Freedom, not license
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Once they feel secure, children become most deeply engaged when they have autonomy. Supporting children's social, emotional and cognitive development requires that we involve them in it, and allow them to imagine and lay out their own paths.
We conceive the school as a space organized in an open, dynamic and interactive way. This has nothing to do with letting things simply "happen" randomly, or following the will of each person, but rather requires clear and consistent planning and expectations, rules and relationships based on trust, as well as role models.
Children's actions always follow an intention –whether they are conscious of it or not. This happens especially in free play, when a child chooses and sets the goals herself. The challenge for the facilitator is to create learning situations in which children are able to connect with their own intentions and motivations, for otherwise they risk becoming overly dependent on adults and on ready-made knowledge.
The degree to which this freedom can effectively promote meaningful learning at Kaleide International School is partly dependent on offering children a multiplicity of learning contexts, materials, and interactions to choose from. But we believe that merely giving children opportunities for choice is a narrow view of freedom if we do not, simultaneously, foster an environment in which children feel impelled to create and where they know that their contributions are relevant, valued, and serve to effect constructive changes for the whole community. This is in direct relationship to our capacity as educators to nourish in children a deep sense of belonging and responsibility.
Self-determination and autonomy are essential to our approach, and branch into other foundations of learning such as free play, free movement, and risk-taking. The skills and attitudes acquired through self-determination –such as connection to our true interests, increased sense of control and agency, self-organisation, resilience and independent thinking– are also directly related to one of our main “learning contexts”, project-based learning, which relies on children's capacity to set themselves challenges, take an active role in decision-making and view mistakes as opportunities for learning.
Individual freedom at our school is always contained within an overarching collective view of freedom where a child's choices and actions must support the well-being of everyone. Our aim is to help children to realise not just their deep connection to and responsibility for their own individual experience, but also for the well-being of other human beings, our communities, and the natural environment.
