Small Schools Coalition Education Blog
A Primer to Help Reclaim the Love of Learning
“The fact is that given the challenges we face, education doesn't need to be reformed -- it needs to be transformed. The key to this transformation is not to standardize education, but to personalize it, to build achievement on discovering the individual talents of...
Environmental Education Authority: The Grauer School in Encinitas
“Our mascot, the Grauer’s Gorilla, was selected decades ago as a symbol of an endangered species that perseveres despite odds —never has our motto been more relevant to us. Our work as educators and environmental stewards will be successful once all of our students...
Benchmarking Schools and Students
“We must recognize that our children and students need to know we appreciate who they really are, not just some vision we have for who they are supposed to be.” Benchmarking schools and students is widely practiced throughout mainstream education. It is by far the...
Important Research on Optimal Class Size
There are many different opinions regarding the best educational environment for stimulating learning and growth. But what does research on optimal class size say about large schools and classrooms versus small ones? In order to answer this question, we must first...
The Great Philosophies of Education in Small Schools
“Imagination is more important than intelligence.” A lot has happened in the field of education over the past few generations and, in all reality, centuries. As a result, there are many great philosophies of education to choose from when designing curricula that...
The Small School Approach to Waldorf Inspired Learning
"Where is the book in which the teacher can read about what teaching is? The children themselves are this book." The Small Schools Coalition is one of the foremost proponents of Waldorf-inspired learning. Our founder, Dr. Stuart Grauer, was a teacher and principal in...