Hi all,
I haven't been to the meetings but I have been trying to follow the goings-on and discussions of this group through discussions with Emily and through the email/blog postings. I would like to add a few comments (or raise a few questions) related to various issues that have been brought up, for what they're worth. I'll state up front that so far (as most of you know) we've decided to have our kids in public school, so part of this deals with that choice.
First, a few thoughts on the public/private school issue. I have plenty of reservations about the public school system - plenty I don’t like now, and plenty I didn't like when I was in it. So far Emily and I have decided to have our kids in public school, but that could change at some point in time. What I keep coming back to, over and over, is that I believe we may be expecting too much from our schools and too little from ourselves. And important as school environment, methodology, feedback etc is, in the end possibly the single greatest variable in how kids respond to educators is the quality and commitment of the educator, and I do believe that public schools - at least those we've been involved in - are full of great teachers who do everything they can for their kids. Sure, they are boxed in by mandates and often limited by perspective or experience, but when I think of education of kids around the world and through the ages, I think our system (at least in Decorah), though lacking, isn't broken, and actually has some very positive attributes.
The responsibility for the "whole child" is of course ours as parents, more than that of the schools. Yes, kids spend much time at school, but really, when I think back to my childhood and what formed me (if one can really do that), it was my family and home experiences so much more so than school that determined who I am (for better or worse!) School provided (or failed to provide) skills, knowledge, experience in some cases, emotional growth (or harm...), but the latter half of that list, together with worldview, perspective, social conscience, values, ethics, etc came MUCH more from my parents/family and our close circle of friends, and eventually from my college environment also, than from public school. I would guess most involved in these discussions came through the public schools - would we be fundamentally better/different people if we had not? I suppose it's possible but I don't think so.
As to our philosophical belief in or support of public schools, personally (and I don't mean ANY criticism here) I wouldn't be honest to myself if I put my kids in an alternative school and said I still firmly believe in and support public schools. This is at least part of why we have decided not to - yet anyway. IMHO one of the greatest threats to public education (we can't separate the concept - public education - from the reality - public schools) is privatization. There are plenty of things not to like about public schools but if we put kids in private schools are we not contributing to that threat? Maybe we owe it to our kids to make that choice, but we should we not admit that either our principles have changed, or our actions are not fully supporting them? (PLEASE realize I don't mean this as criticism - Emily and I have considered and continue to consider alternative education, and many of those I most respect in this community and elsewhere have done so ... and also, I fully realize there are other ways in which to strongly support public education.)
Moving on. I'm assuming there probably isn't demand/energy in Decorah for two alternative schools (am I wrong?), so if something new evolves it will take the place of the current Montessori (or Montessori will be changed into ...). One question I have is how many of the parents of kids currently in Montessori have been involved in these discussions? Isn't that the main population of "end users"? I understand there are many involved, I'm just wondering out loud if it wouldn't make sense to somehow update all Montessori parents re these discussion and solicit input - before going TOO far in decision making on models, intentions for going beyond pre-K, etc.
And regarding models, most of you know much more than I, but if everyone were satisfied with Montessori I suppose these discussions wouldn't be happening, so there must be things missing, or things folks would like to change. I have read about the various alternative educational models, but have a tougher time getting a handle on how the theory/philosophy translates into the classroom. Individual schools can be great and inspirational but is it the tradition or the example we want to emulate? If the tradition, what are the facets we believe in most strongly, and can they be easily replicated? There are some real differences between the traditions (such as between Waldorf and Montessori in reading/literacy approaches), but I think we should also remember that all these models are based on educational theories of their founders decades ago. Much of those ideas are probably still sound, but much has undoubtedly also been learned since then in education, child development, and all the related arenas.
Sorry for the book - and probably much of which is repetition of things already discussed. I'll wrap up with a couple thoughts on my own wishes for educational opportunities. Since we currently have Helen in public school and tentatively plan to have Leila there too, Pre-K remains the main alternative ed environment we would hope to take advantage of (with Elsa, in 2-3 years!) But I'd like to throw out a couple other ideas too, just as food for thought down the road, not necessarily to be incorporated now. First of all, there seems to be tremendous opportunity for an "alternative child care center" for infants/toddlers in town. Yes, that's right, a BABY THOREAU CENTER - where babies learn sign language before speaking, spend time out and around ... you know what I mean, and though it's probably not in the picture right now, consider looking down the age classes as well as up - the demand is there and besides being a tremendous resource for parents/kids such an operation could be quite profitable and even help support other parts of the operation.
