The triangle is more than a symbol; it is a philosophy, a method of learning, and a style of teaching. At its core, it stands for a multi-lateral approach to everything.

As a philosophy, it embraces the world as being more than black and white, yes and no, right and wrong. It is the idea that there are always thoughts and answers beyond the obvious. And, all sides being equal, it allows for multiple perspectives to individual issues. By incorporating past, present, and future thought, it strives to be modern and progressive, while still classic at heart.

Triangle learning pushes students to not only read, write, and speak with fluency, but to think critically while doing so. Therefore, students are encouraged to do much more than just learn a language. Students learn how to think in that language. Just as importantly, students also work to develop their own, unique identity based in the target language. In doing so, students who experience triangle learning at Artisan will have greater opportunities to succeed at school, at work, and at life.

Firstly, through triangle learning, students learn the fundamentals of English so they can have more confidence whether taking a test or having a conversation. Secondly, by learning critical thinking skills along with language basics, students will gain practice in making decisions and becoming stronger leaders. Rather than an obstacle, English becomes a tool for success. Thirdly, triangle learning places special emphasis on self-discovery as an integral part of language acquisition. Thus, students exposed to triangle learning won’t just “learn” English, they will create an English identity.

The triangle style of teaching is a focused approach: students learn reading, writing, and speaking equally. Through the use of current technology, Artisan’s triangle teaching is able to accomplish this more efficiently than other schools. While class time is focused on speaking skills, reading and writing are done and evaluated outside of regular class time in order to provide maximum teacher to student attention. Not a single minute of class is wasted doing something students could do without the teacher.

Each class is divided equally into thirds. The first third is dedicated to reviewing and evaluating previous lessons and delivering individual presentations. The focus of the second third is teacher instruction. While maintaining a student-centered approach, the teacher presents a new skill and ensures student comprehension via interactive exercises. The remaining third provides students the opportunity to process the lesson on a deeper level in order to obtain maximum retention. This is accomplished by inviting students to take ownership of language through a group activity in which students must create something new using the lesson they have learned previously. In doing so, students are able to develop invaluable interpersonal skills in addition to English. Moreover, the group/creative activities allows for the teacher to move around the room and work directly with each student individually while the projects are being prepared.

By applying the triangle teaching style in the classroom, we can guarantee our students will get the maximum amount of exposure to and practice of English in a given class. The triangle of communication and participation created within the classroom is that of students speaking to other students during the first third, the teacher speaking to students in the middle third, and lastly, the teacher working with individual students one at a time as they work on their creative project in the final third.