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The New School has a child-centered philosophy
based on the beliefs that every person desires
to learn, and that to become a responsible
adult, children must have the liberty to
practice being responsible. These are two areas
to consider, the school's attitude towards a
person and our beliefs concerning learning. |
| School is
intended to help children become responsible
adults. |
 Children
who have the use of language, are complete
people. They experience, think, and form
opinions. They have beliefs about reality, how
it functions, and the relationships between its
participants. Their beliefs may be different
from an adult's or less sophisticated by adult
standards, but they are not blank slates or
formless lumps ready to take on the shape
determined by an adult. Adults aid children in
their understanding of reality, not by imposing
unquestioned reality from without, but by
supporting the children's attempts at figuring
it out for themselves. This stems from a basic
respect for the child as a person. |
 Every
person, as an adult, is responsible for himself
and his actions in his community. School is
intended to help children become responsible
adults. We become adept at that which we
practice. This is true of intellectual, social,
physical, and personal pursuits. If children are
to be responsible adults, they must practice
responsibility while young. The New School acts
on this premise. To this end, the children are
responsible for the direction and progress of
their own education. No one will reap the fruits
of a person's labor or suffer the consequences
of his actions as personally as himself. |
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Although a person is responsible for himself,
human beings are social by nature, we exist
within communities. The community is a resource
and guide, providing possibilities and
assistance. When we practice something new, we
rely on coaches or experts in our community to
help us progress. The New School believes that a
community of responsible adults who are
themselves active learners with a wide range of
interests are the best examples for and coaches
of children. Although a community can provide
assistance, it cannot determine the directions a
child's investigation will take. In essence, we
do not intend to instruct, but to allow them to
learn. |
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Allowing children to learn often brings to mind a kind of
laissez-faire free-for-all in which tyrants of tender years terrorize well
meaning but ineffectual adults. On the contrary, because we allow them to make
their own decisions and feel the consequences of their actions, we are allowing
children to develop as far as they can with as little impediment as possible and
with only as much guidance as needed. Thus they learn to appreciate liberty,
instead of craving license. They will not become savages because every child,
from the time they* are small, longs to join the world around them, to become
like the people they see, to become competent adults.
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*The third-person plural form is here used as a
the third-person singular generic pronoun, since the word "student" in
the School's usage denotes a group of persons as well as the condition of an
individual; see, The American Heritage Book of English Usage (1996) Sec.
18 "they with singular antecedent.".
© 1996 -
December, 2011
The New School.
Last revised 09 Dec 2011
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