Autonomy is not just about the individual

Youth autonomy is one of the core pillars of the Abrome community. It is not a talking point. All people should be able to choose how they use their time, have control over their bodies and minds, and have their boundaries respected. Children and adolescents are people, too.

Some people think that giving kids the choice of which learning app to use, or which character they want to represent on a project is autonomy. Others think it is having students ask the questions that will help structure the learning that they will be guided into next. But that is not autonomy, it is the illusion of choice.

Autonomy is much bigger than the pedagogical approach we take to education at Abrome. But fully supporting Self-Directed Education is certainly necessary if we are going to support the autonomy of young people. Young people do not have autonomy if they are made to focus on math or writing at certain times, or if they must perform for adults.

In order for the environment to support youth autonomy it is necessary to shift from thinking how adults should act on young people through manipulation, motivation, or coercion; to how adults can serve as allies to the youth and as partners in their journeys.

“[Youth] are only autonomous when their environment provides them with the space to freely explore and to use their agency to learn. Autonomy is therefore both about the person (who needs to feel that they have the power to change things) and their environment (which needs to give them the opportunity to do so).”
~Naomi Fisher from the book Changing Our Minds: How children can take control of their own learning

Our values shape our pandemic response

Abrome is an education option for young people and a liberation project. We believe in youth liberation and in the liberation of all peoples, and that our liberation is bound up together. In order to help co-create a better world, we must actively work against the many forms of injustice that exist within our society, to include the oppression of young people. Abrome is a safe space for young people to practice freedom in a community that values consent, practices consensus, and centers the needs of those most impacted by our decisions and actions. 

The wellbeing of the young people at Abrome is a precondition—we will not come together in-person if it puts Abrome Learners needlessly at risk. While we recognize that social interaction, particularly in Self-Directed Education settings, is greatly preferred over remote ones, we reject the privileged narrative that “school closures harm children.” That narrative ignores the many ways in which schooling causes harm to so many children. And so-called learning loss or lack of socialization does not hurt a young person nearly as much as losing someone in their family, household, or community to Covid-19, much less knowing that they were the source of infection. As of July 2021, the children who were hurt the most during the pandemic were the 119,000 who lost a primary caregiver to Covid-19, or the more than 140,000 who experienced the death of a primary or secondary caregiver, defined as co-residing grandparents or kin. Though children remain largely “unlikely to die from Covid-19,” death is not the only bad outcome. Infected adolescents and children continue to be hospitalized, admitted to the ICU, and intubated. They may also develop multi-system inflammatory syndrome or myocarditis. And many will suffer from Long Covid symptoms that can last for months, maybe even years, after they recover from Covid-19. Further, while many vaccinated adults have chosen to “return to normal” because they are largely immune to the worst outcomes of the disease, none of the young people under age 12 are eligible for vaccination, and some age 12 and up are unable to get vaccinated for various reasons. Ignoring the welfare of children should not be normal.

What we choose to do at Abrome does not stay within our immediate community. We are all interconnected. Even if we could ensure that none of the members of the Abrome community would be seriously affected by Covid-19, we would still view it as our responsibility to not carelessly risk spreading the disease to others. The elderly and those with underlying medical conditions are at the greatest risk of serious illness or death from Covid-19, and they have borne the brunt of the pandemic. Other groups that have been disproportionately affected include Hispanic, Black, and Indigenous people; low income people; and people in congregate settings (e.g., long-term care facilities, prisons, shelters, meat processing facilities). Those who fall into more than one of the aforementioned groups are particularly vulnerable. These groups, and other under-resourced, marginalized, and oppressed groups have also disproportionately suffered in terms of financial security and mental health during the pandemic. We cannot in good conscience enter into this new academic year without continuing to make the welfare of the most impacted central to our pandemic response.

At Abrome we often say that we are concerned about two worlds. There is the world that we live in, that we need to learn how to navigate. And there is the world that we want to live in, and we choose to live prefiguratively in order to help bring that world into being. The world we live in is eager to “return to normal,” letting those most at risk suffer the consequences. The world we want to live in is not risk free, but it rejects the notion of transferring risk from those with resources and power to those without. We acknowledge that each additional Covid-19 infection can lead to more infections, and each new infection has the potential to seed a superspreader event or a new variant of the virus. By greatly reducing the likelihood of infection or spread of the disease at Abrome, we will help minimize the harm to those in our communities and outside of them, and we will provide an example to others of what community care can look like. 

Liberation means liberation for all

Self-Directed Education communities can be magical places where young people and adults come together to build relationships and find meaning through shared experiences and endeavors. But there are challenges that most SDE communities face, and if they are not addressed they can undermine the well-being of the community. One challenge is that Self-Directed Education communities are too often place based (e.g., in a building, within property lines), walling their members off from broader society. Another is that SDE communities often acknowledge the necessity of youth liberation, but do not take seriously liberation projects for other historically marginalized and oppressed populations.

We are proud to be a part of the Flying Squads network because it actively takes on both of the aforementioned challenges. As a practice, Flying Squads do not confine themselves to physical, private structures. We deliberately take up public space as an act of defiance against an adultist society that expects young people to be confined to schoolish settings. And the Flying Squads network recognizes that not embracing the liberation efforts of other people, particularly those who are most marginalized and oppressed, would merely reinforce the dominant sentiment that education is a tool to be used to help certain students position themselves to rise to the top of a hierarchical society, instead of helping to create an inclusive and just society.

By addressing these two concerns in tandem, Flying Squads promotes bringing young people into the world, and extending the concept of community outward, to include everyone, including those that society wants to wall out or wall in.

One year into “pandemic schooling”; let’s never return to normal

One year ago today, on March 30, 2020, we ‘returned’ remotely after an extended three-week spring break that allowed us time to better understand the threat of the burgeoning Covid-19 pandemic. Given the rapid spread of the disease; concerns of medical systems being overwhelmed; the ballooning number of heartbreaking stories of harm in places as unfamiliar and familiar as Central China, Northern Italy, Iran, and New York City; and the uncertainty about the longer term effects of the disease on those who survive; we realized that we could not wait around for local, state, or federal agencies to determine our response to the pandemic. 

