By: Lizette Valles Recently, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC, served as a vibrant venue for the first-ever International Micro School Conference hosted by Microschools.com, Mysa, and Prenda. This event gathered a global community of microschool leaders, educators, researchers, social entrepreneurs, and innovators, all sharing a common goal: to explore and expand the horizons of microschools –  small learning environments designed to provide highly personalized learning experiences. This gathering was not just a conference but a celebration of inn ..read more

For the last five years, Kansas City educators have been visiting high schools across the country in search of great examples of real world learning including client projects, entrepreneurial experiences, internships, college credits, and industry recognized credentials.  Last month, a group of principals visited rural, suburban and urban Chicagoland high schools featuring real world learning experiences in career pathways.  Barrington High In the northern suburbs of Chicago, Barrington Community Unit School District 220 serves about 8400 learners and is known for its sense of commun ..read more

By: Whitney Emke There’s been a lot of talk lately about how things like screen time and pandemic-driven lockdowns are impacting children’s mental health and creating an “anxious generation.” What we haven’t heard nearly enough about, though, is what can happen when teachers and school leaders let students lead their own learning experiences that critically examine their communities and the broader world while designing real-world solutions to local and global issues.  Long story short? When you give students the tools and autonomy to engage meaningfully with their surroundings, they lear ..read more

Fundamentally, a microschool can be located anywhere. These nimble schooling models, while at the forefront of current education innovation, are a return to education at its most elemental. Microschools are a modern iteration of the age-old one-room schoolhouse concept, where small groups of students engage in often personalized and experience-based learning experiences. These schools often cater to mixed-age groups, allowing for flexible curriculum adaptations based on individual student needs, interests, and learning paces. The intimate setting fosters close relationships between students an ..read more

By Tyler Thigpen  Join me in a thought experiment where we envision creating a school focused on cultivating dependent students. Yes, you read that correctly—dependent learners who rely heavily on others for guidance and decision-making. While this concept might initially strike us as unsettling, let’s temporarily set aside our judgments and explore how such a school could be developed.  First, our hypothetical institution would prioritize structured learning environments. Students would navigate carefully orchestrated steps, minimizing the need for independent problem-solving. We’d ..read more

By: Seth Kannarr When we consider taking a vacation, we often make plans to visit our national parks. Whether it is the nostalgia from family road trips growing up, or just a desire to escape our daily routine and reconnect with the outdoors, over 300 million Americans travel to the 429 units managed by the National Park Service across the United States every year. Instead of reserving these cherished protected areas for just our travel plans with friends and family, educators have the opportunity to take these natural and historic wonders and bring them directly to the students in their class ..read more

Youth violence causes death and injury. Homicide is the third leading cause of death among young people aged 10 to 24.  Every day, approximately 12 young people are homicide victims, and nearly 1,400 are treated in emergency rooms for nonfatal assault-related injuries. Youth violence is expensive. According to Federal Data on Youth, “Youth homicides and nonfatal physical assault-related injuries result in an estimated $18.2 billion in combined medical and lost productivity costs.” Youth violence is widespread. One out of every five high school students reported being bullied on school gro ..read more

By: Erin Whalen As school builders, how do we best minimize blindspots, respond to inequities, and create universally designed spaces that account for the diverse array of lived experiences within our schools?  By building from the margins, or redesigning in deep consideration of the most underserved, we have the opportunity to create empowering schools that use the experiences of the most at-promised youth to enhance the overall school.  The design process must be centered around the user experience. Youth must be at the table to share insights, illuminate blindspots, and critique c ..read more

The unique connection between wolves and humans has been researched and chronicled in film, literature, and art. Additionally, the connection between teenagers and wolves might even be more aligned as both have a strong need to belong socially, are often misunderstood or misrepresented, and sometimes are even abused and neglected. This special relationship is at the center of the work at Wolf Connection – a unique 165-acre educational sanctuary in southern California that brings people together through direct relationships with rescued wolves for the purpose of empowering the next generation t ..read more

By: Danish Kurani Here’s an alarming statistic: in a 2019 survey of 47,000 high school students, just 40% of students said they felt like “a real part of this school.” That means 60% of students show up to school each day feeling, to some degree, like outsiders. Given the intense isolation many students have felt during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s hard to imagine this lack of belonging has gotten any better. In fact, it’s likely gotten worse. So, what happens to those kids? Research shows that a lack of belonging at school causes students to disengage. Their performance suffers. And ..read more