Sometimes, with other educator friends, I will get into one of those converstations: If you could create a school any way you want, what would it be like? Recently, I saw that an educator that I so admire is leaving the confines of the academy–maybe to pursue such a dream? I only know that higher ed is losing someone special when we lose Barbara Ganley. But because of her and Middlebury, I was looking at colleges in Vermont with my son who has never quite been happy in the K-12 world, and we came across Bennington. I have to say, if I were designing a school, I think it would be a lot like Bennington.
The school is very small, but has big, complex ideals. When I first read this presidential speech, I was sure of that. It is well worth reading the whole thing, but here is an excerpt:
Bennington is designed to move in the direction where things need to be done, where the stakes are high, where its flexibility, its unusual diversity of faculty resources (as rich in the arts as in the traditional academic disciplines) combined with its small size, and its fascination with what matters, are the drivers.
What fascinates me is the “HOW” of all of this. Students don’t “choose” a major”–they design one for themselves with the guidance of a group of faculty who mentor them. They don’t only study in the classroom, but also in the community when they work at an internship every January. They don’t make “art” or “new knowledge” in an ivory tower, but they explore the relationships between art and democracy, between creativity and logic. Students are active co-creators of the education at Bennington, and they are not only “allowed” to be active, they are expected to be! My son’s phone interview with Bennington was a conversation with a student. On the windows in the admissions building, there were hand painted portrait/sketches of people who work in admissions–done by a student for a class project. Students barged into the d-hall and made a big announcement like town criers about a lecture from a visiting expert on giant moths.
For my son, who was sometimes chastised in school for “asking too many questions” and reading too much that wasn’t in the text book, this could be just the place to make friends again with education. Heck, I wish I could go there! But at least it has given me a lot to think about, and to talk about the next time I am in educational dreaming mode.
Terry — I’m enjoying your blog, and would love to subscribe, but apparently I can’t subscribe through a Google reader. Is there any way to expand the range of aggregators that can subscribe to your page?
Julie,
I am trying a different WP theme. It should play more kindly with GoogleReader. Please let me know if you have other troubles subscribing…