Ideal School

In society， there are various types of school. Among traditional school make up the majority. In this pattern， children are pigeonholed in long rows of desks， filed in stereotyped classrooms. Children must sit quietly， study their lessons silently， obey the teachers promptly and unquestioningly.... Not “What do you think？” but “What does the book say？” directs the educative process. Actually， most of classrooms in China follow this model. The teachers teach the knowledge according to the blackboard while students memorize and recite it mechanically.

However， under the concept of Learner Centered Ideology， ideal schools are dramatically different from traditional schools. In fact， the ideal schools have existed in the past and exist today， but it have been a reality for a few individuals， learner centered educators believe that they should become the schools of tomorrow for all people. So what are the ideal schools？ Learner-Centered schools are “ child-centered institutions in contrast to the teacher- centered and principal-centered schools of the conventional order” （Rugg & Shumaker， 1928， p. 56）.

Everyone has a blueprint for the learner-centered ideal school. Everyone has different standards. There are my opinions about learner-centered ideal school.

In the learner-centered ideal school， the needs， desires and interests of learners， rather than those of teachers， principals， school subjects， parents， or politicians， should play a major role in determining the whole school program.

First， I think that lessons assignment should be designed around students interests rather than the demands of school subjects. In traditional school， teacher-centered classrooms are dull and unalterable. English， Chinese and math dominate the school curriculum. While in ideal school， it starts from childrens needs and interests. Their interests such as football and music should dominate the school curriculum. “The having of wonderful ideas” （Duckworth， 1987） is important. Whats more， student should express their feelings whatever they want rather than the demands of adults.

Second， the ideal school should be a school of full of activity. Through the interaction with the exterior world， children can think  and imagine freely and obtain some firsthand experiences with reality. In traditional school， children must sit in classroom and must get good grades in every exam. They only can provide secondhand experiences through basic skills including listening， speaking， reading and writing. It goes against students interests and limits their diversity to some extent. Moreover， in ideal school， learners should experience reality in life rather than listening to the teachers description or imagination in their own minds or reading books. They should experience physical and mental materials themselves. Only in this way can help them discover the fact for himself.

Whats more， learners in ideal school should encounter with peers and adults. This encounter should be real social encounter. Play them， work with them and exchange own ideas with them， In this pattern， children can obtain experiences outside the classroom.

Third， in ideal school， teachers and principals should help students develop themselves naturally. Everyone should develop naturally. Teachers should treat students as “children” rather than potential adults. And in ideal school， they should cherish childhood and stress the present， not the future; living， not preparing for the life; learning now， not anticipating the future” （ Barth， 1972， p.97）. Students development has its own unique ways rather than a uniform manner.

Finally， the ideal school should be integrated. They should treat children as integrated unit. The whole child should be educated according to their needs. Moreover， in ideal school， it should exists some various activities. Their leisure time should be free enough. Students are not viewed as isolated person. They must be an integrated person.

In ideal school， the aim of education should help all engaged in helping students grow create meaning for themselves. We should view children as integrated person rather than potential adults. We should view the child as “whole child”， as an inseparable conglomerate of intellectual， social， psychological and physical dimensions. Learning should takes place when children interact with outside world. Their learning should takes place under the natural development. And the teachers role should be as diagnostician， provider of the environment for learning and facilitator of learning. Then， knowledge should avoid dull textbooks. We should help students experience by themselves. Experience these physical and mental experiences that cant obtain in traditional classroom.

To sum up， there are quite different from traditional school. Make a clear distinction is central to the Learner Centered Ideology. Although ideal schools are not yet widely available， I think it can come true one day. Only in this way can we develop education optimized.

作者簡介：刘珂（1994-）女 汉族 山东省滨州市人 研究生在读 教育硕士 单位：鲁东大学外国语学院学科教学英语专业 研究方向：学科教学（英语）