Submission Date

4-28-2025

Document Type

Paper

Department

Education

Adviser

Stephanie Mackler

Committee Member

John Spencer

Committee Member

Jennifer Fleeger

Department Chair

John Spencer

Project Description

This paper seeks to explore critiques of the structure of traditional US public schools and investigate alternative methods of schooling that have looked to address these critiques in various ways. I draw upon various educational theorists to argue that the structure of traditional public schools, through their lack of freedom and choice given to students (and oftentimes teachers), creates an environment where students do not care about or feel connected to their education and what they are learning in school. There are various foundational elements that contribute to this structure of school, such as the switching of classes and the grading and assessment systems. This passive form of education that is often the result of these systems can create disengagement between students and their schooling, as they often just do what they must do to finish an assignment or get a grade, regardless of whether they care about what they are doing. I argue that this feeds into the kinds of people we create in the outside world. I then draw upon alternative models of schooling with different structural values that provide more freedom, choice, and autonomy to students and teachers to explain the importance of these ideals in education. Ultimately, I argue that these ideals are essential to cultivate in students in our present world, but the current structure of schools does not fully allow for their cultivation.

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