The No. 1 factor placing Self Development Academy-Mesa among the top schools is not what you think. It has nothing to do with our advanced academics, diverse programs, or veteran teachers.
One fundamental principle that has set us apart from other schools: At Self Development Academy-Mesa, we believe that attention to children’s learning and well-being is the most valuable gift a child can receive. When we value children, they, in turn, value their education.
“We do have one of the most rigorous curriculum and an amazing support program,” says Dr. Anjum Majeed, founder of Self Development Academy and Preschool, “but if we ignore our fundamental role as caregivers, children will ignore us.”
With decades of experience as an educator, Dr. Majeed walks the talk. She teaches the majority of her week and uses her weekends to personally review student work and look for patterns in student writing, assessments, and quizzes. She focuses on their strengths and inspires them to achieve their best.
Educators at SDA use statistical analyses and formulas to identify areas of concern, predict performance,and provide suggestions for direction. A lifelong lover of mathematics, Dr. Majeed and her son, Sami Majeed, who oversees the sustainability of Dr. Majeed’s unique hyper-individualized approach, have built a data-driven analytical system to locate how they can help every student. “We look for patterns and trends. We assign students into appropriate small groups when they have similar learning paths and styles.”
We are referring to a truly unique program that Dr. Majeed initiated. This program enables SDA to teach multiple grades above the state average. It’s childcentered learning in its most rigorous application. While data analysis plays a critical part in educational design, Dr. Majeed carefully notes the proper role of an educator in a classroom: “I don’t just look at scores. I make personal connections with each child,” Dr. Majeed emphasizes.
“Each child’s genius is unknown, possibly limitless,” a common phrase both Mr. Majeed and Dr. Majeed fervently use. “The only way to connect each child to her future success is to find out what they like.” Dr. Majeed continues, “If I can determine a child’s interests, I can help transform the child’s engagement with his learning.”
She then relates what seems to be a typical story: She saw potential in a student in one of the five groups to whom she taught math. “He had fair scores. But any student’s scores are always, always incomplete data. I see the potential,” she says, looking, her gaze now deep and beyond as if she imagines the abstract bridge connecting current performance and a place called potential.
He liked art, and after a few conversations connecting math and art, she gave him an encyclopedia of art to take home. What happened next is typical yet extraordinary: His scores went up dramatically. While once fair, he received perfect scores on every test.
The story is typical because she has many of these stories where children become inspired to learn and perform well academically. The story is extraordinary because of the dramatic and the positive change. An indifferent student who loved poetry received a book of poetry from Dr. Majeed, and now the student is immersed in her coursework. Class clowns turn into leaders. Emergent readers turn into ravenous ones.
Small groups and personal connections with students are the Self Development Academy model. Dr. Majeed’s teaching style has been analyzed and incorporated into professional development sessions. It’s not a mere feature. It is the system.
Attention to each child, “is a core part of working here,” says Dr. Majeed. “A school may provide the most rigorous curriculum, but without genuine care and attention, school is like a broken pencil; it is pointless,” Sami hurried to respond. They both chuckled. Clearly, Dr. Majeed made a personal connection to at least one of her former students, her son.
At Self Development Academy, education is at the core of the community and is passed on from generation to generation. It’s a village. Student success requires intentional effort by all. The founder, chief of schools, the principals at each campus, teachers, and parents make connections with our students.
To learn more about Self Development Preschool, please contact (480) 396-3522, and for the accelerated K-8 program, Self Development Academy, call Self Development Academy at (480) 641-2640.