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In a speech in March, President Obama said it was unacceptable that “as many as a quarter of American students are not finishing high school.” But our current educational approach doesn’t just fail to prepare teenagers for graduation or for college academics; it fails to prepare them, in a profound way, for adult life.
We want young people to become independent and capable, yet we structure their days 1)to the minute and give them few opportunities to do anything but answer multiple-choice questions, follow instructions and memorize information. We 2)cast social interaction as an 3)impediment to learning, yet all evidence points to the huge role it plays in their psychological development.
That’s why we need to rethink the very nature of high school itself.
I recently followed a group of eight public high school students, aged 15 to 17, in western Massachusetts as they designed and ran their own school within a school. They represented the usual range: two were close to dropping out before they started the project, while others were honors students. They named their school the Independent Project.
Their guidance 4)counselor was their adviser, consulting with them when the group 5)flagged in energy or encountered an obstacle. Though they sought advice from English, math and science teachers, they were responsible for monitoring one another’s work and giving one another feedback. There were no grades, but at the end of the semester, the students wrote evaluations of their classmates.
The students also designed their own6)curriculum, deciding to 7)split their September-to-January term into two halves.
During the first half, they formulated and then answered questions about the natural and social world, including “Are the plant cells at the bottom of a nearby mountain different than those at the top of the mountain?” and “Why do we cry?” They not only 8)critiqued one another’s 9)queries, but also the answers they came up with. Along the way, they acquired essential tools of inquiry, like how to devise good methods for gathering various kinds of data.
During the second half, the group practiced what they called “the literary and mathematical arts.” They chose eight novels—including works by 10)Kurt Vonnegut, William Faulkner and Oscar Wilde—to read in eight weeks. That is more than the school’s 11)A.P. English class reads in an entire year.
Meanwhile, each of them focused on specific mathematical topics, from 12)quadratic equations to the numbers behind poker. They sought the help of full-time math teachers, consulted books and online sources and, whenever possible, taught one another.
They also each undertook an “individual endeavor,” learning to play the piano or to cook, writing a novel or making a 13)podcast about domestic violence. At the end of the term, they performed these new skills in front of the entire 14)student body and 15)faculty.
Finally, they 16)embarked on a collective endeavor, which they agreed had to have social significance. Because they felt the whole experience had been so life-changing, they ended up making a film showing how other students could start and run their own schools.
The results of their experiment have been17)transformative. An Independence Project student who had once considered dropping out of school found he couldn’t bear to stop focusing on his current history question but didn’t want to miss out on exploring a new one. When he asked the group if it would be okay to pursue both, another student answered, “Yeah, I think that’s what they call learning.”
One student who had failed all of his previous math courses spent three weeks teaching the others about probability. Another said: “I did well before. But I had forgotten what I actually like doing.” They have all returned to the conventional curriculum and are doing well. Two of the seniors are applying to highly selective 18)liberal arts colleges.
The students in the Independent Project are remarkable but not because they are exceptionally motivated or unusually talented. They are remarkable because they demonstrate the kinds of learning and personal growth that are possible when teenagers feel ownership of their high school 19)experience, when they learn things that matter to them and when they learn together. In such a setting, school 20)capitalizes on rather than 21)thwarts the intensity and engagement that teenagers usually reserve for sports, protest or friendship.
Schools everywhere could initiate an Independent Project. All it takes are serious, committed students and a supportive faculty. These projects might not be exactly alike: students might 22)apportion their time differently, or add another discipline to the mix. But if the Independent Project students are any indication, participants will end up more accomplished, more engaged and more knowledgeable than they would have been taking regular courses.
We have tried making the school day longer and 23)blanketing students with standardized tests. But perhaps children don’t need another reform imposed on them. Instead, they need to be the authors of their own education.
