Rethinking Self-Directed Education

Liberatory Education in Public Schooling: Limitations and Possibilities W/Sarita Flores

Have you ever wondered is any form of SDE is possible in a conventional public school? Join us as we talk to Sarita Flores about how she set up a culture of trust, autonomy, and partnership in her elementary classroom while finding the quick ways to check the curriculum boxes that teachers are required to check. We chat about the difficulties of being radical in a place often filled with rule followers, the power of allies, and the very real and concrete ways Sarita has brought the spirit and values of SDE and children’s liberation into her classroom. I didn’t think it was possible…. And now I’m not so sure. Come find out for yourself!

We Believe in Play....until you're 5. The SDE in Early Childhood Episode

In this episode Annie and Bria are chatting  about early childhood education and its connection (or lack of connection) to SDE movements. Early childhood education has its own challenges, goals, and weirdness that’s related to but separate from “school age” schools and explore all those intersections and differences. We also talk about the overlapping ways we are all trying (or ways folks can try) to fight against a system that wants standardized compulsory schooling for all. We do miss Daveed. He will be back. we promise. “Show Notes” Convention on the Rights of the Child: “Compulsory Education” [https://www.mylifemy.education/campaign/crc-compulsory-education/] Annie believes everything she reads. [https://uxpsychology.substack.com/p/the-attention-span-myth](Joking! She really doesn’t. She just…happened to this time).

What’s on for Season 3?

We are talking about public funding, conventional school disruption, and coalition building. We are going to dig in on ways we can (or can not) work within the school system and public funding models to bring more SDE options, and equity in SDE options, to the movement. We will also talk about what is disruptive to the systems, and what is more harm reduction, and how far we can go in conventional school classrooms and systems. It’s a lot! We have a cohesive thematic approach this season! What’s our next phase for this movement, how can we fund SDE with public funding (can we even? Should we even?), and how and should we work on coalition and movement building with folks working in public school systems?

Vawisai is the Way On language in movements (and a lot of other stuff) w/Antonio Buehler

What’s missing from the term Self-Directed Education? What could an alternative term be? Who holds the lines on the values in movements and communities, and why? Will Bria _finally_ accept that Vawisai is the way? And are all terms and movements destined to be co-opted? Join us as we talk about terms, language, distinctions, dogma, and co-option,. We also throw in some comparisons between SDE movements and police abolition movements, because how could we not!

Liberated Learning and Learning for Liberation with Raj Kanani

We talk to Raj about how he came to SDE (such an interesting story!) and his experience in building an SDE community centering BIPOC folks and collective liberation. We talk about SDE center struggles, corner store candy runs, tweens & tweens, social justice and anti-racism in SDE centers, and what it means to be a community that is really supporting one another in all the struggles centers go through. You can support Liberated Kids’ mission to be financially accessible for all kids by becoming a monthly sustainer here: https://www.liberatedkids.org/support (https://www.liberatedkids.org/support)