Julia Sweeney

Modern Educational Theory- “What is School” Position Paper

            School. A words some kids dread to hear. A word that can mean “prison” to some and “sanctuary” to others. A word commonly referred to in reference to systems and institutions. Analyzing and understanding the complex and different visions ofwhat school can be has helped me decide my vision of school and what it shouldbe.

            School should not feel forced. It should be a place where students feel comfortable to be themselves and can express what they are learning in multiple ways. Itshould be a place where teachers and learners work together to take on bothroles. Its purpose is to inspire and to be an outlet of discovery. It can be aplace where students figure out what their talents and skills are. It is aplace of social, emotional and intellectual growth.

            This school is a place that values respect. Values discovery. Values learning andvalues the learner. It values the teacher as a teacher and as a learner. This school does not base itself on one method or follow any one set of rules. It isa place of understanding and is full of understanding people. It gives equalopportunities to all of the students involved.

            Thisschool benefits society in more ways than one. It manages to teach students the skills they need in the everyday world, the basics that all schools teach, and manages to teach different things that interest different students. They help students become individuals and find their talent, their skill. This school embraces working in and with the community, teaching how different studentswith different skills can help and can create change. These students leave this school and know how they can use their knowledge, their power and their talentsto help themselves and others. These learners know how they learn and what that learning differently than everyone else isn’t a bad thing. This school helps to inspire kids to help and to learn from others.

            This school is good for the individual by supporting the individual. The school as a community helps inspire the individual so they can discover themselves as an individual. It creates a group of individuals who understand how they as an individual relate to others as well as themselves. It supports the individual and encourages the individual to be an individual.

            Overall, this school differs from a “traditional” school, mostly in its strong support system and encouragement for the individual. It values things that a “traditional” school may regard as unimportant or unnecessary. It inspires more than a “traditional” school. It doesn’t have just one idea or one rule. It thrives on many and not on ONE.