IDEC 2013 - part 1 - inspiration and intention

Inspiration

Our preschool is just finishing our first year of living by the democratic process. We were inspired by our collective years of experience teaching, learning, reading about and toying with the democratic process in classrooms, and one of our big inspirations, Teacher Tom. <---This is a link to one of his many posts about how the kids at his school make their own rules by unanimous consensus, the process on which we modeled our system this year.

Another big inspiration for me has been Summerhill School and its founder A.S. Neill. When I was teaching in London and learned about this amazing school, my mind was blown and changed forever. It's a school where kids can choose whether or not to go to class. They can play outside all day if they want to. They can make choices about their education, learning what they want, when they want. And it works. And one of the major goals behind it is for people to be happy. One of A.S. Neill's famous quotes is, "I would rather Summerhill produced a happy street sweeper than a neurotic prime minister," the idea being that when people are in control of their lives and their education, they are happier and more well-adjusted. Another major aspect of Summerhill is that the kids make the rules, practicing democratic principles in meaningful contexts for their whole childhood. What better way to raise citizens who are prepared to participate in a democracy?

We had a very successful year implementing the democratic process. There's lots of room for improvement, but isn't that always the case? We've just recently had a big meeting of all the teachers from both schools to reflect and share on our experiences and goals for the future. It's exciting. And now comes...

IDEC 2013

Our director, Kris, and I are heading to Boulder, CO tomorrow for the International Democratic Education Conference, a gathering of people from at least 28 countries who are interested in making real, meaningful change in education. It feels so big I almost don't know what to say about it. Educators, youth, kids, parents, activists, artists, "artivists," social justice workers, and many more categories of people will be there to share their experiences, build community, exchange ideas, and much more.

I've barely started reading the dozens of bios of the "coffee talkers" who are scheduled to help facilitate discussions. What do I want to learn about? How will I decide where to go?

My 7 Intentions for the Conference

1.  I want to find the other people working in the early childhood years. My impression is that most of the emphasis will be on K-12 education, with an even greater emphasis in middle and high school education. But I know we're not the only ones doing democratic education in the preschool years, so I want to find some others and pick their brains.

2.  I want to talk to people who are using democratic principles and freedom in elementary schools, where my teaching career began. I want to find out if there are people giving kids their freedom in the context of the public school system, in this country or beyond, and how they manage it.

3.  I want to meet people who have started their own schools. I love working with preschoolers, and I'm always sad when we send them off to kindergarten because I know that most schools out there are going to make them sit down, stay inside, conform, keep their clothes on, do homework, take tests, and learn what the teacher/district/state says it's time to learn. I dream of having a school that goes from infants to 8th grade (maybe even beyond, who knows?) that is one hundred percent free and democratic.

4.  I want to talk to folks from a wide variety of backgrounds. I work in a small, tuition-based private preschool, so our families tend to be more privileged than many in our city. It's relatively easy for my students' families to find them progressive schools to attend once preschool is over. My partner teaches 2nd grade in a low-income area of the Oakland Unified School District. Her students' families don't have much choice. I want to talk to people who are passionate about closing the gap, about making progressive, democratic education possible for all children regardless of their situation in life.

5.  I want to find out how to empower parents to become activists and change agents. I believe that our education system needs a REALLY BIG overhaul, and I guess organizing is the only way anything big ever happens. I've always been more of a dreamer than a doer, so I'm looking to find some doers who can give me tips to bring back to my community, to do our small part to grow the movement for democracy and freedom!

6.  As a music-maker, I also want to sing and play and learn some new songs and share some songs that I know.  I hear there will be singing every morning, so I'm excited about that.

7.  Lastly, I intend to post every day with the details of what I've learned and explored and wondered about.

So, that's it, not much really!!
Colorado, here we come!!

reggio 101

So, what is this Reggio Emilia, anyway?

Reggio Emilia is not a philosophy that one can be certified in, like Montessori.  Reggio Emilia is a city in northern Italy that has developed its own unique approach to early childhood education over the past fifty years.  It's an approach that cannot be duplicated anywhere else in the world because it's unique to its locale, its people and its culture.  Nevertheless, educators from all over the world have started traveling to Reggio Emilia to study with the teachers*, atelieristas* and pedagogistas* of the preschools and infant-toddler centers there.

According to the North American Reggio Emilia Alliance (NAREA)'s website, "The Reggio educators seek to support early educators around the world in understanding and strengthening the identity of their own school and community, rather than attempting to replicate the experiences of children, teachers and parents in another culture and community...  Reggio educators hope to promote dialogue among educators...  Through this process, educators can then ensure that the learning and relationships of children, teachers and parents within their school community reflect their shared values."

