Day 114 of AY20-21: I will answer that education survey

Thursday, April 1st, was day 114 of the pandacademic year, and it was April Fools’ Day! All six Learners showed up for Flying Squad, and all of us were on edge for pranks. At the morning meeting one of the adolescent Learners volunteered to be the game master while Facilitator Ariel served as the facilitator. We started with announcements and then awarenesses, and then we each talked about something that we wanted to focus on that day through the end of the cycle, and then we shared ideas for what we could do this week related to social justice. Unsurprisingly, most of the answers to the first prompt revolved around play, particularly at the park we spent much of the prior day at, and the answers to the second prompt were pretty evenly distributed between houseless issues, adultism, white supremacy and racism, the criminal injustice system, and fascist vs antifascist actions. It was a really good, thoughtful morning meeting.

Stretching breaks are needed for Facilitators

There was not much debate about what we should do that day, as the Learners were unanimously in favor of going back to the playground from the day before. Two of the Learners who were not present the prior day were particularly eager to check out what all the hype was. So we ventured out going at a slow pace as we were mindful of the knee problems that Facilitator Ariel was having.

Learner is on lookout for our safety

We stopped at a convenience store along the way so that a younger Learner could get his organic candy treat for the day. We also stopped at the intersection of Lamar and Barton Springs so that I (Facilitator Antonio) could stretch my muscles, particularly my hip flexors which have been really bothering me. I appreciate that the Learners and the stop light are understanding of my needs.

When we got to the park the Learners immediately fanned out to play and push some boundaries. The youngest scaled to the top of the climbing structure and served as lookout, to warn us if any trouble was coming our way.

Continuing to not play fair

It didn’t take long for the Learners to find themselves near the large slide where they engaged in a game of ‘rip the Learner away from the bar and pull him down the slide.’ Typically it takes at least two people, one holding each leg, with some yanking to dislodge a Learner from the bar. We continued to practice until we perfected our technique.

And it got even more violent, later. There was a Godzilla sighting. I feared for the safety of the random schooled kids who don’t know how to keep their heads on a swivel.

In between the climbing, sliding, wrestling, and dislodging there was a good amount of hanging out, eating lunch, and socializing. But what about socializing, right? Apparently we don’t need to age segregate kids and make them sit in class for six hours a day to be socialized.

Radical candor is needed in education

With the Learners so into each other the Facilitators had a lot of time to focus on other things like reading, as Facilitator Ariel did; or having deep conversations, like Facilitator Ariel and a Learner did; or talking about Abrome to curious adults, like I did with the mom of a couple of kids who were at the playground. I had planned to create handouts for when parents ask us what Abrome is, and was quite disappointed that I did not have any handy for the mom. I added that to my ever growing to do list.

Unfortunately, three Learners that carpool together needed to leave at 1:30 p.m., leaving only five of us in the cell. We still played more, and still had fun, but it was a bummer losing half the Learners.

Danger noodle!

I also got to answer survey that I received via text toward the end of the day. The question was, “Should we spend more or less time in classroom teaching students about social justice issues?” I responded, “Classrooms and schools should be abolished. Schools cannot be vehicles for social justice because they’re inherently oppressive and serve to protect the status quo. Good luck.” Unfortunately, most education surveys and studies are focused on how to tinker within the practices and structures of schooling, so they continue to ignore the underlying problems of schooling. My answers always get thrown out as outliers in these surveys.

We had some struggles trying to leave at the end of the day. I chalked it up to exhaustion and dehydration. Ah, dehydration. Drinking water has been a big focus for us all year, and it is a continual struggle. But on a positive note, no one played any April Fools’ tricks on the Facilitators!

At the other cell there was lots of fun in nature. Speaking of nature, they saw a danger noodle! They thought so, at least. They thought it was a water moccasin. But they pulled out their field guides and opened up a web browser on Facilitator Lauren’s phone and worked on positively identifying it. found that it was a non-venomous danger noodle, so not a danger noodle at all.

