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Charter Schools to Improve the Human Condition |
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Score
80%
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18 votes,
Feasibility
82%
Originality
71%
Humour
45% |
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The Problem:
youth violence. child abuse. dysfunctional families. violence against women. rape. sex crimes. nervous breakdowns. suicide. apathy. despair. inability to cope with emotions in a healthy way. restrictive/patriarchal gender roles. sexism. homophobia. racism. internalized racism. internalized homophobia. internalized sexism. self-hate. hate. lack of love amongst human beings. dysfunctional romantic relationships. general lack of interest or concern or proactiveness for social issues or world issues. the tendancy to "pass on pain" to others (i.e. hurting others because we hurt inside). many others.
The Social Invention:
Dear Fellow Human Beings Who Care,
In the United States there are charter schools. These schools are publically financed yet privately operated. Charter schools tend to be smaller (typically 100 students). Those who operate a charter school are free to create and teach a unique curriculum, so long as students are able to pass state-wide, standardized tests.
In the next few years, I will be opening a charter school "to improve the human condition".
I want to share these ideas with you because I AM HOPING THAT OTHERS WILL EMULATE THIS IDEA - WE NEED MANY SCHOOLS LIKE THIS, SO THAT EVERY CHILD CAN ATTEND ONE.
Public education for the masses is a relatively new thing. It came about during the industrial revolution. Its purpose was to prepare children to enter the workforce; basically, to turn them into good employees. This is still its purpose.
The vision here is to revolutionize the goal of education: to prepare children to enter LIFE as a whole; basically, to turn them into "good" human beings. By good I mean loving/compassionate of self and of others. Posessing inner-peace. Etc.
Of course, the charter schools will have traditional courses (math, English, etc.), but there will also be other courses concerned with personal growth and other such things.
The text-books for these courses can be easily developed by using photocopied/xeroxed chapter excerpts from various books (self-help books, etc.); educational institutions have special copyright licenses to do this. Also, since many of these courses deal with issues where there is "no wrong answer", and since the purpose is to get students to think for themselves and to look within, class-discussions will be a major component.
These are the four courses I am currently working on. Of course, you can make your own courses, too.
1) A course where students look at social issues and world issues, and what they can do to make things better.
2) A course which looks at various forms of child abuse and family dysfunction. The focus is three-fold: the effects on the child (and the adult he or she becomes); the reasons why parents/caregivers perpetrate abuse; healthy ways of parenting. This course will also look at extra-familial issues of addiction (in its various forms) and violence (including sexual violence).
3) A course which deals with a variety of connected topics: Spirituality, Love, Power, & Emotions.
- Spirituality: focus on various world religions and also the emerging reunion of science and spirituality.
- Love: everything from self-love to romanctic love to universal/unconditional love. A chapter on sex-ed is also included here.
- Power: everything from inner-power to the power relationships between opressor and oppressed.
- Emotions: the main purpose of this unit is to learn to have a healthy relationship with ones emotions.
4) A course where the goal is to develop a personal identity and ponder the meaning of life and one's future goals. Central questions are:
- Who am I?
- Who does the world tell me I am (looking at stereotypes)?
- What is the meaning of life (mostly concerned with the personal meaning one will/should seek in life rather than The One True Meaning - although we will look at this, too)?
- What is the meaning of suffering (again, seeking personal meaning is the focus; many say that finding meaning in suffering makes it bearable)?
- What are my goals for the future?
- This course also examines patriarchal gender identities and sexual orientation (as part of the Who Am I? unit)
Just think if every child in the world went to such a high-school. Over the generations, many of our problems would melt away.
Start working towards opening such a school TODAY.
Namaste,
~Harmony~
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~Harmony~
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