High Scope

High Scope

The HighScope early childhood education approach, used in preschool, kindergarten, childcare, or elementary school settings, was developed in the Ypsilanti, Michigan in the 1960s. It is now common there and in some other countries.

The philosophy behind HighScope is based on child development theory and research, originally drawing on the work of Jean Piaget and John Dewey. Since then, the HighScope Curriculum has evolved to include the findings of ongoing cognitive-developmental and brain research. In its teaching practices, the HighScope Curriculum draws upon the work of developmental psychologist and educator Lev Vygotsky, especially the strategy of adult scaffolding — supporting children at their current developmental level and helping them build upon it — in a social setting where children have opportunities to choose materials, ideas, and people to interact within the projects they initiate. The adults working with the children see themselves more as facilitators or partners than as managers or supervisors.