Jordan Lake Sudbury School
"... where living IS learning"
"We are faced with the paradoxical fact that education has become
one of the chief obstacles to intelligence and freedom of thought."
Frequently Asked Questions
These answers are based on experiences of schools from all over the world with similar core values as Jordan Lake Sudbury School. We thank these, established schools for allowing us to use information from their websites for this FAQ. With such schools as an invaluable guide, JLSS will develop its’ own unique culture over time.
- What is a Sudbury school?
- How many students?
- Why don't Sudbury schools separate students into age groups?
- What about school certification?
- How do students learn the "basics" if it is not required curriculum?
- What if a student has a different interest from everyone else at school?
- Won’t utter chaos result without the structure provided by rules generated and enforced by adults?
- What if students spend most of their time playing or socializing?
- What about students who are not motivated to learn on their own without specific guidance?
- If students are bored, why doesn’t the staff help them find something to do?
- Won’t students only do easy things and rarely challenge themselves?
- Why don’t Sudbury schools usually offer optional classes (uninitiated by students)?
- Without a curriculum, how will the student know what their options are?
- If a student chooses to ignore an important subject, won’t that put them at a disadvantage later in life?
- How will students be prepared for their future as responsible adults and fit into the outside world after such a sheltered school environment?
- Would a child with a learning disability (such as ADD) fit in with the Sudbury School philosophy?
- Do Sudbury schools accept "problem children"?
- Are students tested or graded, or how is their progress otherwise evaluated?
- Do Sudbury schools issue diplomas?
- What about transcripts?
- Will my child be able to go on to college after a Sudbury school education?
- What is the role of staff?
- What if students ask for help in areas that staff lack adequate knowledge?
- What is the role of parents?
- Isn’t homeschooling more flexible? Why not just "Unschool" at home instead?
Note: "Traditional schooling" mentioned below refers to any educational system in which students DO NOT have the choice of what and how they learn and are evaluated. This could include public or private schools or homeschooling.
Sudbury schools are modeled after the successful long-standing Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts, founded in 1968. There are over 30 Sudbury schools located throughout the United States and abroad.
The core premise of Sudbury schools is: Equal Opportunity Decision-Making. School members (staff and students) have equal opportunity to participate in decision-making, which, for most Sudbury schools, is in the form of direct vote.
Distinguishing factors typical of Sudbury schools are:
1. No preset curriculum
Students direct their own activities. This could take the form of talking, playing, reading, projects of an unlimited variety, meetings, classes, etc. Students devise their own curriculum, although it may not resemble what is typically thought of as a school curriculum.
2. No preset age segregation
Students have the opportunity to freely interact with and learn from children and adults of all ages.
Many schools with democratic features refer to themselves as "democratic" or "free" schools. There is no official system in place to measure the standards by which any school refers to itself as "free", or "democratic" or "Sudbury". Families must themselves determine whether a school is practicing the ideals they are seeking. A school calling itself "Sudbury" would most likely indicate adherence to the core values above. Other democratic or free schools may hold to these values to varying degrees.
New Schools have started with as few as four or five students, though the optimum starting number is fifteen or more. Long standing schools may have several hundred students.
Why don't Sudbury schools separate students into age groups?
Limiting students to relating only to those of the same age narrows their options for social and intellectual learning. Sometimes, students learn better from other children who easily remember what it was like to learn certain skills and are not at a much higher intellectual level.
Being around younger students may remind those older how to play and see the world anew. Also, students have opportunities to develop mentoring and parenting skills and to relate to those of different maturity and intellectual levels.
The School community functions somewhat like a large family. Young and old learn from each other and look out for one another. This reflects the reality of life in the community at large.
What about school certification and state education requirements?
The North Carolina Department of Education does not mandate a prescribed set of textbooks, curriculum, or course of study for private schools. Private schools are not required to be accredited in North Carolina. Many state’s curriculum and testing requirements for accreditation would interfere with the basic philosophies of Sudbury schools. Students from non-accredited schools may need to go through placement testing if they choose to attend an accredited school.
How do students learn the "basics" if it is not required curriculum?
Sudbury schools primarily ensure that students learn the basic skills they need to get along in the world by staying out of their way! Though seemingly counterintuitive, this approach has been turning out competent graduates for years. The freedom to explore their interests at their own pace allows students to discover their unique learning styles and acquire the resources to facilitate this learning. They are then able to apply these skills to any subject area.
