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DEMOCRACY IN ACTION
Creating active participants in a democratic society, honoring all viewpoints and needs, finding innovative solutions to community challenges, and problem resolution.
Students get a say
From the beginnings of The Children's School, what we do and how we do it has been shaped by the voices of our students.​​
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The progressive approach to education is rooted in the belief that the best way to educate young people for democratic citizenship is for them to participate in democratic decision-making within a cooperative community. We intentionally build structured opportunities for students to bring forward their concerns and ideas about their school at every grade level.
For example, each classroom engages in some type of group meeting in which students can bring up topics that they feel should be discussed by the entire class. These meetings are led by a student leader, with each child having the opportunity to run a meeting at some point during the year. At the lower grades, such group meetings might include a discussion of sharing in the block area; at the older grades, topics may include social issues of inclusiveness or peer pressure.
Approximately once each month, students have an opportunity to bring up school-wide concerns or proposals at a Town Hall Meeting. With the entire school in attendance, a student leads the Town Hall Meeting, calling on children who wish to be heard.
Often decisions are reached by consensus, but when they are decided by a vote, the student leader then asks everyone if they can live with the decision, taking care to ensure that the minority voice is not trampled by the majority. In the history of The Children’s School, there have been instances where a lone kindergarten child, when asked “Can you live with it?”, has explained his objections so eloquently and articulately that the rest of the community was moved to change its collective opinion on the matter and reverse the vote.
Historic Influences on Progressive Education
"If we must influence children, let it be toward open-mindedness and tolerance. I think we can work out a new education that one's own good also is the world's and the world's good is one's own." Carleton Washburne
"TCS gave me a sense of community and built my confidence as both a learner and an advocate for myself. I would classify my child self as a 'follower,' and TCS helped shape me into the leader I am today."
TCS Graduate