Secondly, I think there is tremendous opportunity for organized after-school and summer programming as a cooperative effort of like-minded parents. It could take on many different forms but even just a parent or two who, say, met a group of elementary or middle-schoolers one afternoon a week for a semester to explore some special topic, like astronomy, or orienteering, or poetry, or whatever was stimulating and engaging. This could be not just an educational endeavor but a community-building one too, with family gatherings, peer group development, etc.
Finally, specific emphases that I believe are seriously lacking in public ed and would be important to build into alt ed include (of the multitude): truly experiential approaches, outdoor ed in many versions and levels of integration, flexibility/differentiation/acceleration not as separate issues but as fundamental principles, and an emphasis on relationship building, peer group development, and emotional growth as well as academic. Probably nothing new there.
Thanks for getting this far, and for all the energy everyone is putting into this. Yet another validation of why we came back (*even if* we don't take advantage of higher levels of alternative ed here - at least for now).
Best, Andy Johnson
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3 comments:
I wish I had time to write more, but here's just a partial and inadequate response to a couple of Andy' points:
1) Some of Montessori's ideas/methods have in recent years been "discovered" (rediscovered) by education and put to use in public schools already.
2) Milwaukee public school system has Montessori within its system at every age level. A study was published recently about the difference between the kids in different sections in the Milwaukee schools and showed that the Montessori kids did better regardless of race or income. I emailed that out a few weeks ago if anyone can find it. The number of public schools adding Montessori to their programs is growing.
3) Re: current Montessori families--I think it's difficult for people to think ahead, and it's difficult for them to find time or imagine finding time to go to meetings and organize a school. It is rare to find this many people with both vision and motivation to act, so I am excited about this group. But I also wonder about the sense and realistic-ness of starting an alternative school in addition to the current Montessori, which would potentially be competing. But I think this discussion is not happening just because people aren't happy with Montessori...it's happening because this group began asking the question, "what happens after preschool?" (The current Montessori is ages 3,4,5.) And many of them didn't realize that the current Montessori has also been asking and working on that question for a couple of years. However, I think Montessori has been a little stuck in being able to address that question, because of simply having to survive in the face of several issues that are probably common with a young school such as teacher turnover and facilities issues. I would be very excited to see this new group really get their imagination wrapped around what this Montessori is trying to do, and add their energy TO it and imagine where it could go, and take part in creating the next step of building upon something that already has quite a nice foundation, even if it's not perfect. It could be a Montessori preschool that adds a Waldorf Elementary class. It could be an alternative school that offers one Montessori classrooom and one Waldorf classroom. It could morph into a school with a different focus altogether, that combines some elements of Montessori & Waldorf, along with others. There is no limit to what we could imagine and create. But I am not impartial...as someone who invested 4 years and more money than I could afford into this project, I would be so happy and excited if new people's energy could go into building upon what I helped to start, even if it changes. So I would encourage people to fully explore all possibilities with the current Montessori board, before starting something completely new and different (again, biased opinion).
