A Democratic School Critic

Working Within the System “Democratic schools are just groups of privileged kids playing at equality,” says Ted. “That’s not really democracy. You can’t learn about good governance by shutting yourself away from the world.” “What do you mean?” I ask. “What’s wrong with giving children choices?” Children Born Into a World of Choices    “Ha,…

JABSUM 4 : Free Choice

Giving Choices: the Invisible Teacher It doesn’t matter how nice you are, how exciting you are, or how well-meaning you are, if your basic instinct is to reduce choices you shouldn’t be working in a democratic school. This is a tricky issue. You might be a real believer, for example, convinced that you have the…

Keeping it Simple

I am going to tell a story. And I am going to tell you the moral of the story first: keep it simple. It should inspire you when you are battling out with your management team what your school is really about. Jon Steel has sat through an elaborate presentation of all the many wonderful…