In our fast-changing and increasingly open society, individuals need to be confident, flexible and independent thinkers and learners. Nurturing these qualities is what a Sudbury school does best. Students learn according to their unique talents, skills, and interests pursued in their own good time. Skills constituting the common perception of the "basics" (reading, writing, and math) are learned in an organic fashion to support and better understand passions and interests. These skills are usually learned in context and not as separate theoretical "subjects". There is no more effective way to learn than as a natural means to accomplish a self-motivated end!
Students master subjects at a variety of ages, not necessarily coinciding with the scheduled curriculum of traditional graded schools. These differences pose no problem, as there is no stigma attached to late learners and no artificial reward for early learners.
Compulsory physical exercise does no harm to the body, but compulsory learning never sticks to the mind. — Plato
What if a student has a different interest from everyone else at school?
Students are encouraged to pursue their interests, whether or not anyone else wants to join in. The activities of one student or staff may spark the interest of others in the school community. A student may have an interest that no one else at the school community shares. If further resources or other people to share their interest with are needed, staff may help students find such connections through outside classes, apprenticeships or other appropriate channels.
Won’t utter chaos result without the structure provided by rules generated and enforced by adults?
Students discover that setting limits to ensure stability and security sets them free to explore their world without fear. They find ways to address specific needs and issues that arise — often through the group setting of rules. Because students establish the rules themselves, they have greater motivation to honor them.
Students and staff meet regularly to make and repeal rules, decide how to spend school money, hire and dismiss staff, and charter new educational programs (computer lab, darkroom, woodshop etc.). Committee meetings of students and staff investigate and determine consequences for rule breaking. Through these processes, students learn to amend motions, lobby fellow voters, and live with the decisions. Students therefore learn about real life in a democracy, the conflicting needs of different interest groups, the tensions and balance between individual rights and community needs, and the inextricable link between freedom and responsibility. Although students have a great deal of freedom, they must operate within the limits that they create through the school meeting.
What if students spend "too much" of their time playing or socializing?
Sudbury schools do not modify, interfere, or quantify student’s play. Play is considered to be a valuable learning tool for students to explore questions such as "How does this work? What happens when I do this? Does this interest me? How is this useful to me or others?" It is through creative play that students learn to concentrate, imagine, communicate, and learn what their aptitudes and affinities are.
All pursuits are valued, not to the extent to which they conform to the adult agenda, but to the extent to which students are interested in pursuing them. As an integral part of the process of learning, unlimited play and socializing allows for free-flow of thoughts and ideas, stimulating the development of higher thinking and communication skills, creativity and a deep understanding of how to get along with other people.
…Let your children’s lessons take the form of play. You will learn more about their natural abilities that way. — Plato
Imagination is more important than knowledge. — Albert Einstein
It is contrary to human nature to seek monotony! However, students joining a Sudbury school from a traditional schooling background may have lost their natural motivation to learn. Disrespectful and/or restrictive experiences, for example, may cause boredom, rebelliousness, or fear of failure. Students who come to a Sudbury school determined to "do nothing" will invariably embark on a powerful personal search for their own interests. They may need a period of adjustment (sometimes as long as a year or more) to reconnect to their own inner motivation. Given time, freedom, and the example of self-motivated people, this will likely emerge. Sudbury schools provide an environment of peers, educational materials, mentors, and field trips exposing students to interesting experiences.
A student may have been perceived as unmotivated simply because they had a different learning agenda from school or parents. At a Sudbury school, pursuits are valued for the student’s interest alone. True interest that comes from internal motivation engages the mind and brings about focus, persistence and a trust in one’s own ability to learn.
"Doing nothing" is not necessarily a sign of boredom. Growth and development, not obvious to the casual observer, may be taking place through contemplation, consideration and creative thought. This may or may not mean active seeking of answers to situations and problems. It may be a time of becoming more deeply aware of past experience and of daydreaming — a condition undervalued and discouraged in traditional schools, but considered a worthwhile occupation at Sudbury schools. As children are naturally inquisitive, curious, active and adventurous, they rarely "do nothing" for long.
Given time and space to decide what they want, students can look within themselves to discover just what they need to be doing at any given moment. Without the constant barrage of adult agendas placed on them, students learn to be responsible for knowing themselves and their individual passions. They learn to trust themselves and their own needs, so that they are able to make decisions about their actions throughout the day. They learn to concentrate, to ponder ethical questions, to ask for what they want and strive to get it. They learn how to try something and relish success and how to try something and fail at it — and try again! They learn to know themselves.
