ABSTRACT
Picture two groups of students. One is sitting stiffly in rows, memorizing equations. The second group is standing with its teacher on the roof of a tall building. Below, they see the pattern made by the business and industrial zones, surrounded by the greener residential districts. They go down to the street. Explore their city at close range. Then they go back to their classrooms, compare notes, and discuss what’s right and wrong with the city and what to do about it. The first group, meantime, is still memorizing equations. This is the difference between old and progressive education. It is based on the theory that schools should be adapted to the needs of children and of the increasingly complex society in which they are being trained to live. And this theory is not brand-new: it has been practiced for more than 20 years, but mostly in exclusive private schools.
