Can we imagine schools of the 21st century finally free of the authoritarian and Victorian mindset? How about making the public schools really public with real access and control not by a board or standards but by families and communities really working together?
- kids teleconferencing with other kids on projects on a national and international level
- schools as hubs of real research and work on local problems
- preschool and daycare happening at schools in small modules like parent coops with support and staff
- kids taking classes as they choose, dropping in for what they need
- kids and families offering classes and services
- after school classes, night classes, weekend classes, people coming and going
- creative social environments with after school kids, homeschool kids and schedules in between all at times in classes together
- families connected and working with all this of their own accord without coercion
- no grades are given until a family decides to create a portfolio or take a test to prove mastery for a vocational path they are pursuing
- lots of adults in schools and teachers, in the old sense, are a small part of the coordinators, counselors, specialists, IT, builders, chefs, artisans, and citizens working with kids
- teachers teleconferences in global sessions on learning issues together and frequently have their own classes going on
- food being grown and cooked by staff as well as teachers and kids together
- DIY school maintenance projects: schools building solar hot water heaters together
- mixed ages working together on learning projects
- kids initiating classes and projects
- carpooling databases and networking and kids tracking energy usage of their families and schools
- schools networking with families to save money on supplies; non-standardization means some classes work with different materials from others
- kids are often excited and happy to go to school
- kids are active in non-violent resolution skills and support groups thrive
Compare with a similar list at Dangerously Irrelevant up now at Big Think.
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