At Abrome, we have always sought to center the needs of those most impacted when making decisions. While that most obviously meant that we would need to prioritize the wellbeing of the members of our community who were most at risk of serious illness from the disease, because we are all interconnected we would also need to concern ourselves with the impact of our decisions on broader society. In time, and unsurprisingly, it became apparent that in addition to the elderly and those with certain underlying medical conditions, the worst consequences of the disease disproportionately fell on Black, Indigenous, and people of color, as well as those without material resources. It was this expectation that led us to our April 1, 2020, decision to remain remote through the end of the 2019-20 academic year. 

In June we published a living contingency planning document that would uniquely allow us to be together more safely this 2020-21 pandacademic year. We took everything outdoors (in physically distant small groups, for three week cycles at a time). Because we are a Self-Directed Education community that has never been stuck to the practices and structures of schooling, we were able to transition to being fully outdoors rather seamlessly. As a result of our community's dedicated efforts (and some luck), one year in, no one in our extended community (Learners, immediate and extended families, Facilitators, housemates, and dedicated pod members) has contracted Covid-19.  

Now, as vaccinations roll out and as Covid-19 numbers trend down, it seems everyone wants to "return to normal." However, "normal" was never good enough. That "normal" prioritizes academics over relationships, and success over solidarity. It tends to have some combination of age segregation, forced curriculum, personalized learning apps, homework, testing, grades, and forced exhibitions (with some Covid-19 security theater sprinkled in); but what it has never had was a respect for the autonomy of children. "Normal" also ignores the cost of schooling on young people and on communities, especially during this pandemic.  

Our approach to the pandemic has been a continuation of what we have always done at Abrome--prioritize community care. We believe in the power of community, and centering the needs of the people most impacted is one of the hallmarks of a strong community. We are proud of the way we have put community over convenience, and people over profits during this pandemic. Post-pandemic, we will continue to reject the "normal."

——

Cover photo by Taylor Wilcox on Unsplash

Day 106 of AY20-21: returning from spring break for our first specialty cell day

Monday, March 22nd was our 106th day of the pandacademic year, and the first day of cycle eight. And cycle eight is the first of four straight cycles with a specialty cell. All year long we have been meeting in-person in nature at a variety of places that have allowed us to be together more safely during Covid-19, other than the month and a half that we were shut down because Austin was in the worst risk stage level of the pandemic, and then another week and a half thanks to the terrible Texas freeze that brought everything to a halt. While we have thoroughly enjoyed being outdoors in nature, and we still have cells that will be outdoors in nature for the rest of the year, starting this cycle we will also have one specialty cell that Learners can opt into that is focused around a specific activity or purpose. This cycle that cell is a social justice oriented Flying Squad. The Facilitators for this cell are me and Ariel. So for this cycle I’ll be talking primarily about this Flying Squad.

Going into Spring Break I was concerned that with most of broader society relaxing their approach to preventing the spread of Covid-19, in addition to the substantial portion of the population that was not even trying in the first place, that some of the Learners in our community may let loose over the break and engage in practices that increased their potential exposure. It does not help that their friends in public and private schools have likely embraced the false narratives about kids being safe from the disease, and the more recent viral (pun intended) lie that kids are akin to vaccinated elderly people. So on my weekly update at the beginning of spring break I included:

Please, please, stay vigilant. Please wear your mask when around people who are not in your household (I still have N95 masks and I am happy to give you more of them). Also, please do not dine in at restaurants or go to bars, do not have sleepovers, and do not attend indoor parties. And if you end up taking such risks please let us know and voluntarily self-quarantine.

At the end of spring break I followed up with another request for families to be forthright about any such behavior (text is in bold, just like in the weekly update):

If over spring break your Learner spent time indoors, unmasked with people outside of their household or dedicated pod, please let us know that they will be self-quarantining before coming back together with us. They should not show up tomorrow if that is the case. This includes any sleep overs, parties, or indoor dining.

We have quarantines in place to protect others if someone engages in behavior that may have put them at risk of catching Covid-19. We are not asking for people to never engage in higher risk activities such as eating in at a restaurant or going to a party, we are only asking that if they do that they communicate with us and engage in the necessary quarantine protocols. I was appreciative that the Learners or families who engaged in such practices let us know and began their quarantines.

Our response to the pandemic is based on the best available information we have on Covid-19 (its impact on people, how it spreads, and the state of the pandemic). We admittedly have a bias toward protecting the members of our community and public health. We have been extraordinarily clear that we are going to err on the side of caution, and that this can only work if every member of the community commits to doing so, as well. Every school in Austin has taken a different, less serious approach than Abrome, and they are able to serve all of those who are not willing to support our practices. We have certainly suffered in terms of enrollment and financially from our decision to prioritize community care, but we firmly believe that we should prioritize community over convenience, and people over profits.

Five of us at Philosophers' Rock

At the Flying Squad specialty cell, we would be at half the size we had hoped to be because of quarantining Learners. But the Learners and Facilitators showed up eager to make the most of the day, anyhow.

Facilitator Ariel opened the morning meeting, and asked who wanted to be the game master. I volunteered and said folks could sit or stand, stay 6 feet apart, and jump in when they want to talk. Facilitator Ariel then started with announcements, and one of the Learners reminded everyone that this was a social justice oriented cell, and that we should spend time actually talking about or acting on social justice issues. Facilitator Ariel also added that we should listen to one another, focus on what we are each saying, and to be mindful of our space while we are out in the city. We each then talked about how we did with our practices over spring break, and what we were most looking forward to this cycle. Then we talked about what we wanted to do and agreed to begin walking. Facilitator Ariel asked everyone if they wanted to stretch before we got going, but they just wanted to start walking.

Learning about our surroundings

We didn’t get far before I stopped at a sign to learn about the history of the cottage in the park. One of the young Learners stopped by to look at the sign while I was reading it, and I asked him if he wanted me to read it out loud. He said no, so I kept reading and when I finished we continued walking.

Thai ice cream … mind blown!

As we meandered we came across our first food truck. One of the Learners was given some money from his parents to spend each day on food or drink, and the first food truck he saw became the place he was going to spend some of his money on this day. I helped him review the menu and he decided that he was ready to buy, but the person working the truck said that they would not be ready for at least another ten minutes. He decided that he would like to wait it out, while some of the other Learners and Facilitator Ariel wanted to walk to get coffee. Because there are two Facilitators in this cell it was easy enough to break into two subgroups. When the thai ice cream truck finally opened, the Learner made his selection, and then we waited. While we waited we talked about everything from what the ice cream might taste like to other things he could eat that day. The people in the food truck let us know that one of the best parts of thai ice cream is watching the way it is made, so the Learner grabbed a stool and dragged it over to the window near where they would roll the ice cream, and watched them make the ice cream. When they gave it to him he admired the aesthetics of the ice cream, then sat down, and took a small bite. I asked him how it tasted and he indicated that it was mind blowingly good.