Day 108 of AY20-21: taking out the trash

The forecast for Wednesday, March 24th, included thunderstorms as late as the evening of Tuesday, March 23rd. But the thunderstorms were scheduled for the afternoon, and it seemed that thunderstorms kept clearing out of the forecast the closer we got to it. Which makes sense, since meteorologists need to work with probabilities based on current conditions. As a forecast becomes closer, uncertainty reduces, and while there may be a 30% of thunderstorms in five days, come the morning of, that 30% may now be 80% or 10%. On this day there was a small chance of afternoon thunderstorms, which meant we might have to cancel the day or plan for an early pickup. Having missed out on January and February thanks to Covid-19 spread and the Texas freeze, we really wanted to find a way to allow everyone to come together, so I sent the following email to Parents and Guardians at 6:50 a.m. (our start time is 10:00 a.m.):

Current weather forecasts say there is a chance of thunderstorms this afternoon. Based on the updated forecasts at noon, we may ask you to pick up your Learner/s at 1p. We will not contact you if there is no need for an early pickup. If you would not be able to pick up your Learner/s at 1p if there is a half day because of inclement weather, your Learner should stay home today.

More concerning to me was that some of the Learners have not been drinking enough water. This has always been a concern for us, so we asked every Learner to bring a water bottle with them every day so they would always have water nearby. At the Abrome facility I got a standup, 5-filter water purification system and dispenser so that there was never an excuse for not drinking enough water. Even with that making drinking water easy, Learners would often get so lost in other activities that they would fail to stay hydrated. This is certainly one area where conventional schools may have an advantage, because there students are often be permitted to leave a painful class if they go get a drink at the water fountain. During this pandacademic year we are entirely outdoors, so we are doubly challenged because the elements can make it more difficult on the Learners (hot weather requires more water, and cold weather makes drinking enough water less desirable) and we can’t carry much water with us. Each Facilitator brings at least two-gallons of water per day in their vehicle, but sometimes getting back to the vehicle is challenging. So last Wednesday I asked if we could get everyone to give drink half of their bottle of water by the end of the morning meeting so that they could top it off before we headed out for the day.

We expected Wednesday to be a great day. We were still three Learners down due to quarantine, which sucked, but we had made plans to act upon a young Learner’s interest in addressing all the litter in Austin. I brought gloves and garbage bags to make the pickup easier on us. After the morning meeting we talked about how we would spend our day and when we would make time for the pickup. I suggested maybe early in the day before it got too hot and before we were too tired, especially because folks were already tired from the two days before, while others suggested we do a cleanup after the afternoon roundup. But the city employs folks who clean up trash at the park that we hold our meeting, while other parts of the city do not. Eventually they decided that they were going to pick up trash on the way back to the pickup point at the end of the day.

But they also decided they did not want to walk very far this day. Instead, they wanted to go across the street to Zilker Park and play in the large fields and on the rock outcropping in the middle of the park. When we got there the Learners immediately got to playing in various ways. We worked our way to the outcropping and I hung my bag from a tree and sat down with the intention of writing down some notes. One Learner found a pack of cards that had been left there, asked to borrow my stick of glue, and worked to repair the box for future use.

A younger Learner climbed up, over, around, and through the rock outcropping, and eventually decided that he was going to make a home out of a cave. He began to gather branches, grasses, and other materials he found to decorate his space. I looked over at another Learner who was sitting and eating some chips. I asked him what he planned to do while we were there and he said there was nothing to do. He’s one of our newest Learners and is still deschooling. I offered up some of my books to read, some art supplies to work with, and offered to throw the football with him. He passed on all of it, and I recognized that it was a good time for him to sit with himself.

Later, an adolescent Learner chose to join in the play of the younger Learner and they climbed up into some of the trees, and I offered to pass the football to them in the tree to see if they could catch it without falling (they were not very high and I did not throw the ball very hard).