If students are bored, does staff help them find something to do?
Especially in the first months of attending a Sudbury school, students may experience a phase of boredom, particularly those accustomed to others determining how they spend their day. Facing boredom may lead to asking hard questions like, "What is important to me? What do I like to do? Who am I really? What do I have to do to make X happen?" Staff providing or suggesting activities to alleviate boredom may block the important transitional stage towards true self-direction and motivation.
If a student seeks staff help in finding something to do, this may indicate that the student is primarily externally motivated rather than self-motivated. Rather than continuing this cycle of external motivation, staff might best help by encouraging the student to seek their own solution. Students might benefit from talking with staff about their feelings, as verbal expression could be the first step towards breaking through boredom and discovering meaning in one’s life.
Won’t students only do easy things and rarely challenge themselves?
It is human nature to strive for accomplishment by taking on challenges. In traditional schooling, most students learn that failure can be embarrassing, and that one shouldn’t fail. In actual fact, failure can be a valuable learning tool. Not attaching a stigma to failure encourages students to try new and often difficult things.
Students from traditional schooling may need to relearn the joys of learning. Once they "detox", they find that it is more interesting to challenge themselves.
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. — Winston Churchill
Do Sudbury schools at least offer optional classes?
Usually not. Classes usually happen only through the initiation of the students.
Many children and adults have ingrained the belief that "real" learning occurs primarily in classroom or other pre-structured situation. Therefore many students feel pulled to choose such offerings out of this externally motivated belief rather than from a true interest in the offered topic or mode of learning it.
The purpose of Sudbury schools is to set up an optimal environment for the development of internal motivation. Unsolicited class offerings can slow this development, as it may be a subtle (though perhaps unintentionally so) way of exerting pressure on students to participate. Students are more likely to obtain meaningful and lasting learning from classes that they initiate or organize themselves.
I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught. — Winston Churchill
To learn, you must want to be taught. — Proverbs 12:1
Without a curriculum, how will students know what their options are?
Children are exposed to a tremendous variety of information on a daily basis from family, friends, schoolmates, staff, media, and the world around them …more ideas, cultures, languages, and science than most well informed adults of 50 years ago! Given the broad array of human endeavor and specializations, no system can provide complete exposure to its students, especially when individual interests are valued.
In a Sudbury school, students explore a wide variety of topics. They are not limited by whether or not there is a course offered on a subject of interest, nor are they restricted in the amount of time they can expend learning about that interest. Subsequently they are able to delve deeply, thereby obtaining more knowledge and understanding than possible in a traditional setting. Sudbury schools usually have the flexibility to establish ties with local organizations and individuals for in-school visits, workshops and field trips of interest to the students on short notice.
Instead of being isolated in a classroom with children of the same age and using a limited curriculum imposed by someone else, Sudbury school students develop their own curriculum as they learn alongside students and staff. In addition to the sharing of ideas among friends, (staff & students) of different ages, backgrounds and interests at the school, students may be exposed to and challenged by new ideas through interaction with the community, extra curricular activities, etc.
Since we can’t know what knowledge will be most needed in the future, it is senseless to try to teach it in advance. Instead, we should try to turn out people who love learning so much and learn so well that they will be able to learn whatever needs to be learned. — John Holt
Modern society is too diverse and fast changing to adequately anticipate future needs. In addition, knowledge that may prove important at some point for one individual may prove useless for another. Graduates of both traditional AND Sudbury schools could find themselves in situations for which they are inadequately prepared. Sudbury school graduates have the advantage of coming from a background of deciding what they need to know and figuring out how to learn it. This skill is more effective than stockpiling knowledge in the hopes that some of it might be useful someday.
The true test of character is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we don’t know what to do. — John Holt
Allowed the time to perfect their innate talents, overcome their weaknesses and pursue their ambitions, students become self-motivated, confident, independent and responsible individuals with a strong sense of purpose and an incredible ability to make their way in society.
In a survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the qualities employers identified as the most desirable skills for applicants were: written, oral and interpersonal communication, teamwork, flexibility, computer, proficiency in field of study, leadership and work experience. Sudbury school students develop these skills in abundance.
Sudbury schools allow students to prepare for life beyond the school by giving them responsibility for determining their own schedule, making rules and deciding consequences, interviewing, electing and dismissing staff, deciding budgets, and taking on committee and leadership roles. Since students have ample time, freedom and assistance to explore their passions, they are apt to be clear and focused with their career choice. Actual practice in taking responsibility for ones’ self is the best way to attain such lifelong skills. Waiting until students have left the school environment and are in situations in which the choices they make have far greater consequences is an unnecessary risk.