When he was finished we started walking down the path that the other group said they would return on. We met up with them not far from the food truck, and then we continued on. We did not really have a destination other than seeing what we could find as we approached downtown.

We eventually found our way to the pedestrian bridge over Town Lake, where we stopped to enjoy some people watching, the views of the city, and the weather. I took a quick daily update video to throw on the Instagram account, a practice I started in cycle 7. While we lingered on the bridge two of the Learners began talking about how much they wanted to get candy. They wanted to go to a candy shop that we would sometimes go into on Flying Squad days before the pandemic.

Candy, soda, junk food, and other less than healthy options are a difficult topic in the Self-Directed Education world. While we believe in child autonomy, we also tend to have a bias toward healthier living choices, relative to the general population. Some in the radical unschooling segment of SDE believe that children should be able to eat whatever they want all day long, while most others believe that the adults should at the very least limit the amount of junk food that comes in the house, and the amount of money that can be spent on junk food out of the house. We don’t have limitations on eating such foods at Abrome, but we choose not to provide junk food to Learners. Each Learner must therefore have conversations with their parents or guardians as to what food they bring with them each day, and when we are going to be in places where we can buy food, how much money they get to spend on food and any limits they may have on the types of food available to them. The only way we will choose to interfere in such decisions is if there are particular ingredients that a Learner needs to avoid, such as dyes or gluten.

Balance, he’s got it

But on this day, we said that the candy store was not an option. It was not a rejection of candy, but it was a rejection of having us all squeeze into a small store during the pandemic. One Learner was pretty fixated on this candy store option, so we asked what other options might be available. Was he willing to go to a store with a window that we would not have to go into? Or could we just go to a larger grocery store with lots of air volume and ventilation? He chose the grocery store Trader Joe’s, and everyone else was pretty excited to go there as well, so we all headed in that direction. On the way we stopped at another coffee shop that had an outdoor facing window, and Facilitator Ariel refueled for the second time. Nearby, we found two benches seated next to each other, and I asked if anyone thought I could make walk along the top of the back of the bench from end to end. Then I did it to prove that just because I was the oldest in the crew did not mean I don’t have balance. All the other Learners then tried the same, as did Facilitator Ariel. Then the youngest Learner went to the bench none of us tried to walk on, and walked along the top of that one, hoped the distance between the two benches, and then walked along the top of the other one.

When we got to Trader Joe’s, we made sure our masks were properly fitted and then we went into the store. Given the many options of candy that was available it took a while to find the best option, but the Learner with the sweet tooth eventually settled on a good sized, very affordable box of gourmet organic jelly beans. We then settled in on a large piece of turf outside the store to eat our lunches and talk. In that talk was more conversation about food. To be honest, I was getting tired of talking about food, but for some Learners it seems to always be top of mind—at least when we are in the city where there are lots of food options. They were not so hyper focused when we were meeting out in nature where there are no grocery stores or food trucks.

It’s all about perspective

Our stay near Trader Joe’s lasted for a good while, as no one was itching to move on. Facilitator Ariel decided that it was a good time to do some headstands, and he encouraged the Learners to join him. One did readily, while needed some reassurance that it was possible and some coaching on how to get in position. When they were finished trying to stand on their heads they decided they wanted to see how fast they were on their feet. They began to challenge each other and the Facilitator to races, and several were had. I almost bowled over one of the Learners when they veered into my path as I was quickly overtaking them from behind. Fortunately no one was hurt and much fun was had. We probably burned off a collective 10 jelly beans in the process.

Learning about bald cypress trees

As the day began winding down we decided to head back to the pickup location but on a slightly different path. We decided to walk toward the public library, where we read some of the signs that identified different trees and shrubs that were planted around the library, and then on a path next to the creek that took us under Cesar Chavez Street, and onto the hike and bike trail around Town Lake. We walked west until we returned back at the pedestrian bridge.

At the pedestrian bridge I pointed out that there were two ways up, via a long circular ramp, or up some stairs. Two Learners and Facilitator Ariel opted for the ramp, and they decided to run up it for some additional benefits. I filmed the run, and then I joined another Learner in walking up the stairs.

Once on the bridge we admired the many messages that were left by people with street chalk. Most of the messages on this day were left by vegans encouraging folks to eat plants instead of meat. I then remembered I had some chalk in my bag and offered it to whoever was interested in writing their own messages. Some of the messages we left included questions about capitalism, policing, the state, and a request for folks to not buy PS5 until they have more games available. One Learner worked on a dinosaur and another drew a large fox.

While it was fun to hang out on the bridge and play with the street chalk, we realized that that effort left us with little time to get back to the pickup point in time for pickup. So we said we would need to really get moving. While we only had about a mile or so walk ahead of us, we had already walked or ran a total of five miles at that point. On the way, a young Learner was really struggling to move, probably a result of too much sugar and too little water, so an adolescent Learner said she’d carry him 0.8 miles back to the pickup location. He didn’t believe she could make it, but she did. We ran out of time for our afternoon roundup, but we made it back in time for pickup. It was a very fun, tiring day.

At the other cell there was lots of running around, lots of soccer, and a visit from some geese. I’ll report mostly from the Flying Squad cell this cycle, but I will try to include some updates from that cell. Here are two videos.

Day 62 of AY20-21: our final day of 2020

Tuesday, December 22nd, was day 62 of the Abrome pandacademic year, the last day of cycle four, and our last day of 2020. It’s been quite a ride thus far, in spite of all of the disruption and struggle faced by members of our community and by society at large.

How many moons?!

At the remote cell’s morning meeting, we all shared what was one thing we would each do over next two weeks (of break): finish building a house in Minecraft, breathe, breathe, hang out with friends online, and work on myself. We then quickly turned the conversation to the Saturn-Jupiter great conjunction that happened the night before. While I had made time to see it earlier in the week, when Saturn and Jupiter were getting closer and closer to each other, I did not make it out early enough to observe the planets closer together in the night sky than they have been for 800 years. I was kicking myself for missing a rare event until I realized that even though it’s been 800 years to this point, I only have to wait 60 years for the next one on March 15, 2080! I’ll only be a couple years over the century mark by that time. Another Learner said that while he was watching a livestream of it, they were talking about the moons that were visible which led him to begin researching the moons of Jupiter. So much for Self-Directed Educated kids not wanting to learn if they’re not forced to by a teacher. I pulled up some images of the celestial event and remarked that the four moons of Jupiter were surprisingly visible. Two Learners quickly corrected me on that, as the four Galilean moons were visible, but Jupiter has 79 moons!