The weather was really beautiful, it was overcast and pretty so there was no direct sun on our backs, but the warmth of the air meant we were not chilly in any way. We could feel the nice, warm, springtime mist on our faces.

Facilitator Ariel asked the Learner who did not believe the had anything to do if he was willing to throw the football around. He passed on the opportunity, but the others Learners said yes. I also joined in, and we played a variety of spontaneous games such as try to tackle Facilitator Ariel, try to avoid being tacked by Facilitator Ariel, let Facilitator Ariel kick the ball as far as possible and see who can recover it first while everyone else tackles each other en route to the ball, etc. The laughter and joy emanating from the other Learners pulled the Learner who was standing on the sidelines into the games. There was lots of running, some jammed fingers, and a couple of scrapes from biting it on the turf.

I briefly checked the weather apps on my phone and confirmed that the thunderstorms had cleared out of the forecast for the afternoon, so there was no need for me to let the Learners’ families know that they needed to come pick them up. I was thrilled we were not going to be stuck with a half day.

Afterward the Learners were interested in resting. Facilitator Ariel offered to set up the hammock and one of the Learners assisted him in setting it up. This gave me the opportunity to sit down and eat some lunch, and afterward I broke out Usual Cruelty and continued to slow read the first essay of the book. An essay, that by the time I finished it, I felt was the most perfect essay written about what the criminal injustice system is.

What good is the hammock if folks can’t relax in it. One of the Learners was really eager to enjoy it and asked Facilitator Ariel if he could hang out in it, and Facilitator Ariel said he could. There was some conversation about the Learner getting his own so they could set up multiple hammocks in the future, and so that he would not need to wait his turn. The Learner said he might ask his parents to buy him one, and Facilitator Ariel asked if instead he might consider saving up the money to buy his own.

While we were sitting around an older guy wandered into the area where we were and observed us for a minute. He seemed interested in what these two guys and these young people were doing, hanging out, playing, laughing, and talking in a care free way on a school day. One of the Learners shied away from him, perhaps having learned from dominant culture that strangers, especially men, seemingly poor folks, or houseless people (we had no reason to believe that he was poor or houseless) were a potential threat. Facilitator Ariel saw the Learner’s apprehension so Facilitator Ariel spoke out to him to ask him how he was doing. He said he was okay, but that his brother just died and he was dealing with that. Facilitator Ariel and the man then had a conversation about life, family, Austin, and eventually schooling.

At this point, a young Learner who sometimes struggles with remembering to wear his mask around others walked up into the area where the two were talking. Noticing that this was a new person he immediately put on his mask, and then waved to the man. The man smiled, appreciating the acknowledgement. When he was finished speaking to Facilitator Ariel he walked my way and I expressed my sympathies. We then had a conversation about what schooling is and what education is not, that some of the Learners took note of. Even if they didn’t catch the content of the conversations that Facilitator Ariel and I had with the man, they all recognized that we were willing to have a conversation with the man, and that maybe dominant culture can sometimes get us to focus on the wrong things.

After spending a good amount of time in the park, the Learners decided that now it was time to head out to some food trucks for a late lunch. At the food trucks Facilitator Ariel talked with a Learner who is interested on getting a job and saving money. The Learner said that they were too young to work, and Facilitator Ariel talked about what the real constraints on working was. The Learner said they might be interested in working at a food truck for their first job, and was interested in one of the trucks on the lot. Facilitator Ariel encouraged the Learner to start a conversation with the person in the food truck so they could see if there was any opportunity for them. The Learner was anxious, and was not willing to start the conversation. Facilitator Ariel asked if he could start the conversation, so the Learner could see how to strike up a conversation that would include an ask. The Learner said that would be great.

