Free School

Have you ever heard of something called “Free School”? No, it doesn’t mean a school that provides education for free. Free school is a new idea that was formed in the USA in the beginning of 1960s. They encourage self-directed learning and protect child freedom of activity. There are no grades, no tests, no homework and classes are non-compulsory. They first sounded very appealing to some people and there were hundreds of free schools in the USA then. But now only a few of them remain. “Free Schools” believe that children are naturally curious and learn best when they want to, not when forced to. “You can do basically anything at any time.” says one of the students at school. Students are free to join or leave classes. They have many different lessons such as cheese tasting, book discussions, business, astrology, psychology, or videography. Not all the instructors are teachers; some classes are given by volunteers. The law in the USA says that each child should attend schools for 5.5 hours a day and that is the only thing that students in free school have to do. It is not easy to be accepted to free schools. Brooklyn Free School asks all applicants to first fill in an online form. Within two weeks the school gets back in touch with the family and arrange a visit for the student. After the visit families meet the Enrollment Team and have an interview. It is seen as a chance for both the parents and also the school administration to learn more about each other. The Enrollment Team evaluates applications and informs the family about their decision in a very short time. The tuition is $30,000 for the Lower School (Pre-K - 6th Grade), and $33,000 for the Upper School (7th - 12th Grade). There is one more thing that all middle school and high school students have to do. They are asked to attend a weekly meeting called the Democratic Meeting. At the meeting, students talk about the issues they have or others have at school. Students also set school rules when they think that they are necessary. Each student or teacher gets one vote. The students’ votes count as much as the votes of the teachers. The schools sound like a dream school but not many people think like that. Some people think that the school doesn’t prepare students for the real world. Some people also worry because the school does not have regular classes, like maths or reading. They also say that it will be difficult for students to sit in classes, be quiet and listen to a teacher. Because of these reasons there aren’t as many free schools in the USA as there were in the past.