The mixed-age setting of Abrome benefits both the older and younger Learners

The in-person cell had a fun and challenging day. There was lots of hanging out on this day between Learners young and old. The combination of our commitment to mixed-age groups and keeping our cells no larger than nine people (including Facilitators) means that sometimes the Learners get frustrated not having more same-aged peers with them. However, the mixed-age setting should be a defining feature of an education setting as it helps to eliminate the desire for Learners to create hierarchies among same-aged peers that produce real harm among Learners (e.g., cliques, judgement, bullying). For example, if there are a bunch of 13-year-olds together there will be a desire for the Learners to start judging where they rank in terms of popularity, looks, athletic ability, etc., but when it is a collection of young people who range in age from 6-years-old to 16-years-old there is much less of a need to compare oneself to others. Further, younger Learners are able to look up to and mimic older Learners, while older Learners develop empathy and leadership skills, and they take on a nurturing role with younger Learners.

Having seen Facilitator Ariel and an adolescent Learner biking one day the prior week, a younger Learner decided to bring his bike on our last day of 2020. The Learner really likes to test the boundaries of his capabilities, and this can sometimes scare other Learners and be a cause for concern for the Facilitators. But Facilitator Ariel made sure to let the Learner know that he only wanted to ride with him if he could commit to safe practices. The Learner said that worked for him, and then Facilitator Ariel followed up with a concern about the young Learner biking without his shoes on. So the Learner put his shoes on and they took off biking.

Shooting at something with a magic wand?

Back where the rest of the Learners were, the two other young Learners were involved in a variety of ever evolving games and exploration. As the pandemic numbers continue to worsen in Central Texas we expected that the county would declare risk stage level five at some point in the cycle, and when they did we would revert to a fully remote experience. We were already committed to one remote cell since we were in stage level four. For kids who suffer in conventional school settings, remote learning can be a godsend, as it allows them to escape the constant judgement, stress, and demands of schooling. But for our Self-Directed Education community, we have no Learners who benefit from a fully remote experience, as one of the benefits of SDE is the ability to come together and pursue interests with others who do not try to manipulate or control the Learners. Seeing these Learners engaging and playing really is a thing of beauty in a world that insists on locking kids down in even non-pandemic times.

The prospective Learner who was wrapping up his shadow was still feeling things out, and part of that included testing boundaries. For example, that morning he lightly but intently poked some folks with a stick and waited for a reaction. Facilitator Ariel gave him feedback telling him, “please do not touch him from my knees up to … the top of my head.” So the shadower then tapped him in the shins. This is not uncommon at Abrome when new people join the community, because when we tell Learners they are free, they want to see if we really mean it. Lots of schools might tell students that they’ve turned the school upside down and that the students are in charge, but the students learn quickly that they are only in charge of a tiny range of options that the adults have laid out for them. Quite frankly the schools should stop doing that because it is a form of gaslighting.

While we fundamentally believe in autonomy for all people, we are also a psychologically safe community that is anti-oppressive and consensus based. Or at least we are constantly striving to be one. So the poking incident was a great opportunity to express to the Learner that freedom does not mean license, and that our freedom includes accountability to one another. And although these conversations can be difficult for young people, especially young people who have only ever known rules and demands of them, they help the Learners to recognize the potential of freedom within their lives and how it can be used to support them and everyone else in the community.

The younger Learners, a six-year-old and an eight-year-old, who were playing a variety of games later broke a glass bottle that was in the dried out river bed. When asked what happened the Learners plainly stated, “we found it and decided to break it.” Abrome’s non-reliance on punishment opens up more opportunities for honesty from Learners, particularly when they know they may have done something harmful. But that does not mean that they enjoy having a conversation about it. As Facilitator Lauren attempted to engage them so that they could think through what compelled them to break it, and what the consequences of the act could be on others, the Learners started to walk away. Facilitator Lauren followed them because this was one of those moments they actually needed to discuss what happened because the Learners violated the Abrome agreements that every member of the community committed to. In particularly, the principle of taking care of others and taking care of the space. She said, “I need you to stop. We need to acknowledge what happened and we need to make it safe. We need to fix it.” Facilitator Lauren was concerned about them cutting themselves so she did not insist that they pick up the glass, but she did insist that they be with her while she cleaned it up. They started to point out where the pieces of glass were among the rocks, and then they all discussed why it was unsafe. One Learner said that it was no big deal because he could just walk around it, and that people could walk around it too. Facilitator Lauren struck a chord when she asked what would happen if a raccoon cut its foot. They acknowledged that it might not be able to move around for food and water. This was an example of how Abrome approaches difficult situations without relying on punishments. By doing so, we are able to have meaningful conversations rooted in trust and respect, that allow us to focus on the ethics of a situation instead of compliance and looking good in the eyes of others.

Back in the remote cell I had a scheduled check-in with one of the older Learners. She messaged me on Discord and said that we should cancel the meeting because there was no point in meeting. I asked her to explain and she said she had a rough week and was not thinking about the topic of the meeting. I said we should have the meeting anyway, as it was scheduled and I had made plans to be there, and that we could discuss her week or anything else. When she got on the call I reaffirmed that we did not have to dwell on the original topic, and we soon found our conversation drifting to all the ways that she wants her life to be after Abrome. Some of the conversation touched upon her desire to someday get a college degree, so I asked her if she wanted to take some community college courses. She said she did but that she had no idea how she could go about that or pay for it. I challenged her on that, asking her how she could find out if it was possible, and we then talked through what it means to look up that information and reach out to people who can help. It was a nice conversation and as I left she continued to scroll through the website of Austin Community College.

What an amazing quetzalcoatlus nest

Back at the in-person cell the shadower was sharing the snacks he brought for the last day of his shadow. He was super excited to be able to offer something to the community and the community was super excited to try out his gluten-free, nut-free, dairy-free vegan treats. He brought enough for each person to have two of them, although not everyone wanted to eat two treats.

