BASIS is an acclaimed school network that is compiled of 27 public charter, private, and international schools in five states, Washington, D.C., and China that recently captured four of the top five spots on U.S. News and World Report’s annual ranking of America’s best high schools. BASIS makes advanced, immersive coursework a requirement for all students, from pre-K through high school — an approach that some dub “deep content.”

BASIS has molded its curriculum, and built its considerable reputation, around this “deep content” model — as well as other best practices imported from abroad:

  • Taking the lead from nations that score at the top on international exams, BASIS adopted matriculation tests that kids must pass to advance to the next grade.
  • Following Korea’s focus on educator credentials, BASIS insists that its teachers be experts in their fields and boasts a teaching corps where 70 percent of instructors have at least a master’s degree in the subject they teach
  • Adopting Finland’s approach of boosting attentiveness through play, BASIS gives its youngest students extra recess
  • Looking at the founder's experience in Prague of students owning their learning, BASIS gives kids a communication journal to transport between home and classroom — making students responsible for updating their parents on lessons, priorities, and grades rather than providing an online academic portal

And BASIS is seeing results from these practices. For instance, on international tests, BASIS schools are beating those top-performing countries they’ve borrowed from. The network’s schools score better on PISA-based tests than the top-ranking countries do. Meanwhile, average U.S. scores on these exams have remained stagnant in the middle of the pack.

While BASIS emphasizes mastery in exam preparation and testing, the school also encourages students to engage with their passions. Senior year at BASIS is devoted to letting students discover a subject they are passionate about, research it intensely, and then create a presentation on their findings.

Read the full article about BASIS best practices by Kate Stringer at Getting Smart.