Sudbury school
Sudbury schools are democratic schools that orient themselves in them employ the Sudbury model on the model of the Sudbury Valley School. The Sudbury Valley School was founded in Framingham (Massachusetts ) in 1968. Currently, worldwide there are about 35 Sudbury schools.
Despite the similarities between the Sudbury schools and other democratic schools, democratic self-government by means of school assembly, the treatment of problems caused by the Judiciary Committee and the mix of ages in the school are different. For the attribution as a Sudbury school no precise specifications of an association or organization need to be considered.
Individual freedom
A central component of the Sudbury model is that each student can freely dispose of his time. Each student can decide what, when, how and with whom he meets. There is no one who claims a curriculum. The usefulness of a curriculum is called into question, since there are many different ways to become a successful adult. Students are free to determine their own development day by day. There are no reviews for this individual decisions on the part of employees, that is, if no school rules are violated, all occupations are considered equally legitimate. The school does not carry out performance evaluations, nor documented the activities of the students.
Lessons
Teaching courses play only a minor role in Sudbury schools. Most of the time the children learn and adolescents alone or by other students by playing, talking, watch others or read. Teaching courses come about only when students explicitly request it. Courses can be conducted both by students and employees. If students decide to attend a course, the teaching agreement may include regular attendance and even homework.
Often there are rooms that are specially prepared for an activity. So there is space for art, music and a library. Most rooms are always open to all. For some activities, students must demonstrate that they have the qualifications required in order to run them safely ( sewing machine, drilling machine or wood tool ). This differs from school to school.
Age mix
At Sudbury schools usually teach children and adolescents aged 4 to about 19 years. Students are not separated according to their age. This allows students of all ages communicate, learn or play together. So the school assembly can be led by a younger child. Teaching is organized according to the interests and abilities, and not according to age.
Learning by Teaching
As the student groups are formed without regard to the age, carried the learning-related interactions over the age boundaries. An important effect of this method is that a large part of the activities is carried out by teaching students. Here is a comment regarding the learning by teaching effect in the Sudbury schools:
"Children love to learn from other children. In particular, they find it is often easier. The teaching students is closer to the difficulties as an adult, because he has encountered the same problems. The explanations are often easier, better. It exerted less pressure there will be less valued. And the motivation is high to learn quickly and well to keep up with the teaching students. Teaching children happy. It gives them the feeling that they are valuable and can realize itself. More importantly, it helps them to master the material better if they teach him; they must assign it to tighten it. Contact with the substance apart until it is absolutely clear in their own head, so that it is clear enough to convey it to others. "
School assembly
Each Sudbury School holds a weekly school assembly. There is an elected chairman who presides over the meeting.
All aspects of managing a Sudbury school are determined by the school assembly. The agenda, for example, choosing to laws ( school rules ), the distribution of funds within the budget, the appointment or dismissal of employees comprise. The ( present ) students and staff each have an equal vote. In some Sudbury schools, the vote of the chairman is one of only a casting vote. Most decisions are decided by a majority.
Due to the clear rules of procedure the school assembly usually works quickly and effectively. Various tasks can be delegated to other individuals or groups. It can, for example, certain managers are elected or working groups for special activities ( corporations ) are formed by the School Meeting.
The SV requires a minimum of 5 members and a chair to be a quorum.
School Rules
Most of Sudbury schools have a law book, which typically includes rules on safety, personal conduct, methods of use of premises and certain equipment and services rules over the school administration.
The New School Hamburg has an extensive and very unique, collated by students rulebook.
Justice Committee
In most Sudbury schools there is a judicial committee, which deals with complaints about violations of school rules. This committee usually consists of members elected by the school assembly Competent for managing tasks and by lot from certain students of different ages, as well as an employee. In smaller schools the duties of the Judicial Committee may also be acquired from the school assembly.
The Justice Committee operates according to the rule of law. This includes in particular the presumption of innocence. It covers only written complaints, which relate to existing school rules. The procedure for dealing with a complaint is - in accordance with the procedural rules in criminal proceedings - from several separate steps: Complaint / display, investigation, prosecution, trial, judgment, possibly calling.
Graduates
The Sudbury Valley School has published two studies of their graduates in the last almost forty years. Thereafter, about 80 % of the former students go to a university or a college, 90% of them are recorded at the college of their choice. The overwhelming majority of Sudbury Valley graduates working in their chosen profession. About 45 % were at least temporarily entrepreneurial self.
Until now, there are no studies on graduates from other Sudbury schools. However, reports of whose graduates point in the same direction.
Worldwide distribution
In the beginning, the students and staff at Sudbury Valley believed that the school would very quickly find hundreds of imitators. But only since the 90s, schools have established that explicitly refer to the Sudbury Valley School. In some cases, existing alternative schools in Sudbury schools have converted. There are now about 35 Sudbury schools in different countries.
The Sudbury Valley School has published numerous books and other materials about their school model and put together a "starter kit " for founding groups.
Since 1998, the Næstved Fri Skole was founded in Denmark, to Sudbury schools have also spread in Europe. The first Sudbury school in Germany was opened in April 2004 in Überlingen, the second in August 2005 in Leipzig; here, however, there were difficulties in the approval process. Other founding groups emerged in Berlin, Lüneburg, Hamburg, Munich, Nuremberg, Bonn, Oldenburg, Dresden and Dusseldorf. In Hamburg, the " Neue Schule Hamburg " opened for the school year 2007/ 08.
The school's founder of the New School in Hamburg call to the Beckmann talk show (see link on school website ) some key facts about the " Neue Schule Hamburg ": Opened in September 2007, with government approval, five full-time staff and 85 students from 5-17 years, ie 1-10. School year. Preparing for an external secondary school final examination is possible. School fees monthly 150 euros. The school has a variety of discipline or subject areas.
Also in 2007, founded in Berlin -Pankow Ting- school and the school was founded in 2010 Democratic X (Berlin- Heiligensee ) refer to the Sudbury school model.
While there are at the Sudbury Valley School about 200 students, the other Sudbury schools significantly fewer pupils, often only 15 to 30, sometimes even less. On more than 50 students, the Fairhaven School ( USA), the Clearwater School ( USA), the Kanaf School ( Israel) and Jerusalem Sudbury School ( Israel) come.
Criticism
Besides a general critique of the concept of education and learning is primarily the issue of state consent in the foreground. So stressed 2004, the spokeswoman for the education authority in Tübingen that private schools would have to offer similar services, such as public schools, which " clearly not the case in Sudbury schools " was. However, no application for permission was rejected. So the New School Hamburg has been approved, in Berlin, the Ting- school; in Überlingen and Leipzig corresponding applications were not provided.