Imaginative play continued on this last day of the cycle, and calendar year. One of the Learners decided that he was going to build a replica of a quetzalcoatlus nest, and then chose to reenact what it might have looked like for one to hatch. It was an impressive display, and everyone was sure to keep their distance in case the mother was ready to swoop in to protect her hatchling.

As the day wound to a close I held one final afternoon roundup with the remote cell. The Learners reflected on one thing they did that day or one thing they appreciated: being with family, writing music, watching Vikings (tv show), finishing a book, writing a blog post, letting chickens out of their coop, cleaning out a shelf in their room where they found old stories that were pretty funny, and working on art. The last to go was the older Learner I had a meeting with and the thing she said she appreciated was our chat. Then she addressed everyone and announced that she was officially signed up for college.

Thinking about the limitations of Covid-19

So much of Abrome’s approach to the year has been influenced by Covid-19 and the challenges of bringing people together safely in ways that don’t put the welfare of the members of our community at risk, and in ways that do not contribute to the spread of a pandemic that has destroyed the lives of so many. Our focus on taking care of others led us to spend our days outdoors, where we continue to build community and practice Self-Directed Education.

What we offered before the pandemic was already difficult for most families to wrap their head around: ‘No curriculum, no classes, no testing or grading, and no age based rankings … but how will they learn to be successful?’ It was no surprise that in non-pandemic times we were unlikely to convince people that children cannot not learn; that they are always learning; that it is the medium in which that learning takes place that provides the real learning; and that prioritizing autonomy, play, and community is the surest way to providing a meaningful education that can prepare them to contribute and improve the human condition.

Our focus on community centers on the child, but extends to those outside our community

During the pandemic we imagined that families who had been apprehensive about letting go of the illusion of schooling as necessary would finally let go. We have had so many families look into Abrome over the past few years who said that they knew that Abrome was what was best for their children, but at the end of the day they said they just could not trust themselves to let go of their fears that their kids would miss out in some way if they were not in a conventional (public or private) school setting. They knew Abrome was what was best for their kids, but they just couldn’t let go. I thought the pandemic (and recession, and uprising) would surely be enough to help families recognize the value of life, the value of time, and the necessity for their children to be able to have a sense of control over their lives.

Yet in many ways the pandemic has, counterintuitively from my perspective, made it more difficult for families to join Abrome. First, the fears for their children’s future financial security have been amplified. They can see that tens of millions of people have lost their jobs, and that most Americans are financially worse off now than they were one year ago. But they also see that a tiny sliver of society is profiting handsomely from the pandemic. Even a year ago there was a general sense that the future of society was going to be broken down into a small number of (economic) winners and a large mass of losers, and the pandemic has only made the ratio greater, and seem all that more daunting. The illusion of schooling as the way to end up on the right side of the ratio becomes more powerful the more lopsided the ratio becomes.

Second, our Covid-19 protocols have made it even harder for many families to get comfortable with Abrome. In response to the pandemic we took everything outdoors, in physically distant small groups (cells), and we wear masks around each other. We have expectations of each other in terms of the risk that each household exposes themselves to outside of Abrome, and in terms of communicating with us about that risk. Our approach to the pandemic assumes that there could be an infected person in the community at any time and that we must act in a way that minimizes the risk of them spreading the disease within our community, or out into the broader community. And that approach can seem a bit much to anyone who does not believe the pandemic is that dangerous, or who is focused more on their willingness to take the personal risk of contracting Covid-19 than their risk of contributing to the spread of the disease.

Third, logistically, the pandemic has limited the number of people who can join our community. Because we are separated into cells of seven Learners or less, we can only bring on Learners when there is space available, and we can only grow by growing the number of Facilitators we have on the team. If we have two Facilitators we can accommodate 14 Learners. If we have three Facilitators we can accommodate 21 Learners. But finding the right Facilitator is difficult as they need to trust and respect kids, be committed to anti-oppression and liberation, and be excited about being outdoors all day with young people. Fortunately, I believe our current team of Facilitators form a great foundation to build upon. Another logistical constraint is our need for prospective Learners to shadow. We are unique among most education communities in requiring Learners to shadow for five days so that everyone can make an informed decision as to whether the community, the prospective Learner, and the prospective family are a good fit for each other. There also needs to be enough room in a cell to accommodate shadowers (and if there are siblings they cannot be broken up between cells as that compromises the integrity of the cells). This required shadow period coupled with our three week on, one week off schedule creates challenges for many families, and pushes many to choose alternatives that provide a more immediate alternative.

Lastly, although our protocols that have made it easier for us to more safely be together in person for the first few months of this academic year, they are also going to make it harder for us to be together as the pandemic continues to ramp up. In Travis County (where Abrome is located) we started the year in stage level three. For most schools they started the year either remote (zoom schooling), in-person but socially detached (masked up, not allowed to interact with each other because they were inside), or in-person and unwilling to abide by the most basic practices that prevent the spread of the disease (mask optional, no or unenforced distancing measures). We got to be safer while also being together. But as Travis County went to stage four last Friday, we stuck to our protocols and made one of the cells go remote. And as Travis County quickly moves toward stage five, we are preparing to support our Learners by going fully remote.

Local parents demanding that schools fully reopen during the pandemic

Yet, while we hold fast to our commitments, we have noticed a near universal relaxing of standards for schools. Some of it has been driven by business and political interests who want employees to have available childcare so they can go to work. Some of it has been driven by pandemic fatigue where people shift their notions of risk for convenience as the pandemic wears them down. And some of it has been driven by parents who are demanding that the schools relax their approach to the pandemic, whether for reasons of Covid skepticism, because they want their kids to be able to be with their friends again, or because they think that their kids are losing at the game of schooling due to pandemic practices. This shift means that although Abrome was more easily able to bring Learners together at lower levels of risk than the conventional schools were able to; we will be partially or fully remote when the pandemic is at its worst; while students, teachers, and staff will continue to congregate indoors, with loosened pandemic practices, at many conventional schools. And as we get more stringent in our practices as the pandemic becomes worse, many others, including much of the mass media, are arguing that schools should take on more risk. It makes Abrome a harder sell to families who may want to join as we approach what may be the peak of the pandemic.

