Monika Wernz - Demokratische Schulen, Schulstress, Schulangst, Lernblockaden, ADHS und Schulverweigerung -

 

Kelly Sappir, Graduate, Sudbury School, Jerusalem 

 

Sudbury schools are free, democratic schools which operate according to the so-called Sudbury model, i.e. following the principles established over 40 years ago at the original school which was founded in Sudbury Valley, Framingham (Massachusetts), USA. Today there are about 40 such schools in existence throughout the world. Most of them are to be found in the USA, the others in Canada, Israel, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany,Japan, Australien. 

 

In Sudbury schools, the basic principles of our democratic society are taken seriously and lived out accordingly. The rights of children and adolescents to determine for themselves what and how they should learn is respected without any restrictions. And in addition to this freedom to exercise self-determination, pupils have the experience of forming their own learning environment according to democratic principles. There is no need to ‘teach’ democracy at a Sudbury school – it is a permanent, living part of the school’s very fabric. 

 

Sudbury schools are based on the empirically verifiable conviction that children and adolescents learn most effectively when they are able to decide for themselves what and how they learn. Children are inquisitive by nature. Left to themselves, they want to learn and to grasp – both literally and metaphorically – the world they live in so that they can orientate themselves. Effective, joyful learning takes place when people can pursue their own inclinations in an atmosphere which is free of anxiety and pressure. This opens up new perspectives, broadens experience. Under these circumstance, making mistakes becomes one of the most valuable paths to learning.