Since there are many things in the outside world that people must do (such as earning a living) some critics suggest that students will find it difficult to adapt, as there is no external compulsion at Sudbury schools. On the contrary, students at Sudbury schools are expected to take personal responsibility for themselves, their effect on others and to help keep their school running smoothly.
Would a child with a learning disability (such as ADD) fit in with the Sudbury school philosophy?
Students labeled "learning disabled" may flourish in an environment where they take responsibility for using their time as they see fit. These labeled disabilities may "disappear" when students are not forced to sit at desks for hours at a time or participate in activities and lessons which they may have absolutely no interest.
Sometimes students are labeled "learning disabled" simply because their learning style is not supported in a traditional setting. Sudbury schools equip students to discover and implement their own personal learning styles.
It is among the commonplaces of education that we often first cut off the living root and then try to replace its natural functions by artificial means. Thus we suppress the child’s curiosity and then when he lacks a natural interest in learning he is offered special coaching for his scholastic difficulties. — Alice Duer Miller
I am beginning to suspect all elaborate and special systems of education. They seem to me to be built up on the supposition that every child is a kind of idiot who must be taught to think. — Anne Sullivan
Do Sudbury schools accept "problem children"?
In addition to students who have done well in other educational settings, students seen as "problem children" may also seek out Sudbury schools. Many of the difficulties of such children who have been seen as a "problem" stem from the fact that they were failing to conform to narrow expectations and that the imposed structure did not fit their temperament, learning style, or personal rhythm.
The Sudbury school environment encourages students to follow their own paths, thereby enabling them to recover their belief in themselves. They may thus resolve the root cause of their difficulties, which is often loss of self-esteem.
On the rare occasion that a student is unable to develop responsibility for their impact on others and are too great of a disruption to the peace and safety of the school, they may be suspended or expelled. Newer and smaller Sudbury schools may be less able to incorporate students who have not yet developed an adequate level of maturity and stability.
Are students tested or graded, or how is their progress otherwise evaluated?
North Carolina requires standardized testing in grades 3, 6, 9 and 11. However, each school can determine its own minimum score to pass. Sudbury schools do not use tests to track progress unless students request them, nor do they issue report cards or grades, believing that learning may be hampered by emphasis on memorization to pass tests and competition for grades. In today’s information age, the memorization of facts that can easily be looked up is less valuable than knowing how to access key information and put it to use.
Value is instead placed on self-evaluation and feedback. As each student is bound to pursue a unique course through life in this fast changing modern society, Sudbury schools feel that self-evaluation and feedback from trial and error, peers and adults are more useful to learning than artificial grading systems.
Feedback occurs naturally in an open environment, and students learn to accept it without fear. They develop a sense of self-worth that remains intact regardless of external feedback. Students may seek external evaluation when useful to them.
Absence of imposed evaluation makes several wholesome results more likely: Students develop self-assessment habits and introspective skills. Rather than exhibiting behaviors aiming to please adults, their natural curiosity and motivation are preserved, and they develop empowering confidence in their own ideas and perceptions.
Students may choose testing for self-evaluation purposes or to meet certain goals, such as taking the S A T (Colleges, however, make far less use of S A T scores in the admissions process than they once did, thanks largely to the great increase in homeschooled students who are accepted without these scores and do well in college.)
One had to cram all this stuff into one’s mind for the examinations, whether one liked it or not. This coercion had such a deterring effect (upon me) that, after I had passed the final examination, I found the consideration of any scientific problems distasteful to me for an entire year. — Albert Einstein
Do Sudbury schools issue diplomas?
Some Sudbury schools offer diplomas through a customized process designed for each candidate to defend a thesis showing their readiness to be a responsible member of the outside community.
Instead of or in addition to a school diploma, students may seek assistance in pursuing alternate types of certificates (e.g., the GED), if desired, though such is not necessarily a requirement for entering college.
Some Sudbury schools provide transcripts that may include the student’s years of attendance and describes how the school works. Students may supplement the transcript with a portfolio of their work and letters of recommendation from staff. The advance of the homeschooling movement has made such alternatives to the traditional transcript a familiar sight in college admissions offices.
Will my child be able to go on to college after a Sudbury school education?
