The stories of young people at Liberated Learners centers who came from a conventional school environment where they struggled to fit in are always deeply moving. It’s not every kid’s story, but it’s the more common one. Across the network, there are many outreach events where panels of current members and alumni share their stories. Stories of feeling excluded, of not belonging, of too much work, of an unforgiving system, of wanting more out of life, and sometimes relentless bullying, being labeled a failure, and serious confrontations with teachers and administrators. Sometimes it takes a personal crisis to make the choice to do something other than continuing to attend a conventional public or private school that’s not working for them; doing something different can’t possibly make things any worse. For others they are inspired to try self-directed education, to experience what life could be like if they had control of their learning. The conclusion is nearly always hopeful. Feeling happy, loved, trusted, capable, and on an upward trajectory.
Bay State Learning Center recently shared a video of “Sam’s Story”. Sam starts with his reasons for leaving school:
My experience with public school was not great. I was just in a constant anxious state. I was very stressed a lot of the time. It wasn’t a very healthy environment.
…concludes with a hopeful message:
It means a lot to [a kid] to finally [feel like] someone trusts you and someone respects you enough to give you the freedom to choose what you’re interested in, instead of just telling you that this is what you need to be interested in.
…and along the way offers some of his thinking on life and learning more generally. From Sam: “Kids are a lot smarter than people give them credit for.” We agree, and are working to change that. Stop into a Liberated Learners center and you’ll see lots of smart, capable kids, making their own decisions on how to spend their time. Thanks, Sam, for taking the time to share your story on film!
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