奥巴马总统在三月的一次讲话中提到“有高达四分之一的美国学生没有读完高中”，这个事实真令人无法接受。但是，我们目前的教学方法不仅没让青少年顺利毕业或是升读大学，从深层来看，还没能让他们为以后的成年生活做好准备。
我们希望年轻人能够变得独立能干，可是我们却又将他们所有的时间都安排得满满当当的，除了做多项选择题、听从教导和死记硬背以外，几乎不给他们任何机会去做别的事情。我们将社交活动视为学习的障碍，但是所有证据都表明，社交活动对于他们的心理发展具有巨大作用。
这也就是为什么我们需要重新思考中学教育的本质。
最近在马萨诸塞州的西部地区，有八名15至17岁的公立中学学生准备在学校里设立自己的学校，我对此进行了跟踪调查。他们正好代表了两个典型群体：在开始项目之前，其中两个处于退学边缘，而其他的全是优等生。他们给自己的学校取名为“独立项目”。
他们的咨询顾问也是他们的指导教师，会在团队缺乏干劲或是遇到困难时提供建议。尽管他们还从英语、数学和科学老师那里征求建议，但他们还要相互监督工作，并反馈意见。他们不用分数来评定成绩，但是学期结束时，这些学生会相互评估。
这些学生还自己设计课程安排，他们决定将九月至次年一月的学期分成两期。
在前半个学期，他们制定并解答关于自然和社会世界的问题，其中包括“附近山脚下的植物细胞是否与山顶上的植物细胞不同？”以及“我们为什么会哭？”等问题。他们不仅会相互点评对方提出的问题，还会点评他们所想到的回答。通过这种方法，他们学到了调查研究的基本手段，譬如说，如何设计出收集不同数据的好方法。
而在后半个学期，这个小组则练习他们称之为“文学和数学艺术”的内容。他们选出了八部小说在八周内阅读，其中包括库尔特·冯内古特、威 廉·福克纳和奥斯卡·王尔德的作品。这比学校里大学预修英语课全年的阅读量还要多。
同时，他们每个人都负责特定的数学专题，从二次方程到扑克牌背后的数字。他们向专职数学老师寻求帮助、查阅参考书和网上资料，并且一有机会就相互请教。
他们每个人还进行了一项“个人尝试”，如学习弹钢琴或烹饪，写小说或制作一段关于家庭暴力的播客。在学期结束时，他们会在全体师生面前展示这些新才艺。
最后，他们还进行了一项共同尝试，并一致决定这项尝试必须具有社会意义。因为他们觉得整个（项目）体验给自己的人生带来了很大改变，最终，他们一起制作了一部电影，向其他学生展示可以如何开办和管理属于自己的学校。
这些学生的切身体验给自身带来了巨大转变。一名曾一度考虑退学的学生在参加完“独立项目”后，发现自己总是忍不住去思索他目前尚未解答的历史学问题，但是又不愿错过对新问题的探索。当他询问小组其他成员，他能否同时研究两个问题时，另一名学生回答说：“可以啊，我想这就是他们所说的学习吧。”
还有一名学生，之前他所有的数学课全都挂科了，如今他却一连三个星期向其他学生讲授概率学。另一名学生说：“我以前成绩很好，但是我已经忘记了自己真正喜欢的是什么。”现在，他们全都回归到传统的课程中，且表现出色。有两名高年级的学生还向挑选严格的文科学院递交了入学申请。
参与“独立项目”的学生们有出色表现，并不是因为他们格外地努力或是天赋异禀，而是因为他们证明了当青少年觉得能够主动掌控自己的中学知识、学习对自己有用的知识、共同学习时，学习和个人成长并非难事。在这样的环境中，学校应该充分发挥而非挫伤青少年的积极性，削弱其参与度，以往他们往往只会把这份劲头放在运动、示威抗议和交友之上。
各地的学校都可以发起自己的“独立项目”。它只需要认真且坚定的学生，以及全力支持的教师就足已。这些项目不一定要完全相同：学生可以用不同的方式分配时间，或是在课程中增加不同的学科。但是如果说参与“独立项目”的学生们会有什么变化的话，那就是与接受常规课程相比，他们最终会变得更有才华、专注且博学。
我们努力延长上课时间，对学生一概进行标准化测试，但也许孩子们并不需要另一个革新强加在他们身上。相反地，他们希望能够书写自己的教育之路。
We want young people to become independent and capable, yet we structure their days 1)to the minute and give them few opportunities to do anything but answer multiple-choice questions, follow instructions and memorize information. We 2)cast social interaction as an 3)impediment to learning, yet all evidence points to the huge role it plays in their psychological development.
