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"OK, so You're Sort of Like..." |
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By Romey Pitman
After hearing a short explanation of our school's philosophy, many people understandably try to link it with something already familiar to them. The most frequently mentioned "so-you're-sort-of-likes" are listed below. We have tried to be fair, but clear, in distinguishing ourselves from other philosophies. However, all the subtleties of these educational models are not laid out and comparisons are not made from every angle. We hope that the explanations below serve to clarify what the Sudbury model is really about, and what it is not.
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Sudbury Valley School was founded in 1968. Located on the mid-nineteenth century Bowditch estate, the ten acre campus adjoins extensive conservation lands of the Sudbury Valley Trustees and Callahan State Park. A millpond offers opportunities for fishing and ice skating. The old stone mansion and barn are furnished, for the most part, like a home. The atmosphere at school is relaxed and informal.
Permission to freely copy and distribute this document is given, provided that the text is not modified or abridged and this notice is included. For more information about SVS available electronically, check http://www.sudval.org
"The judicial system was really important because it was so obviously justice that you were involved in... You knew how difficult it was. You were on both sides, or all sides, because you might be... a witness, or a complainant, or the alleged violator, or a member of the judicial committee."
The judicial system at Sudbury Valley is one of the keystones of the school's structure, and has long been our pride and joy. We have always felt, based on the values of the American experience, that due process of law is an essential element in a school embodying the principles of personal liberty, mutual respect, and political democracy. Early in the first year of the school's existence, the School Meeting devoted long hours to establishing the legal principles and juridical structure of the school, with results that quickly produced a stable social order and a prevailing feeling among students, staff, and parents that here everyone got a fair shake when brought before the bar of justice.
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The Sudbury Model of Education |
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By Jeff Collins, HVSS Founder and Staff Member
The Hudson Valley Sudbury School in Woodstock, NY is a radically different form of education based on self-initiated learning, democratic governance and individual responsibility. Our inspiration comes from the highly successful Sudbury Valley School in Framingham, MA, which was started in 1968 on the principle that people learn best when they are self-motivated.
The Responsibility Spectrum
The fundamental difference between a Sudbury school and any other type of school is the student's level of responsibility. In a Sudbury school the students are solely responsible for their education, their learning methods, their evaluation and their environment.
In a public school, the state takes responsibility for most aspects of a student's education including curriculum and evaluation. The student is left with little responsibility except to learn what is taught, how it is taught, in the environment in which it is taught and then to reiterate it back at evaluation time.
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