There are people who believe in Self-Directed Education who don’t believe Covid-19 is something to take seriously. They may have considered joining Abrome in non-pandemic times, but they are not going to choose Abrome now. There are people who believe Covid-19 is something to take seriously but don’t believe in Self-Directed Education. They have never considered Abrome and never will (unless something happens that causes them to prioritize autonomy for their children). And there are people who believe Covid-19 is something to take seriously and that Self-Directed Education is necessary for their kids. These are the ones most likely to join Abrome during this pandemic, but this group is also small, and the ones who have the flexibility within their lives to make the move to Abrome makes the group even smaller.

When I started Abrome I was committed to staying true to child autonomy, anti-oppression, and community care. I knew that if I wanted to grow I could have introduced aspects of schooling into Abrome such as “core skills” time where Learners were expected to work on mathematics or language arts, or I could have forced Learners to produce projects that would make parents feel comfortable because they could see a tangible representation of learning, whether or not the learning contributed to the development of the child. But I also knew if I focused on making anxious parents feel comfortable by subjecting their children to schoolishness, that we would become just another school that harmed children. And during this pandemic I knew that if I wanted to grow Abrome I could have simply said that masks were optional, and that we could come together indoors for reasons of comfort and perceived normalcy. Or that I could say that we will loosen our protocols and continue to meet in-person despite the heightened degree of community spread. But I also knew that doing so would put the health and welfare of our Learners, our Facilitators, their households, and everyone that they came into contact with at risk. And that by doing so, we would also be putting broader society at risk. And that doing so would signal to those within our community that growth was more important than doing what was best for everyone in society, whether they are members of our community or not, whether they believe that Covid-19 is a dangerous disease or not, and whether they are committed to the welfare of people they do not know or not.

Feedback from the community on risk tolerance and exposure to Covid-19

Before we reopened for the year we ran a poll to get a better understanding of each family’s approach to the pandemic and their exposure to it. We received responses from all 13 households (Learners and Facilitators) in our community and I am sharing those results with you here.

Q1: Collective beliefs of everyone in your household regarding the pandemic

• 10 households believe that ‘Covid-19 is a dangerous disease that needs to be taken seriously by society, my community, and our household’

• 6 households believe that ‘Covid-19 is dangerous and there are people in my household who would be seriously harmed if they contracted the disease’

• 5 households believe that ‘Covid-19 is dangerous and there are people I interact with who would be seriously harmed if they contracted the disease’

Analysis: We are fortunate that none of the households in our community believe that Covid-19 is a hoax or should not be taken seriously. This may be because our families were drawn to Abrome because of our commitment to centering the needs of those who would be most impacted by the decisions we make. It may also be because only three of the 13 households do not live with or interact with someone who would be seriously harmed if they contracted the disease.

Q2: Mask wearing practices of the people in your household

• 11 households ‘wear masks whenever we are indoors with people outside of our house or pandemic pod’

• 10 households ‘wear masks when outdoors only if there are people nearby or passing us on the street’

• 9 households ‘wear masks whenever we are indoors outside of our house or pandemic pod, even if other people are not around’

• 7 households ‘wear masks whenever we are near others, even if only for a moment’

• 2 households ‘wear masks only if we cannot physically distance from others’

• 2 households ‘don't expect young children to wear masks either indoors or outdoors (except as required at Abrome)’

Analysis: All members of our community wear masks when in public and around others. Given that most Covid-19 infections take place indoors, and almost all recorded super spreader events have taken place indoors, and that masking is one of the best ways that we can protect others, we were pleased to see that the nine of the households wear masks when they are indoors outside of their home or pod, even if others are not around.

Q3: Collective beliefs and practices of your household on interacting with others or going out in public during the pandemic

• 10 households ‘visit stores and businesses for essential needs only’

• 8 households ’evaluate other people's level of risk tolerance and make sure it matches ours before we meet up with them’

• 8 households ‘order groceries and other essentials for delivery’

• 5 households said ‘everyone in our household has essentially stayed home since March’

• 5 households ‘have seen people outside of our household or pandemic pod socially, but always outdoors, and at a distance’

• 4 households ‘visit restaurants for dining, but only outdoors’

• 3 households ‘have seen people outside of our household or pandemic pod socially, but always outside, at a distance, and with masks on’

• 2 households ‘visit stores and businesses but not when there are lots of customers’

• 1 household has ‘seen people outside of our household or pandemic pod socially, but always outdoors, and with masks on’

• 1 household has ‘seen people outside of our household or pandemic pod socially, indoors, but always at a distance, and with masks on’

• 1 household ‘has seen people outside of our household or pandemic pod socially, indoors, but always with masks on’

• 1 household has ‘seen people outside of our household or pandemic pod socially, indoors, without distancing and without masks’

• 1 household has ‘seen people outside of our household or pandemic pod socially, indoors, but always at a distance, without masks’

• 1 household ‘visit[s] restaurants for dining, indoors or outdoors’

Analysis: The large majority of the households in our community have beliefs and practices that will not only help protect the members of their households from Covid-19, but are also consistent with a larger effort to combat the disease here in Central Texas. One respondent selected most of the options about seeing people outside of their household or pandemic pod socially, indicating that they have been in a variety of settings over the spring and summer. One family said they had visited restaurants for dining, indoors and outdoors. We do not know the context behind those responses but we highly encourage families to meet outdoors and wear masks when interacting with people outside their household or pandemic pod. We also discourage eating at indoor restaurants, which have been documented as sites of infection.

Q4: Your household's interaction with others during the pandemic

• 8 households have ‘no one in the household [that] works with others

• 8 households ‘opted out of summer camps, sports, and other social engagements that involved large groups’

• 7 households ‘[do] not interact with anyone outside of our household other than brief interactions’

• 3 households ‘Learner/s have friends or playmates that they spend time with’

• 3 households said ‘at least one of us is an essential worker’

• 2 households said ‘at least one of us works indoors with others’

• 2 households said ‘at least one member of the household attends a school/education program other than Abrome’

• 1 household ‘has set up or joined a pandemic pod that has committed to not spending time with people outside of the pod’

• 1 household said ‘some of us occassionally attend parties or meet up with people outside of our household or pod to let loose’

• 1 household ‘sent our children to summer camp and/or other social events with other children in July or August’

Analysis: We are fortunate that so many Abrome households have the luxury of working remotely during this pandemic, and that over half of our households do not interact with anyone outside their households except for brief interactions. We recognize that not everyone has the privilege to do so, and this greatly reduces the threat of Covid-19 infection within our community. Even better is that members of our community have made hard choices that have benefited the efforts to combat the spread of Covid-19 in Central Texas. For example, eight households opted out of summer camps, sports, and other social engagements that involved large groups, while only one sent their Learner/s to a summer camp or other social event with children over the summer.

