De droomschool waarvan je dacht dat-ie niet bestaat

31 maart 2015

Inspirerende beelden van de Mission Hill school in Boston. 'The Dreamschool you didn't think existed'. Wilma van Esch tipte ons op deze video van 6 minuten. Met schoolleidster Ayla Gavins heeft hetkind inmiddels nauwe contacten. Transformational education in optima forma.

Door Sam Chaltain
Filmmakers Tom and Amy Valens set out in search of a community of educators who refused to let the current national obsession with reading and math distract them from the equally vital mission of helping students learn to think -- and act -- empathetically.
In August 2011, their search ended at the front door of the Mission Hill School, and in the classrooms of veteran educators Ayla Gavins, Jenerra Williams, and Kathy Klunis-D'Andrea.

A public elementary school in a low-income neighborhood in Boston, Mission Hill demonstrates what's possible when adults commit to meet the full range of needs -- intellectually, socially, and emotionally -- that children bring to school each day.  Mission Hill, which has an attendance rate of 96% and has suspended none of its students, is a place where everyone wants to be every day - and no one gets sent home.

Recently, I had the honor to spend a few days at Mission Hill. I learned about its history from Ayla, Jenerra, and Kathy. I saw the school through the cinematic lens of Tom and Amy. And I discovered that their story has great relevance for us all -- indeed, that it contains the core ingredients of a transformational learning environment, and outlines the core habits of mind young people will need if they are to become active, responsible, and compassionate citizens in a democracy.

See for yourself, and please urge your friends and family to do the same.

Sam Chaltain is a veteran educator and first-time father who writes about how people learn atwww.samchaltain.com.



De jaarlijkse studiereis naar The Essential Schools, met o.a. een bezoek aan deze Mission Hill, wordt gehouden van 1-9 november 2015. In de  folder CES reis Boston en Portland  leest u alle informatie daarover.