That’s why we need to rethink the very nature of high school itself.
I recently followed a group of eight public high school students, aged 15 to 17, in western Massachusetts as they designed and ran their own school within a school. They represented the usual range: two were close to dropping out before they started the project, while others were honors students. They named their school the Independent Project.
Their guidance 4)counselor was their adviser, consulting with them when the group 5)flagged in energy or encountered an obstacle. Though they sought advice from English, math and science teachers, they were responsible for monitoring one another’s work and giving one another feedback. There were no grades, but at the end of the semester, the students wrote evaluations of their classmates.
The students also designed their own6)curriculum, deciding to 7)split their September-to-January term into two halves.
During the first half, they formulated and then answered questions about the natural and social world, including “Are the plant cells at the bottom of a nearby mountain different than those at the top of the mountain?” and “Why do we cry?” They not only 8)critiqued one another’s 9)queries, but also the answers they came up with. Along the way, they acquired essential tools of inquiry, like how to devise good methods for gathering various kinds of data.
During the second half, the group practiced what they called “the literary and mathematical arts.” They chose eight novels—including works by 10)Kurt Vonnegut, William Faulkner and Oscar Wilde—to read in eight weeks. That is more than the school’s 11)A.P. English class reads in an entire year.
Meanwhile, each of them focused on specific mathematical topics, from 12)quadratic equations to the numbers behind poker. They sought the help of full-time math teachers, consulted books and online sources and, whenever possible, taught one another.
They also each undertook an “individual endeavor,” learning to play the piano or to cook, writing a novel or making a 13)podcast about domestic violence. At the end of the term, they performed these new skills in front of the entire 14)student body and 15)faculty.
Finally, they 16)embarked on a collective endeavor, which they agreed had to have social significance. Because they felt the whole experience had been so life-changing, they ended up making a film showing how other students could start and run their own schools.
The results of their experiment have been17)transformative. An Independence Project student who had once considered dropping out of school found he couldn’t bear to stop focusing on his current history question but didn’t want to miss out on exploring a new one. When he asked the group if it would be okay to pursue both, another student answered, “Yeah, I think that’s what they call learning.”
One student who had failed all of his previous math courses spent three weeks teaching the others about probability. Another said: “I did well before. But I had forgotten what I actually like doing.” They have all returned to the conventional curriculum and are doing well. Two of the seniors are applying to highly selective 18)liberal arts colleges.
The students in the Independent Project are remarkable but not because they are exceptionally motivated or unusually talented. They are remarkable because they demonstrate the kinds of learning and personal growth that are possible when teenagers feel ownership of their high school 19)experience, when they learn things that matter to them and when they learn together. In such a setting, school 20)capitalizes on rather than 21)thwarts the intensity and engagement that teenagers usually reserve for sports, protest or friendship.
Schools everywhere could initiate an Independent Project. All it takes are serious, committed students and a supportive faculty. These projects might not be exactly alike: students might 22)apportion their time differently, or add another discipline to the mix. But if the Independent Project students are any indication, participants will end up more accomplished, more engaged and more knowledgeable than they would have been taking regular courses.
We have tried making the school day longer and 23)blanketing students with standardized tests. But perhaps children don’t need another reform imposed on them. Instead, they need to be the authors of their own education.
