How Can Essential Schools Approach State and District Policies? 1. Course Requirements Identifying specific courses that high schools must offer. Approach: An Essential school could incorporate a required course (such as U.S. History) into an interdisciplinary offering (such as 11th grade Humanities). 2. Textbook Selection Requiring that state- or district-selected textbooks be used by schools. Approach: An Essential school could
Two teachers are working on integrating the government and earth science instruction at their high school, linking environmental concerns to their political ramifications. The principal has scheduled their classes back to back, and they are planning to meet the two groups together. But state regulations forbid the earth science teacher from doing so, because she is not certified to teach
RE:LEARNING: From Schoolhouse to Statehouse is the joint initiative of the Education Commission of the States and the Coalition of Essential Schools. Its aim is to help the whole spectrum of educators–from schoolhouse to statehouse– rethink the purpose of education, the pedagogies and curricula in light of that purpose, and the structures and environments supporting that purpose. For more information
“When a letter from ECS came across my desk inviting states to participate in Re:Learning I thought, ‘What a shame; I have seventeen other projects going and one more is just impossible,’” says Donna Wall, until recently the Commissioner of Schools for Pennsylvania and its Re:Learning coordinator. “Two days later, I got a copy of a letter from our secretary