Soon it would be time for the afternoon roundup, and the day was winding down. I reminded everyone that we said we wanted to do a trash pickup and that we would need to get going pretty soon if we wanted to do justice to the effort. Facilitator Ariel and one of the Learners agreed, but two said that they changed their mind and were no longer interested. This was an interesting response because the Learners who were no longer interested included the one who introduced the concern of litter, and the other was concerned about the environment. I felt that the lower energy at the end of the day might be the challenge, but I kept my mouth shut. After having a conversation about intentions and the fact that the cell was explicitly designed to be a social justice oriented Flying Squad, they decided that they would participate in the pickup. We pulled out three large, heavy duty garbage bags and everyone put on disposable gloves.

We made our way back down a major road where there was a good amount of trash, but it was when we got to the hike and bike trail that we hit the garbage jackpot. In the brush along the trail, and eventually along the lake, there was lots of garbage laying around to include candy wrappers, junk food containers, beer cans and cases, and discarded or lost clothing. It was a challenging task thanks much to the temperature and humidity, and the poison ivy everywhere, but there seemed to be somewhat of a desire to collect more garbage than the others. We made a great haul, and when we got back we took a photo and then stuffed the garbage bags into garbage bins. We all felt decent to great about helping to clean up a tiny part of the city, and a couple of us felt good about the physical exertion of the effort. It was nice that random people kept thanking us for cleaning up while on their walks and runs. What a great ending to a great day.

Meanwhile, at the other cell there was lots of walking and talking, looking at flowers, watching turtles, pretending to be squirrels and burying pecans. Unfortunately there was an incident where the Learners left their bags to go refill water and when they returned they saw a man going through their bags. Fortunately, Facilitator Lauren approached the man and told him to leave and the guy did not take anything. They could not be certain if he was trying to help or if he was trying to take, but the crew was not thrilled that the man had been touching their stuff, and worse, that he was unmasked and did not give them the space that they wanted. Afterward, Facilitator Lauren spoke to them about ways that they can proactively advocate for themselves in the future if they come into contact with someone who does not honor their need for space and security, and how they want to feel when they came back the next day. They discussed talking through scenarios, and then some of the Learners took some personal time to paint or just sit. The Learners all rallied despite the frustration of the incident, and the day ended well even if the day itself was not great.

Day 107 of AY20-21: a food focused day

My Abrome day on Tuesday, day 107 of our pandacademic year, started out with a call with a parent on my drive to the drop off location that morning. The parent’s Learner is out this week for quarantine, so we talked about the specifics of the quarantine but we also talked about future options for the Learner. It was a nice conversation that ended just as I pulled into the parking lot where I was going to leave my vehicle for the day. There I met up with Facilitator Ariel and we discussed the tension that exists in society between those who want to pretend the pandemic is over, and those who recognize that it is too early to stop engaging in practices that will protect others and prevent the continued spread of Covid-19. It has really knotted me up seeing so many people demanding that schools, restaurants, and bars reopen, while people are eagerly ditching their masks indoors where people congregate. The bar for what we can do as a society to protect one another is so low, yet it seems as if a shrinking segment of the population is willing to clear it each successive day, and even fewer institutions are willing to step over the bar. Sometimes it seems like we live in a different reality than others. With 60,000 people still being infected every day, we will continue to place community over convenience, and people over profits.

On this day I was leading the morning meeting. One of the Learners volunteered to serve as game master, which has become a pretty limited outdoors this year. Without a gameshifting board we don’t touch upon intentions of the meetings, start times, end times, etc. We usually just include how are bodies are to be used and how we are to interact. The Learner on this day said sit or stand, and popcorn. The prompts were, what can you do to respect others, and what is the social justice issue you are most interested in pursuing this cycle? The responses to the second prompt were really great because it gave us some direction in how we might approach the rest of the week: racism, needs of the houseless population, litter, cash bail, childism and adultism. We then discussed all the walking we did yesterday, and the Facilitators and a Learner decided that it would be a good idea to start our day with stretches. We found a grassy area and followed Facilitator Ariel’s lead. Eventually the other Learners joined in on the stretching.

