Eye on the Street
Decatur Metro | August 23, 2012
Avondale Estates, GA (pic submitted by Kris)
- rss
Avondale Estates, GA (pic submitted by Kris)
Sharron
Daydreamer
J_T
Rick Julian
smalltowngal
The Walrus
Kimberly Rhodes
Sharron
DEM
The Walrus
AMB
Curious
At Home in Decatur
Mic
Decatur Metro
from Wikipedia, “A Sudbury school is a school that practices a form of democratic education in which students individually decide what to do with their time, and learn as a by-product of ordinary experience rather than adopting a descriptive educational syllabus or standardized instruction by classes following a prescriptive curriculum. Students have complete responsibility for their own education and the school is run by direct democracy in which students and staff are equals.” What do they do all day? Do they have text books?
If I had “complete responsibility” for my own education in a setting where the students and staff were “equals” when I was their age, I would have spent half my time sniffing glue and the other half figuring out how to get more glue. This doesn’t seem like a good idea. It certainly doesn’t seem worth $8,000 a year in tuition. You can buy a shitload of glue for $8,000.
welcome to the neighborhood, young comrades
Apparently, they jaywalk.
Very good! Actually, they appear to be marching in the Avondale Estates 4th of July parade.
I dunno. I think they look like they’re having fun and there’s a lot for be said for a fun childhood. I’m not sure the homework in kindergarten so we can be sure they pass the CRCT and we make AYP is more educational.
I am not making a joke. It’s a serious question. (Although I see the humor in it.) This is not a kindergarten, it goes up to age 19.
I’m not totally joking either. Some educational philosophies are more student inquiry-based. You need specifically-trained teachers and a low student to teacher ratio, IMHO, to pull that off well. Hence a more teacher-led approach is appropriate in most public school settings. But even public education is more attuned to the need for student engagement, meaningful work, and less rote learning. Our CSD students currently do not use texts at all the way they used to be used. They are more like references that supplement a lot of interactive and technology-assisted learning than like a course curriculum. I remember a time when your class would read Chapter 1 first, then Chapter 2, the Chapter 3…………etc. all the way until standardized testing time, after which the teacher would gleefully throw away the book and the class would have some fun.
Also, a private school is going to select for students and families that fit this approach well. Public schools have to deal with a variety of learning styles, special needs, and occasional dysfunctional families, not to mention crazy mandates and dwindling funds from the State, which makes it harder to run as a pure democracy.
According to its website, Sudbury School of Atlanta has an open admissions policy.
Cool. And I didn’t mean to imply that Sudbury cherrypicks ruthlessly although there are private schools that DO do that. But parents with special needs children will be aware that your average small private school does not have the kind of support programs, imperfect as they are, that public schools are required to provide by law. And any children and families that do not abide by the Sudbury rule books and philosophy would probably be counseled that they belong somewhere else. I actually know a wonderful family whose very young daughter was not deemed a good fit for a Montessori school in our area. I’m sure that the school didn’t officially kick the child out but they more subtly advised the parents to transfer her to public school (where she thrived!). And the cost, volunteering, fundraising, and carpooling necessary for a small private school usually selects out struggling or dysfunctional families.
Having said all this, I agree with the other commenters that said that this sounds like a nice option for the community. It is true in real life as well as at school that a democracy does not mean an absence of rules–it’s about how decisions are made, not anarchy. While I am not in favor of some of the political agendas behind the charter school movement, I do understand the desire of parents to have a greater voice in education which can become quite bureaucratic and autocratic if not balanced by the input of parents, teachers, and the community.
Wow. It’s like Hyper-Montessori. Literature indicates that 80% of students in the original school go on to graduate from college. I bet more than a few go on to freer schools like Hampshire and NYU/Gallatin. Interesting stuff; I had never heard of this before.
All I can think of is the famous PT Barnum quote –
I can’t get past one of their key principles: “All self-chosen pursuits are valuable.”
Does that include bong hits? Or, I guess in the current era, contraband Ritalin?
Waldorf now loses its crown as the most unusual educational system on this side of town. I can’t help but wonder how a teacher feels about a six year-old voting on his or her contract renewal. And I wonder also how the school can deal with special needs students with only $8K a year tuition.
Judging by her t-shirt, I believe the child to be exceptional, brilliant, talented, polite, and well-read.
On a completely unrelated geographical note, Sudbury, MA is the delightful home of the Longfellow’s Wayside Inn, part of which is historical to the period, meaning the actual rooms in which Longfellow stayed–and is said to have broken his writers’ block during his stay. Up the hill is the school house where, so it is said, the song/poem, “Mary Had a Little Lamb” was composed.
I’m thrilled that there are options like Sudbury here. Every family has different needs and every child learns differently. The more independent school options we have here, the better. Parents have been wanting and talking about Sudbury online for years. I say, welcome to the neighborhood!
+1
I’ve been a public school educator for 12 years and I am fascinated by this model.
Democracy doesn’t mean anarchy. Quite the opposite. It means that everyone has a voice. It means that students do what’s right because it was agreed on by the community, instead of just avoiding being “caught” by a teacher. Students are held accountable by staff and each other to be good citizens.
Generally the Sudbury rule books are quite extensive and the social expectations are deeply rooted in respect for each other and the school.
Parents know the natural curiosity kids have- they don’t have to be forced to learn. They just have to be in a rich environment. A lot of behavior problems at school are really power struggles and are because kids need choice.
Check out some videos on the original Sudbury Valley School. My husband and I considered moving to Mass for our son to attend. It was THAT inspirational.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/200809/the-natural-environment-children-s-self-education-how-the-sudbury-valley-s
As a public school teacher myself, I applaud this alternative to the traditional approach. From my experience, children only learn when they WANT to learn. So letting them guide their learning within a safe community sounds like a wonderful option. I’m sure there would have to be some rules, like following the laws of society and not infringing on others rights and freedoms. I look forward to finding out more about this option and how it impacts our community.