奥巴马总统在三月的一次讲话中提到“有高达四分之一的美国学生没有读完高中”，这个事实真令人无法接受。但是，我们目前的教学方法不仅没让青少年顺利毕业或是升读大学，从深层来看，还没能让他们为以后的成年生活做好准备。
我们希望年轻人能够变得独立能干，可是我们却又将他们所有的时间都安排得满满当当的，除了做多项选择题、听从教导和死记硬背以外，几乎不给他们任何机会去做别的事情。我们将社交活动视为学习的障碍，但是所有证据都表明，社交活动对于他们的心理发展具有巨大作用。
这也就是为什么我们需要重新思考中学教育的本质。
最近在马萨诸塞州的西部地区，有八名15至17岁的公立中学学生准备在学校里设立自己的学校，我对此进行了跟踪调查。他们正好代表了两个典型群体：在开始项目之前，其中两个处于退学边缘，而其他的全是优等生。他们给自己的学校取名为“独立项目”。
他们的咨询顾问也是他们的指导教师，会在团队缺乏干劲或是遇到困难时提供建议。尽管他们还从英语、数学和科学老师那里征求建议，但他们还要相互监督工作，并反馈意见。他们不用分数来评定成绩，但是学期结束时，这些学生会相互评估。
这些学生还自己设计课程安排，他们决定将九月至次年一月的学期分成两期。
在前半个学期，他们制定并解答关于自然和社会世界的问题，其中包括“附近山脚下的植物细胞是否与山顶上的植物细胞不同？”以及“我们为什么会哭？”等问题。他们不仅会相互点评对方提出的问题，还会点评他们所想到的回答。通过这种方法，他们学到了调查研究的基本手段，譬如说，如何设计出收集不同数据的好方法。
而在后半个学期，这个小组则练习他们称之为“文学和数学艺术”的内容。他们选出了八部小说在八周内阅读，其中包括库尔特·冯内古特、威 廉·福克纳和奥斯卡·王尔德的作品。这比学校里大学预修英语课全年的阅读量还要多。
同时，他们每个人都负责特定的数学专题，从二次方程到扑克牌背后的数字。他们向专职数学老师寻求帮助、查阅参考书和网上资料，并且一有机会就相互请教。
他们每个人还进行了一项“个人尝试”，如学习弹钢琴或烹饪，写小说或制作一段关于家庭暴力的播客。在学期结束时，他们会在全体师生面前展示这些新才艺。
最后，他们还进行了一项共同尝试，并一致决定这项尝试必须具有社会意义。因为他们觉得整个（项目）体验给自己的人生带来了很大改变，最终，他们一起制作了一部电影，向其他学生展示可以如何开办和管理属于自己的学校。
这些学生的切身体验给自身带来了巨大转变。一名曾一度考虑退学的学生在参加完“独立项目”后，发现自己总是忍不住去思索他目前尚未解答的历史学问题，但是又不愿错过对新问题的探索。当他询问小组其他成员，他能否同时研究两个问题时，另一名学生回答说：“可以啊，我想这就是他们所说的学习吧。”
还有一名学生，之前他所有的数学课全都挂科了，如今他却一连三个星期向其他学生讲授概率学。另一名学生说：“我以前成绩很好，但是我已经忘记了自己真正喜欢的是什么。”现在，他们全都回归到传统的课程中，且表现出色。有两名高年级的学生还向挑选严格的文科学院递交了入学申请。
参与“独立项目”的学生们有出色表现，并不是因为他们格外地努力或是天赋异禀，而是因为他们证明了当青少年觉得能够主动掌控自己的中学知识、学习对自己有用的知识、共同学习时，学习和个人成长并非难事。在这样的环境中，学校应该充分发挥而非挫伤青少年的积极性，削弱其参与度，以往他们往往只会把这份劲头放在运动、示威抗议和交友之上。
各地的学校都可以发起自己的“独立项目”。它只需要认真且坚定的学生，以及全力支持的教师就足已。这些项目不一定要完全相同：学生可以用不同的方式分配时间，或是在课程中增加不同的学科。但是如果说参与“独立项目”的学生们会有什么变化的话，那就是与接受常规课程相比，他们最终会变得更有才华、专注且博学。
我们努力延长上课时间，对学生一概进行标准化测试，但也许孩子们并不需要另一个革新强加在他们身上。相反地，他们希望能够书写自己的教育之路。