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 Structured Education 
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We have discussed the Sudbury School and the positive and negative aspects of this establishment with regards to motivation, productivity, and reading readiness. Many of us have decided that children at young ages just can't be expected to learn to read or get a grasp of the basics, unless they are made to do so. However, most of us could also agree that children do need time to seek out their passions and follow the whims that lead them to find out what they are most interested in. I can't help but think that all of these issues would be non-issues if the students were given structure within this framework. What would happen if students at Sudbury could choose a focus area of interest and then take a series of classes and/or workshops (that integrated reading into them) to get to know their passions better? If given a guided course to go down, each child could pursue their interests without losing or wasting valuable learning time.

I see these same issues in my own classroom. I've found that if I am teaching a guided reading lesson, and my students are following along with me and doing the required amount of work within a given amount of time, they are able to get a lot done. However, when I do "Workshop Wednesday", which is a day of reading, spelling, and grammar centers, some of my students get nearly nothing done. This is due to the fact that some of them can't handle all of the options and the open time period to get them all done. They need guidance, a time limit, and some STRUCTURE to be successful!

Many parents have also told me that it takes their children 3 hours to get their homework done at night (which should really only take them 45 minutes!) My question to them is whether or not their child has a structured place to do homework, or if they are sitting in front of the TV trying to focus. They sometimes realize that structure makes all of the difference in the world in helping their children accomplish their homework goals.

I think both children and adults need structure in order to meet their goals and accomplish great things. The Sudbury School could use a little more structure within their program, in my opinion, in order to produce informed, productive students.

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Betsy Rosenbalm


Wed Nov 24, 2004 10:38 am
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I agree with you Betsy. I think that the Sudbury school does have some interesting points. It is important for students to have the opportunity to pursue their passions, but I think they need guidance from teachers and other professionals to help develop their passions. A child may love art or music, but they still need guided instruction and practice to master their passion. I think that the Sudbury school could create a more structured environment to help their students develop the skills necessary to choose and be successful in their chosen field. It may take students time to choose what areas they enjoy the most. A teached could help provide the opportunities to explore different subject areas so that students can see what they enjoy, what they are good at, and where they would be most successful. With guidance not only could a student pursue their passion, they could do so successfully.

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Amie Brock
5th Grade Teacher
Mount Olive Elementary


Mon Nov 29, 2004 10:16 pm
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This topic is locked, you cannot edit posts or make further replies.   [ 2 posts ] 

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