interesting. This is one of the oldest solution examples of gamification for making education interesting.

Gamification of education is a method of making education interesting, entertaining, and easy to understand. It replaces the boring teaching method of the teacher with the enjoyable methods of playing games, which fascinates the students to study and delight in their classes.

The History If we search more about the exciting history of gamification, we will come across the Russian educator and scientist called Dmitri Mendeleev, who is also well known for the credit of being the first scientist to publish the Periodic Table of Elements.

But many people don’t know that he was also one of the first scientists who used the gamification method to carry out his educational work. Yes, he was a very good card player. He used the same talent of cards game to list his elements with some information about it on these cards and organize them on their table accordingly.

With this method, he was able to grasp information, connect the elements, categorize them, and work faster on developing the Periodic Table. After he published his Periodic Table, other scientists happened to fill in the gaps, which expanded and updated the table.

The scientist with such great achievements was an average student in his school days, but gamification helped him out, and he was able to perform on the next level that made him a historical figure in scientific history. The addition of gamification aims to help students in studying and increase their interest and motivation in the process. With such an example, we can easily boil down to the conclusion that gamification is highly beneficial for learning progress.

Strides of Gamifying Assess your students and try to identify their trouble points according to which you can design the best gamification strategy. For example, if your students are not able to understand a math problem, you can explain it again by using video, or game activity, or a story like an explanation.

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Do experiments and survey students’ performance to determine which strategy has maximum effects of engaging students and resulting in their better retention. The best experiment example can be role-playing games (RPGs), where the students assume themselves as their favourite characters and complete the task accordingly. After finishing, they win a reward.

Set small learning goals for them and add behavioural goals in it as well. Plan your approach in a way that students engage with studies and also tune out with their classmates, for example – by planning the group activities to do science projects.

Enhance your scoring method, don’t create an environment of winner and loser, it may encourage and fire up some, but it can discourage many. By announcing the failures of some students in front of others, you might end up bursting their confidence. Instead, try giving prizes to every individual based on their improvement in performance.

Explain to your students what you are trying to do, about your plans, goals, why it is important and how they are supposed to follow the new plan. Take their feedback about is the new way of learning helping them, or do they have any suggestions, try to become a teacher with whom your students can open up.

Inherent Gains from the Implementation Such change in the academic environment will naturally save students from depression drifting away from education. Gamification helps students to improve focus and engagement in their academics and have better retention. They develop skills like expressing questions and answers more accurately.

Also, they enjoy their subjects comfortably without the stress of failure. They learn to accept their failures as a part of the learning process and build stronger confidence. Also, they learn not to judge their mate’s performance and instead try to help them in their studies. They cheerfully complete their homework. Such change in the academic environment will naturally save students from depression drifting away from education.

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Nidhi Arya