Top 10 Unconventional Schools/Universities

Top 10 Unconventional Schools/Universities

5. Osaka University


Osaka University focuses on “comprehensive understanding,” “design prowess,” and “transcultural communicability” as goals of our philosophy on education. Osaka University, therefore, promotes unique approaches including linguistic and international education, advanced liberal arts, graduate school advanced minor programs, and the Global 30 program.

Osaka University was selected as one of the 13 core universities implementing the Project for Establishing Core Universities for Internationalization (Global 30) in 2009. This program aims to nurture superior personnel who can play an active role in the global arena by establishing a system to provide degree programs where all the instruction is in English, improving the system for accepting international students, and promoting international cooperation.



4. Hodgkins Elementary School


At a Denver area elementary school, students are organized into classes in an unconventional manner — they are arranged by what they know, not their age or mandatory grade level.

All Hodgkins Elementary School students learn at their own pace and are grouped together for specific lessons based on their skills in that area, CNN reports.

The school has no grades or grade levels.

Is this a good model? Share your opinion in the comments section below.



3. The Integral School


A group of enlightened San Diego youngsters are practicing ancient disciplines that most people don’t discover until later in life. They’re doing yoga and meditation at a private school in La Jolla. They study traditional subjects but they also focus on their “inner being.”


Fifteen precocious kids sit cross-legged. They’re in a circle inside a bare classroom. Some fidget. Others remain still. Teacher Wendy Cotton guides them through their group meditation.

“See yourself outside on a beautiful path,” Cotton said. “Take a look at this path. Is it dirt? Is it grass? Is it rocks? This is your special journey you get to create it however you’d like.”

This ritual begins each morning at the Integral School in La Jolla. The teachers at the school strive to help kids discover their life purpose by getting in-touch with themselves.

Carla Gerstein is a mother and the school’s co-founder. She didn’t like what traditional and charter schools had to offer.

“I was actually in this meditation and it kind of hit me,” Gerstein said. “I wanted something different for my kids, and I don’t see it out there. So it looks like I am going to have to do this.”

That’s when Gerstein partnered with Dr. Prapanna Smith to open the school.

“I don’t think there is any school that is anything like our school in this community,” Smith said.

Smith is a teacher who spent time in India studying Integral Education – the practice of educating the entire child including the mind, body, soul and spirit.

The Integral School in La Jolla attempts to do that by combining regular subjects with teachings of self-knowledge. Smith says parents are searching for a more meaningful learning experience for their children.



2. The Hub


Global companies in every industry today rely on large-scale information systems to conduct business. Most students who seek careers in these companies are not prepared to be effective early in their careers. University graduates have the technical knowledge; but many lack an understanding of how to apply that knowledge in complex, global technology environments. There is a need to bridge the gap between what is taught in the classroom and how it is applied in the real world.

To address this need, in 2007 JPMorgan Chase and Syracuse University launched a unique collaboration to transform the way students aspiring to technology careers in large global organizations are educated and trained. By 2009, the two organizations had designed and launched a new Global Enterprise Technology (GET) Curriculum, created the GET Immersion Experience, and launched several applied research projects addressing the kinds of challenges faced by global organizations.

In 2009, The HUB was launched to include other universities and industries. The HUB universities and industries share knowledge to better prepare students to work in complex, technology environments and to develop creative and innovative solutions to global technology business problems. The HUB goal is for students, faculty, companies, universities and the broader community to benefit from these collaborative efforts. Universities and companies collaborate in four key areas:

Curriculum Enhancement

Contribute to problem-based and experiential learning technology curriculum and enhanced classroom learning
GET Immersion Experience
Provide 8-month student internship experiences that are integrated with the curriculum
Applied Research
Address complex, global technology problems through joint applied research that serves as a source for curriculum enrichment and student learning
Community Engagement
Support local community initiatives, highlighting programs designed to increase the quantity and quality of future technology talent

Company Partners

Ernst & Young
IBM
GE
JP Morgan & Chase
Nationwide

Schools Engagement

Le Moyne
OSU
Rugers
Syracuse University
University of Delaware
The Ohio State University



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