4) I also struggle with my feelings about public school. I agree there are many really great things about it! There's just always this nagging feeling in me that if I want my kids to be able to THINK to their fullest potential, they should be in a place where the environment fosters (and has room for) thinking about itself as well, if I said that in a way that makes any sense. Maybe alternative schools HELP the public schools to which they are in proximity, to either be able to or be forced to think more about themselves. Maybe the presence of alternative schools give public schools permission to break out of the box a little. Maybe they strengthen public schools by being models to show that changes are possible, that there are alternatives that even the public schools can successfully use. Maybe it's good for communities to have the choice, because there will always be people who will choose the public school as a better fit for their family, and maybe it's OK if their class size is reduced by 2 or 3 kids. Maybe it's good for a district to have an alternative charter school, because that will attract open enrollment and the district will get that money for those additional kids. I don't know exactly how it works. But I don't feel I will be able to change the public schools here in my lifetime in a way that will significantly impact my kids. Yes, I am grateful that we have great schools, but it doesn't quench my thirst for something "better" if I can imagine it. If nothing comes of this I will still be a happy person and I will still feel good about my kids' education and I will still think that they are going to have a successful school experience and a good life. My problem is that I expect a lot of myself, and I find that a school system is not able to think it's OK for me as an individual to have my own expectations of where my child spends 7 hours per day. My mom would DEFINITELY say that I expect too much of the schools precisely BECAUSE I expect too much of myself, and because I think too much. She's almost definitely correct. :-) But I am definitely a little frustrated right now that I am supposed to simply put my children in the hands of strangers about whom I have no choice, but that the state has approved, and they will have expectations of me and my children, but my expectations (hopes/dreams) for my child's daily environment will have no impact or import, but must conform to a generic reduction of a society. We would not put our children in a childcare center or daycare in this way, so why is it different after age 5? Just some thoughts, too many, and will probably change tomorrow, so thanks for listening,,,,keep dreaming and discussing! It's a good discussion.
Thanks,
Amy
P.S. I grew up in a public school teacher family. I got a WONDERFUL music education in my school system. I would be worried if my kids went to an alternative school that they would miss out on opportunities such as band, choir, etc. I know they could probably participate, but they might not feel fully a part of it. So there are some potential "down sides" I worry about too. -Amy
Hi all,
The current issue of YES! magazine (available at your local Co-op!) contains an article titled "Reclaiming our Freedom to Learn," by Gustavo Esteva. It is powerful! I came to it having just watched a video about public education in Mexico, which confirmed my fears that it is being used to remove children from their cultural heritage and communities, to white-wash their lives and prepare them to be what the state needs - in this case, factory workers. (“Granitas de Arena” is the title of the film, obtained from “The Film Connection”, a free online video library)
Anyway, the article describes a mighty (but small) new school in Oaxaca Mexico, whose main method is apprenticeships. It's utterly thrilling, what they're doing...but this is what I wanted to get to telling you: a quote from the article.
"Suppose you had the revolution you are talking and dreaming about. Suppose your side had won, and you had the kind of society you wanted. How would you live, you personally, in that society? Start living that way now! Whatever you would do then, do it now. When you run up against obstacles, people, or things that won't let you live that way, then begin to think about how to get over or around or under that obstacle, or how to push it out of the way, and your politics will be concrete and practical." (Paul Goodman)
This quote sums up my response to Andy’s thoughtful queries about our responsibility to the public school system. We have to use the power that we have now – power that we have because of our age, the existence and ages of our children, our vision, education and passion, and our ability to earn money – to “start living that way now” and thereby be a beacon to others. Talk to Rachel about how long it will take to affect in the public school the kind of revolutional change we need. Talk to me about how fast your kids will be grown up and not have access to these years for learning in true community. Do we want our kids to be part of a new way of living in this world and taking care of it? Then let’s make the best use of these short years they have with us, by not sending them off to a place where a large amount of what happens is something we’d rather change.
I love Andy’s ideas about complimentary Waldorf (or other) programs. Here’s the problem though: in my experience, if you are in the public school, it takes all your time. There’s bus schedule, and homework, and meetings if you’re an involved parent, and pretty soon there’s extra-curricular....there are friendships and other relationships that need to be tended. I may have said this in my last post, can’t remember...but when we sent Sophie and Ida to school for a semester when they were in 3rd/1st grade, we spent all our energy on the schooling, and had nothing left for Pleasant Valley. It was as if we had unwittingly gotten divorced from our community and married another life. Not an unlivable life, but a completely different one. I can’t imagine a sane existence with both public school and after-school enrichment programs that you have to create and maintain yourself. MY opinion: skip part A!
Finally, with regard to the question of our Montessori school and its relationship to this conversation, I want to add that Pleasant Valley, too, might have some energy to contribute. Though I have only attended one meeting, I really appreciate seeing what’s being discussed on this blog. Pleasant Valley has in place a number of systems – for example, for the type of shared learning that Andy suggests, and for family get-togethers that nourish community. Some of them are currently not functioning, but they would be simple to get going again.
This community is so rich with possibilities and people! It’s endless, what could happen if we gave the kids access to it all.
Yours,
Liz
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