An article in the Huffington Post from November 2014 discussed the millennial generation and their educational experience. Author Michael Mulligan stated, “…when we teach our children that outcomes are more important than process they lose the ability to enjoy learning for its own sake. Everything becomes about the end-game. The problem is that the end game – whether it turns out as they anticipated or not – is often not intrinsically rewarding. Each effort, each moment, rather than being full as a part of a rich life is simply degraded into being a mere step in a process that leads to…an existential abyss.”
He closes with saying, “let’s go back to the basics. Let’s help [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][students] understand that learning is valuable in and of itself; that hard work, genuine curiosity, and heartfelt passion pave the way to a life well lived; and that real success comes when you can look at your life and say, “I have done my best to make a positive difference in the lives of others and the world we live in.”
How do you cultivate curiosity and passion in your teenager?
Seek out non-traditional learning opportunities like The Traveling School (and other Semester School programs). At The Traveling School, we believe the classroom is all around us. Learning comes to life through the places we visit, from the people we meet, and especially from the stories they tell us. The Traveling School’s handcrafted textbooks serve as the scaffolding to help our students make sense of all they experience during the semester. We aim to make education three-dimensional by adding emotion through first person accounts to create relevance and develop critical thinking. Through interdisciplinary academics, students learn how to be in the world, not just what to be in the world. This is a different approach than students traditionally experience at their home high schools; this type of learning can truly be transformational. The Traveling School is a launching pad for great things: we plant seeds in students to set a new standard for how each student can be an agent of change in the world.
In the words of one of our parents, “One’s true sense of self comes from stepping off the brink of one’s comfort zone to explore the beauty and complexity of the world. The Traveling School provides that priceless chance to test new ideas, stretch boundaries and come to a new sense of self-realization. It exposed our daughter to a deeper sense of learning and self-knowledge, internationally and internally.Alan Alda put it so perfectly when he said, “You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.” – Berit Stover, Traveling School Parent, 2014
Let’s support teenagers to re-ignite their passion for learning.
Learn more about the Semester School Network.
To read the entire article quoted above, click here: “The Three Most Important Questions You Can Ask Your Teenager” by Michael Mulligan, Head of School of The Thatcher School. [/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
