Education Manifesto

We believe in teaching and learning that values:

  • CREATIVITY over compliance

  • FAIRNESS over efficiency

  • COLLABORATION over competition

  • LEARNING over teaching

This is to say that while all of the items above are valuable, when conflict arises, items on the left are valued more than items on the right.

We believe that educators are innovators. We believe we can build a public education system that promotes the innate curiosity and creativity that resides in everyone. We believe that educators can respect our duty of care, operate within constraints -  ‘inside the box’ of budgets, curriculum standards and collective agreements - while learning to innovate and create our way to better learning experiences for all.  

Public education evolved in the late 1800s to meet the needs of educating children when society prioritized Compliance, Efficiency, Competition and Teaching. We believe that the current era of public education needs to refocus and place a greater priority on Creativity, Fairness, Collaboration and Learning.

CREATIVITY

Today’s students need to prepare for jobs that have not yet been created, for societal challenges that we can’t yet imagine, and for technologies that have not yet been invented. 

FAIRNESS

We believe in schools that are more responsive to those they serve than they are to the courses being taught.  We believe in educators that inspire and mentor rather than convey a body of knowledge. 

COLLABORATION

We believe that today’s students face an interconnected world where they need to understand and appreciate different perspectives and worldviews, interact respectfully with others, and take responsible action for sustainability and collective well-being.

LEARNING

We believe in public education that provides authentic deep learning for everyone, all day, every day. School needs to be better for everyone - students, parents and staff - not just for groups with unique needs; rather than a challenge to endure learning and school should be embraced. Events, special projects, “genius hours” and “extracurricular clubs” have their place, however, school needs to be better every day and all day.