INTRODUCTION

The Paideia philosophy celebrates the fundamental notion that to be fully educated is a lifelong adventure that only begins with an individual's formal schooling. It is based on the assumption that all human beings are by definition activist learners, capable of a fully humanistic life defined by intellectual growth. Thus, Paideia schools should ultimately be judged by how well they prepare students for a full and active life of the heart and mind.

In 1982, Paideia's original thinker, philosopher Mortimer Adler, joined with a diverse cadre of educators and intellectuals to form the Paideia Group. Its members charged themselves with the task of defining a list of "Paideia Principles" as a summary of ideas introduced by Adler in his seminal work on American education, The Paideia Proposal. These principles were to help shape the direction of future endeavors towards improving schools and classrooms.

As a way to create a practical arena for carrying out the Paideia Group's mandate, in 1988 Adler founded the National Paideia Center at the University of North Carolina. Over the ensuing fifteen years, the Center has developed a comprehensive set of programs for schools that integrate and put into practice the century's best concepts in the area of pedagogy, educational leadership, and school reform. Three "Columns of Instruction" form the core of Paideia's methodology: didactic, seminar, and intellectual coaching.

Now, Paideia schools are thriving at all grade levels in a wide variety of districts around the country (see Sites and Schools). Each embodies an example in action of Paideia's Essential Elements.