FAQs

 Frequently Asked Questions About the Society-Centered School

What is the belief system behind the society-based curriculum?

The society-based curriculum is founded on the idea that students learn best from active learning with a positive outcome. Students participate in real-world experiences to build a skill set that will be beneficial to them as future members of society. The world becomes the classroom.

What does a society-based classroom look like?

A classroom that follows the society-based curriculum is heavily focused on group projects and collective learning. More importantly, much of the “work” takes place outside of the classroom, as students are expected to ask themselves how they can make a difference in society. The real world becomes the classroom, and students work collectively to apply their knowledge and learned skills to help improve society (Ellis 72).

What are some of the challenges that a teacher might face in the society-based school?

As a teacher in a society-based school, it may be hard to be objective as a teacher when facilitating learning. Teachers are naturally helpers - they want to guide and intervene, but in the society-based model teachers take a step back and simply guide students to form their own conclusions. This may be difficult for a teacher who is not used to this approach.

Also, “with political and social sensitivities greatly heightened, I do think this kind of foray into the community and its culture could be fraught with potential controversy. I suspect many would steer clear of the risk” (Boccia). In contemporary American society there is a great deal of media attention on potential controversies, and teachers would need to be careful to obtain permission from parents for any community projects.

What skills do teachers need in a society-based school?

Teachers need to be “resourceful to identify learning opportunities in the community and skillful at managing and motivating groups” (Boccia). Teachers also need to be cautious in that they want to give students guidance without leading a discussion or project, while at the same time respecting students’ differences of opinion.

How is planning different in a society-based classroom?

Planning runs the risk of being slightly more unpredictable in a society-based curriculum, as “one cannot prescribe the curriculum ahead of time as one might a knowledge-centered curriculum” (Ellis 73). However, teachers who are knowledgeable of social opportunities for their students and have experience in facilitating such opportunities will have less trouble. Planning does require guidance from the teacher, and more importantly planning from the students. As Ellis states, “the issues must come from the learners’ life experiences” and the teacher does not always know ahead of time what students will come up with (73).

How are teachers trained?

Teachers are not trained in the same way as those who teach in a teacher-directed classroom. As stated above, it is up to the teacher to help students identify opportunities in the community and learn how to manage group projects. Teachers who have prior experience working in the community or who are knowledgeable of such opportunities will be the most successful.