Q5: Total number of people living in your household

The minimum number of people living in an Abrome household was one (two of the Facilitators), and the maximum was five. The average number of people living in each household is 3.1.

Q6: Number of people in your household are at risk of severe complication from Covid-19 (e.g., immunocompromised, elderly)

Four households had at least one at-risk person living in their household, with one household having three members. The average number of at-risk people per household is 0.5.

Q7: Number of people in your household who work in settings with other people

While most households do not have anyone in their house who works with other people, three households had one member who does, and one household had two members who do.

Q8: The total number of people household members collectively work with in a work setting (e.g., employees, students).

Most Abrome households do not have anyone who works in a setting with other people, but the average is 2.5 because of three people who work with 7-16 other people. The largest number (16) belongs to a member who works in a non-Abrome education setting.

Q9: Does anyone in your household work in a setting where they interact with large numbers of customers per day (e.g., grocery store, gas station)?

We are very fortunate that no one in our community works in a setting where they are forced to interact with large numbers of customers per day. We also believe that anyone who does work in such a setting should receive full healthcare benefits and should earn substantially more than minimum wage.

Q10: If any members of your household attend a school/education program other than Abrome, how many total students/teachers/staff do they collectively expect to come into contact with each day?

Two Abrome Learners have siblings who attend a school other than Abrome. These two siblings come into contact with seven and twelve people, respectively, each day.

Q11: If your household has joined a pandemic pod how many other households are part of that pod?

Only two Abrome households have joined a pandemic pod. There are three households in one pod, and four households in the other.

Q12: If your household has joined a pandemic pod how many total individuals are in that pod?

The average number of individuals in each pod is only 3.5 people. This is likely due to single people who have no housemates being counted as a household.

Q13: If your household has joined a pandemic pod, are any other households in your pod also members of the Abrome community?

None of the Abrome households that are in a pod have another Abrome household in the same pod.

Q14: Total number of people the members of your household collectively interact with socially (not at work) that are not included in your pandemic pod

Most of the households do not interact socially with others, but the average is pushed up to 2.6 by the five households that do.

Final analysis: Abrome has taken the pandemic very seriously from day one. That is why we extended our spring break to three weeks this past March so that we could better evaluate the trajectory of the pandemic and prepare for the likelihood of supporting our Learners remotely to help protect our families and the Central Texas community. It is why we were the first school in the region to close indefinitely, before the state mandated the same. And it is why we rolled out a reopening plan that placed us in small, physically distant operating cells that are meeting wholly outdoors.

While our plans to limit the potential spread of Covid-19 among Learners and Facilitators is a good one, and by far the safest option of any school that is not entirely remote, that safety can be undone by irresponsible practices by the members of our Abrome community, or by uncontrolled community spread in the Austin area. We asked our families to be “brutally honest” in their responses to this survey, and we greatly appreciate their commitment to doing so.

Based on the responses of each of the Abrome households, we feel that our efforts to keep our community safer is being supported by the members of our community. Each member of our community is taking the pandemic seriously, and the overwhelming majority are engaging in practices that greatly reduce the risk of catching and spreading the disease. We will continue to encourage community members to remember to center the needs of those most at-risk, and we will share information about safer practices each of us can take.

Assuming a cell has the maximum number of Learners (seven) at the current risk stage and one Facilitator, the average total number of people living in those eight households is 25. Coincidentally, 25 is the average number of students in a sixth grade classroom in the local public school district (as of 2019). Each cell’s exposure risk does extend beyond those 25 individuals in the eight households, but given the work profile of our community and their pandemic practices, coupled with our in-person practices at Abrome, it seems that we are able to meet much more safely than any other education community that is meeting in person.

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Banner image: Felipe Esquivel Reed, Coronavirus COVID-19 virus, CC BY-SA 4.0

Day 7 of AY20-21: when joking around becomes problematic

My cell was without three Learners on Wednesday. One is still out of state helping his grandparents move, and two were at home resting after being out in the sun all day (with one also going on a fairly strenuous hike) at Abrome on Tuesday. When the other Learners arrived we held our morning meeting in a clearing surrounded by tall trees that provided us enough shade to remain cool in the surprisingly muggy morning air. The meeting did not start off great as a young Learner wanted to sit off about 30 feet from the rest of the group. That Learner in particular has been over-the-moon excited to be back at Abrome, and has expressed unmitigated joy about his daily Abrome experience to his parents. At the same time, he has also found joy in joking around with me by insulting me and saying that he hates me (he does not hate me), as well as finding ways to try to make things difficult on me by doing the opposite of things I would like to do. This encourages and has been encouraged by another young Learner, and it has gotten to the point where it is disrupting our meetings. And while the older Learners recognize that it is the younger Learners’ way of trying to play with someone that they see as an authority figure (and maybe trying to bring down my level of self-importance), it is also challenging the notion that we are a safe space where people do not assess, ridicule, or judge others. So that morning I reviewed the Abrome principles and agreements with all the Learners.

Our principles are very simple:

• Take care of ourselves

• Take care of others

• Take care of the space

And these are our agreements:

• Honor Abrome Principles

• Honor community awarenesses and assist in culture creation

• Meaningfully participate in morning & afternoon meetings, Set-the-Week, Check-in, and all called community meetings

• Clean up after myself and participate in end of the day community cleanup

• Authentically share work and play with the community

• Commit to anti-oppressive language and behavior

The principles should guide everything we do and the agreements are what each member agrees to in order to participate in the community. While we believe in autonomy for children we do not believe that that creates an excuse for behavior that harms others or that undermines the community. As A.S. Neill said, freedom does not mean license. I’ve tried to respond to the younger Learners’ joking around by laughing it off, or playing up that what they’re really saying when they insult me is that they love me. I’ve developed a standard response that they’re on a "[name]-a-roll” and then follow up with the words “how rude!” It hasn’t worked. And I hoped that by discussing the principles and agreements it would help us return to a state where interactions are enjoyable and supportive.