So, to start the dialogue, let's delve into some of the basics.  Lella Gandini, the U.S. liaison for Reggio Children, wrote an article titled, "Values and Principles of the Reggio Emilia Approach."  These are my interpretations of the nine basic tenets she cites (link to Lella's article below).

The Image of the Child.  This is about how we view children, what we think them capable of.  The image of the child shapes everything about the teacher's approach to education.  If we believe that children are intelligent and creative, whole human beings, citizens of today, capable of constructing their own knowledge and understanding of the world, then we design our schools to respect and support them, and they rise to meet their fullest potential.





Children's Relationships and Interactions Within a System.  Children do not learn and grow in isolation.  Their understanding of the world is intertwined with their interactions with family, community, teachers, and peers.  In school, all of these relationships can be examined and strengthened to best support the child.

The Role of Parents.  Parents have a right and responsibility to be involved in their children's education.  In Reggio Emilia, parent participation is encouraged and expected, and varies according to each parent's strengths and interests, just as with the children.

The Role of Space: Amiable Schools.  There is an emphasis on aesthetics in Reggio Emilia: high ceilings, lots of light, natural materials and works of art make the classrooms beautiful to behold.  The environment is known as the "third teacher," and is thoughtfully arranged to support children's learning through materials provocations and social interaction.

Teachers and Children as Partners in learning.  "The Role of the Teacher" is not to instruct or lead the children, but to be "co-researchers," learning alongside the children.  The teachers ask: What are the children thinking?  How is their thinking changing?  What questions can we ask, what materials can we provide, what problem can we present that will take their thinking to the next level?



Not a Pre-Set Curriculum, but a Process of Inviting and Sustaining Learning.  The teachers observe the children to know in which direction to take the learning.  Lella talks about learning as a "spiral progression," in which the teachers and children circle back on a topic, adding layers of understanding with every new experience or interaction.  It's an active process; the teachers have to be on the cutting edge of where the children are going, prepared to present the next step, and also prepared to veer in a completely unexpected direction if that's where the children end up going.


 

The Power of Documentation.  Photos, transcriptions of children's comments and conversations, videos, tape recordings, and samples of children's work are collected all along the way.  The teachers examine the documentation to figure out where to take the project work next, and bring it back to the children to reexamine and rethink.  When documentation is shared with parents it keeps them connected and makes the children's learning visible.  When shared with the community, it can invite the general public's broader engagement with schools, and investment in progressive educational approaches (one would hope).

The Many Languages of Children.  This is the idea that children have infinite ways to express their thoughts, ideas, imaginings, understandings.  The many various materials that are always available in Reggio classrooms and ateliers (art studios) support children in expressing themselves in their own unique ways.  Loris Malaguzzi, the founder of the Reggio Emilia schools, wrote a poem called "The Hundred Languages" that, to me, best explains this idea.  I've included a link to a lovely video of the poem below.

Projects.  Known in Italian as "progettazione" (I like learning a little Italian in this process), the projects are the basis for the children's work, and can last for just a week, or can progress throughout the entire year.  You never know what might become a project - a chance encounter with a worm in the garden can lead to a month's worth of research, artwork and discovery.  The important thing is that the projects are initiated by the children and follow the natural trajectory of the children's interests.


There you have it, the basics of the Reggio Emilia approach.  It fits in one small blog post but, I am beginning to believe, takes a lifetime to understand.  This is just the first time around the spiral.

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Reggio educator definitions (to the best of my understanding):

*Teacher - each Reggio classroom has two teachers, who collaborate on all of the day-to-day running of the classroom, documentation, project work, etc.
*Atelierista - an art teacher, one at each school, who collaborates with classroom teachers to support the children in representing their ideas in as many ways as possible.
*Pedagogista - a highly educated professional who oversees a handful of Reggio schools, supporting the teachers in interpreting their research and documentation, to make the most of the educational possibilities for the children.

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Links:

Reggio Emilia's own website:  http://zerosei.comune.re.it/inter/index.htm
North American Reggio Emilia Alliance (NAREA):  http://www.reggioalliance.org/narea.php
NAREA's FAQ page:  http://www.reggioalliance.org/faq.php#approach
Lella Gandini "Values and Principles of the Reggio Emilia Approach" pdf:  www.learningmaterialswork.com/pdfs/ValuesAndPrinciples.pdf
"The Hundred Languages," poem by Loris Malaguzzi, illuminated by Sarah McRoberts:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=174pYUcwn7w