For over 35 years Sudbury school graduates have been proving that a learner-led education works. Students who have no grades or class rank, and sometimes no formal classes at all, go on to be admitted to good colleges and universities. They are accepted on the merits of their personal presentation in writing and in person and, where required, their test scores. They go on to be successful in their course work (sometimes having to "catch up" on certain subject matter, but having the resources and self-confidence to do so easily), and to move on to varied and interesting careers.
Of the nearly 80% of students from Sudbury Valley School who apply to college, virtually all are accepted and most get into the college of their first choice (Legacy of Trust, SVS Press, 1992).
Sudbury schools nurture the very qualities that colleges and employers look for, and these qualities continue to be useful throughout their college and professional careers. These qualities include: self-knowledge, self-confidence, mastery of specialized skills and areas of knowledge; research, communication and entrepreneurial skills; creativity, and initiative. These qualities are demonstrated largely through the interview process and on the basis of college entrance essays. Hundreds of colleges and universities, including top-rated schools, accept students who have no transcripts.
Students often enjoy working in groups to prepare for SAT, GED or high school proficiency exams. A high school diploma is not required in order to enter a community college. Some students choose to first attend community college and then transfer to a university of their choice.
Those who have chosen not to attend a college have had the resources and self-confidence to become successful artists, craftspeople, trades people, musicians and businessmen.
The adults who have been elected by the school community to be a part of a Sudbury school’s daily existence are usually referred to as "staff", rather than "teachers". This is because the primary role of staff is sometimes not actual teaching in the traditional sense of the word. In addition, staff will not be the only ones who might be teaching, since students may just as well play that role.
The two major roles of staff are:
1. To support students in achieving their goals. This may happen in a variety of ways, which may or may not include teaching.
2. To serve as a positive adult role model for healthy and appropriate behavior.
Staff members are learners as well, and their own passion for learning may serve as a catalyst to awaken students’ interest in learning. This adds to the wealth of knowledge, interest, and constant discourse.
Teacher certification is not a requirement for unaccredited private schools. Competent adults who do not have teaching certificates may be great assets to the school community. Interesting life experiences and passions are of more use in a Sudbury school, and ideally staff is comprised of people with varied backgrounds and experiences.
Education is not something which the teacher does …it is a natural process which develops spontaneously in the human being. — Maria Montessori
The authority of those who teach is often an obstacle to those who want to learn. — Marcus Tullius Cicero (105-43 BC)
What if students ask for help in areas in which staff lack adequate knowledge?
Given the myriad of possible interests, no group of staff, no matter how extensive their formal or informal education and life experience, will always have the resources at hand that a child may be seeking at any given time. A Sudbury school does not limit itself within its own walls. Experts (volunteer or paid) in a sought area may be brought in as needed to tutor or teach classes. Staff may also help students find already existing classes through community colleges, parks, and recreation, or other resources... internships or apprenticeships are a solution in some cases, and would be considered part of the school program. Field trips also play a role in filling students’ needs for learning not found in the school itself.
The most important role of parents is as a source of support and encouragement for their children and their chosen activities. Before their child enrolls, parents should become as familiar as possible with the school’s philosophy and reflect deeply on whether or not they can fully support it. Any overt or covert pressure from home that goes counter to the school’s philosophy can create stress for a child, limit their sense of freedom and take away from their internal focus of control.
Through the staff election process, parents may serve as full or part time volunteer or paid staff.
Parents serve, along with students and staff, on the Assembly, which is the decision-making body which meets one or more times a year to determine such things as the school annual budget, salary scales, tuition, etc.
Isn’t homeschooling more flexible? Why not just "unschool" at home instead?
Unschooling at home works great for many families and affords many of the same benefits of a Sudbury education, with certain advantages and disadvantages. Both afford great flexibilities, such as travel, internships/apprenticeships, independent study, etc. Depending on their individual circumstances, however, some homeschoolers may have difficulties finding adequate opportunities with enough continuity and depth for a specific child’s needs. Though homeschoolers may find lots of options for group activities/classes, each gathering is usually only once or twice a week or less. This can be hectic and not conducive to the development of in-depth relationships. Additionally, options are often in structured formats that may not suit individual children.
A Sudbury school’s consistent contact with other people may offer opportunities for more in-depth relationships. Children may find more opportunities to explore mutual interests and develop social and communication skills in depth. In addition, children have direct control over the formation of structured group activities, should they choose to go that route.
Sudbury schools also free students of the testing/evaluation and curriculum requirements that most states mandate for homeschoolers and that may interfere with learning.