Social Equity, Environment, & Development

S.E.E.D. Mission Statement: SEED nurtures and challenges interested, curious and compassionate students to grapple with today's major social issues and, in turn, produces empowered leaders.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

On Thematic Learning...

S.E.E.D. (Social Equity, Environment, and Development)


Yearlong Thematic Learning



A thematic approach to learning is by no means my idea, nor a new idea. Many schools use this approach to learning, understanding the value of approaching a topic from many different angles. This type of learning allows students to understand that ideas are multi-faceted; it turns the classroom into a more creative environment; and the learning becomes something real and valuable, not just an academic exercise.


SEED Academy, however, will re-invent Thematic Learning, pushing education in a critical direction. SEED has identified Environmental Sustainability, Social Justice and Global Citizenship as the most important issues for students to debate, understand, and appreciate. Recognizing this, SEED has set each of these topics to be the theme for the first three years of high school, respectively. Students will still learn the necessary skills covered in typical math, science, english, history and foreign language courses. However, they will do so through the lens of these major themes. What will this look like?


ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY: Freshmen will read Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring and Bill McKibben’s End of Nature while also studying bio-diversity modeled with a statistical analysis of variation. This will be supplemented by 10 weeks spent in the woods, studying watersheds and investigating public vs private land use.


SOCIAL JUSTICE: Sophomores will research famous non-violent leaders and study the history of race, religion, gender, and class. An understanding of bio-chemistry and mathematical modeling will shed light on environmental racism and classism. Students will investigate issues of access and privilege that will be focused on heavily during the 10 weeks spent doing a service-learning program in an urban underprivileged school system.


GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP: Juniors will investigate global development, focusing on appropriate, sustainable growth. Students will examine global economic systems, food production, and water scarcity. The study of physics and mathematics will allow students to grapple with critical issues of thermodynamics, which drives global weather and climate change. Students will become global citizens after spending 10 weeks either in Central America or China (depending on their foreign language), which will include 3 weeks of work on an organic farm.


How will students be able to spend the 10 weeks of direct experiential learning?

And what about senior year?


More later...


Sunday, August 22, 2010

The writing of the Mission Statement

Three days alone in New Hampshire, in the woods, in the White Mountains, in MARCH, in the snow. Ten days in total, backpacking with students. Spent much of the first two days alone sitting on a fallen tree over a bubbling winter creek. The third day it rained. 40 degrees. Cold. I sat under a tarp. Wood on one side, fire on the other. Writing. Thinking. Pondering education. Meditating on experience. Dreaming of my perfect school. Scribbling ideas down on paper. Rethinking. Revising.

When I finished, I stoked the fire. It burned bright and hot. I danced in the snow, barefoot, getting soaked by the rain.

Feeling very alive.