Trying to help tadpoles survive

We ended the morning meeting with a get-to-know-you activity and then we debated hiking to the top of a hill, hiking uphill to a restful spot next to a stream, or heading back to the lakeshore. We decided on the lakeshore and when we arrived some of us immediately went to check in on the tadpoles we had been trying to keep alive. I finished drinking a can of coffee and a Learner finished off his can of Monster, we rinsed them out, and then we used them to slowly refill the puddles with some water from the lake.

Nothing beats the heat for us better than jumping in the cold waters of Lake Austin

At 11 a.m., I jumped on Zoom for the check-in for the remote Learners and then Facilitator Lauren and two Learners went on a hike to investigate a portion of the park that none of us had been to yet. By the time they returned everyone was feeling the heat and I offered to walk back to the meet up area with anyone who wanted to come with me to refill our water bottles. None of them wanted to make the hike so I went alone. And by the time I got back I was ready to jump in the water, as were two others. Lauren and I have been modeling getting in the water to cool down, hoping that other Learners would also jump in. And on day seven one of them finally did! And after she got out of the water another Learner pointed out that her foot was bleeding. One of her toes must have scraped against a rock when she was climbing out of the water, so Facilitator Lauren got out a first aid kit and cleaned the scratch and put a bandaid on it. Then we contacted Facilitator Jennifer and let them know that their cell wasn’t the only cell where people were getting injured!

We loved meeting this friendly guy

While we were sitting around talking to each other we noticed a woman walking toward the lake with a toddler in one arm and a parrot on the other. This slowly drew out the Abrome Learners and Facilitators one by one as if they were a shining orb of light that we just could not turn away from. When we had gathered around her, the woman kindly told us about her African Grey Parrot. That she got it as a rescue when she was a tween and that it would live for 80 years! That avocados are deadly to the parrot. And she shared some interesting facts about why parrots were valued shipmates on pirate ships and a plan to use them to spy on Nazis in WWII. She let us hold the parrot and let it sit on our shoulders, all the while some of the younger Abrome Learners played with her toddler.

At the end of the day we once again held our afternoon roundup on the dock, and we reflected on our day with rose-bud-thorn. I had to be honest that my thorn was that the younger Learners were still being joking around with me by way of insults throughout the day. The Learners seemed to reflect on that for a moment. I said my bud was talking with a Learner about the possibility of him bringing a guitar and learning how to play it while I learn to play the ukulele. And my rose was getting to meet the parrot. After we walked back to the pickup location and the Learners went home, Lauren and I discussed the challenge of the younger Learners continuing to joke around through insults. We don’t punish Learners, and we don’t threaten them with removal from the community. We want to treat them as we hope that they will treat others. So we will remind them of our principles, agreements, awarenesses, and practices. We decided that joking around in a dismissive manner was not working, and that instead we would be more pointed in articulating how such jokes are not funny or supportive. And by doing so we hope that we can help reaffirm that our principles are not just words, but that they are central to the culture of the Abrome community that we all clearly love.

Day 4 of AY20-21: learning as we go

On Friday we wrapped up our first week outdoors. We are now one week into the first of eleven cycles that will run through mid-July. The week was fun, and had lots of learning experiences embedded in it. Some of the fun:

Cell 1 put their blood, sweat, and tears into this week! Literally! A few injuries didn't stop us from exploring beautiful creek and waterfall views, building shelters and sharpening spears, and throwing dozens of rocks. A made a longbow that the other Learners found super impressive. J practiced all of his birds of prey calls (plus his Godzilla call for good measure). L planned out and practiced her lines for her hamster care video. And I oversaw some creek bed remodeling to increase water flow.

Younger Learners hanging out with the Cuddle Buddies while an older Learner and a Facilitator prep a fire

Cell 2 got some good exercise in as we went on moderate hikes two of the three days we were together. M went on two separate hikes to the top of the park, once with Antonio and once with Lauren. A and J spent a lot of time running around with each other all week, and with Cuddle Buddies Ivan and Ingrid on Friday. We did some arts and crafts; we talked about fire making (and made a fire) and outdoor cooking, gardening, and survival skills; and we enjoyed the opportunity to sit and watch and listen to nature. And we all enjoyed a variety of games and get-to-know you activities, with fire keeper seemingly being the favorite. 

While we invested a lot of time and energy into preparing for being outdoors, there are some lessons that are best learned in real time. So I wanted to share some of those with you:

Remote meetings are easier when not combined with in-person meetings

1. Combining in-person meetings with remote meetings does a great disservice to both groups of Learners. We tried to have our couple of remote Learners join us in our morning and afternoon meetings earlier in the week, and connectivity issues aside, the ability of those remote Learners to connect with the in-person Learners was severely lacking. As hard as I tried to orient the camera so they could see the in-person Learners who were speaking or participating in activities, I could not effectively share what was happening in real time. The in-person Learners, meanwhile, could not see the remote Learners on my phone because we were distancing and moving around, and they could not easily hear them. By Wednesday we established separate check-ins for remote Learners so that I could give them my full attention.

2. Paying a lot of money for a hotspot does not guarantee connectivity when out in nature. Yes, we paid a lot of money for a hotspot so that we could connect with remote Learners while we were outdoors. Unfortunately, it’s been really hard to find a spot where that hotspot can support video connections. We are still in the process of trying to find a good location to set up at for the remote check-ins.

3. Going outdoors means we are much less likely than conventional schools to need to revert to remote learning due to Covid-19 outbreaks. But going outdoors can also mean that we have to go remote during extreme weather. We had to have a remote day on Wednesday due to all-day thunderstorms. We will need to decide as a community how much we want to try to host offerings and create connection on remote days versus just holding space for Learners when we cannot meet.

4. Pack lots of gauze. Accidents happen, especially when young people are given the freedom to play. So sometimes someone may cut themselves with their pocket knife, or someone may accidentally hit someone else’s finger with a rock. And sometimes these accidents happen multiple times per week, so we need to constantly refill our first aid kits.

5. Get out of the sun, get in the shade, and drink lots of water. We already knew this from our summer trainings, but helping the Learners take it to heart is something we need to continue to work on. There were definitely a couple of Learners who were physically drained by the heat at the end of the day on Friday.

We write down our intentions each morning

Fortunately we are intentionally agile, so we can take these lessons and quickly incorporate them into our practices. On Friday morning we had our first Check-in and Change-up meeting where we raised awarenesses and established practices that we will be working on as a community. Through this change-up process we get to co-create a culture that supports all Learners.

On to week two!

And sometimes we write down our intentions again, in the dirt