Sudbury Valley School

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The Sudbury Valley School was founded in 1968 in Framingham, Massachusetts. There are now over 40 schools based on the Sudbury Model in the United States, Canada, Denmark, Israel, Netherlands, and Australia. The model has two basic tenets: educational freedom and democratic governance.

Central to the school is the weekly School Meeting, based on the traditional New England town meeting. Students and staff are invited to participate in the running of the school, with equal votes. This applies to all aspects of the school, including finances, new rules, and the election of staff. The school is attended by children from 4 to 19 years old.

The school's philosophy asserts that by giving children trust and responsibility at an early age, it is much easier for them to learn what they want, how they want it, and how to achieve this. Students at the school are free to choose how to spend their time.

About 80% of the students continue to study at other schools after they've graduated from Sudbury Valley. Most of them are accepted at the university of their first choice.

Of the many books and videos available on Sudbury Valley, 'Free at Last', by Daniel Greenberg, is a good book to get acquainted with the school's philosophy.

History

Campus

Students

Faculty

There is no tenure at Sudbury Valley School -- an election for staff is held each year. Several of the founding members are still present at the school, and some of them have written extensively about the school and its unique model of education.

Daniel Greenberg Hanna Greenberg Mimsy Sadofsky Scott Gray

Extracurricular activities

Curriculum

The school is non-compulsory, so there are no required classes of students. Students are free to request classes of their choice, or even teach classes of their own.

Noted Alumni

See also

External links