School co-founder Pat Baker, succinctly summarized Bixby School’s philosophy as grounded in the belief that “it is important that children learn about themselves at least as much as they learn about academics.” Bixby’s philosophy emphasizes student-centered approaches to teaching and learning, placing equal emphasis upon personal development as academic knowledge and skills.  

The School’s philosophy of education is heavily inspired by the theories of John Dewey, one of American pragmatism’s early founders, and one of the most prominent American intellectuals for the first half of the twentieth century. While not a specific program of teaching and learning, Dewey’s philosophies about children, the purpose of education and the most effective means of pursuing that purpose have influenced a variety of school models in practice today.  While distinct in their structure and methods, schools that share a commitment to theories espoused by Dewey and later inspired by them are referred to within the education community as “progressive education.”