Princeton Learning Cooperative documentary (17m)

[xcriteria]

Princeton Learning Cooperative in Princeton, NJ is based on the North Star / Liberated Learners model. If you really want out of school (or want to help change education), I'd suggest learning everything you can about this approach.

You could even help start a center in your area; they're usually started by unhappy teachers who are desperate for a way to actually help young people learn in a life-relevant, non-coercive way.



Watch on YouTube

[xcriteria]

The entire point of this model is to help teens who hate school opt out, while still working with teacher-like people (which parents like) in a location away from home with other young people (which parents like, and it's one thing even school-haters sometimes like about school.) But rather than being forced to attend every day, attendance is voluntary. And above all, this model involves teacher-like staff explaining to your parents why you really don't need traditional schooling to go to college or succeed in life... something your school's staff may well refuse to do.

And, the centers -- though they do take work to set up -- can be created pretty easily, since they technically aren't schools and usually operate in borrowed space in other buildings.

It's interesting -- PLC was launched in 2010 with two founders, Joel Hammon and Paul Scutt (former teachers), and a handful of members, after Joel learned about North Star (originally called Pathfinder) from the second edition Teenage Liberation Handbook and got in touch with Ken Danford. (Ken was originally inspired to start Pathfinder in large part by the first edition.)

PLC has grown a lot in the past few years, and that's led to Joel, Ken and a whole team helping others set up similar centers through the Liberated Learners model.

What do you think? Do you see the promise in this?