We then took off walking. No one had any stated preferences for which direction to head, so we decided to slowly make our way downtown. At one point a Learner decided that Trader Joe’s was where he wanted to go so that he could get another box of jelly beans. No one objected so we made our way to the pedestrian bridge where we noticed that the rain the prior night washed away our chalk messages that we laid down the day before. We also observed some people jumping into the lake from the bridge. As we continued we walked by a coffee shop that allowed people to order and pick up their coffee entirely outside. Facilitator Ariel picked up a coffee, and another Learner asked about the food offerings they had. When the barista was listing off the pastries that were available, the Learner said, “are they organic?” The barista could not confirm they were, so he decided to pass.

When we got to Trader Joe’s the Learner picked up his box of jelly beans, while another Learner hovered around him hoping that the Learner would buy him a chocolate bar (didn’t happen), and then we all met back up on the turf in front of the grocery store. At that moment there was differing opinions on what we should do next. Some people just wanted to relax, one Learner wanted to go looking for a food truck that they could get a hot lunch at, and the Learner with the jelly beans wanted to sit down and eat them right there. After sharing our needs and wants it became pretty apparent that the only option was to venture out to support the Learner who wanted to get some lunch.

We made our way northeast and stumbled upon Republic Square outside the US Federal Courthouse. There the Learners and Facilitator Ariel lined up at Salt & Thyme and reviewed their options. The Learner who was looking for lunch got a sandwich, as did Facilitator Ariel. One of the Learners kept asking others if they would be willing to get him some ice cream, or if they would be willing to loan him money. When that failed he would just state out loud how much he wish he could eat ice cream. His hyper-focus on food and drink that day and the day before has been a lot, and he has received that feedback from others. Eventually Facilitator Ariel and the Learner’s food was ready and they moved out to a spot that would allow them to take off their masks to eat. The Learner who was asking for food and money just stared at the ice cream that Facilitator Ariel bought. Facilitator Ariel then turned to him, and said that he bought the ice cream for the Learner, but only under the condition that he never ask him for money for food again. The Learner eagerly agreed.

When a younger Learner saw that another Learner had some ice cream, he decided that he also wanted some ice cream. He needed to have me purchase his food for him since I was sent the money via Venmo from his parents at the beginning of the week. I asked him to let me finish eating my bagged lunch that I brought with me that day, then walked over and paid for the ice cream cup that he wanted to eat. It was a pretty expensive cup of ice cream, and by this time everyone in the group had finished eating. We waited, and then watched a handful of unmasked kids from a very expensive private school come into the park to play a game of touch football. While the Learners and Facilitator Ariel were in conversation I continued to watch the private school kids playing football, and I thought about how different their experiences had been during this pandemic than Abrome kids, and public school kids.

Everyone in our group had been ready to go for quite some time waiting for the younger Learner to finish his ice cream when he approached me and told me that he wanted another cup of ice cream. At that point I told him that we had all been waiting for him and were all ready to go. The Learner was insistent that we wait for him to buy and eat another cup of ice cream, and everyone else in the group indicated that they were really not wanting to stay in the park even longer than they had already been. We talked about the needs and the wants of each individual in the group and we said we really needed to get going if we were going to meet the needs and wants of the others in the group who had followed along with the food oriented requests of the other Learners that day. The Learner agreed to move on although he was unhappy to be leaving without another cup of ice cream.

We made our way toward Austin City Hall, which I pointed out to them, and then asked them what (if any) types of issues would they show up there for a protest. As we continued to walk we talked about the impact of protest versus other forms of engaging with issues, such as direct action. Then we made our way onto the First Street Bridge, and then under the bridge after we crossed over Town Lake. After a brief break to catch our breath we continued along the hike and bike trail back toward the Zilker Park where we would settle in for the rest of the afternoon. During the walk three folks decided to take their shoes off and enjoy the feeling of their feet on the earth.

When we got to Zilker Park I asked if anyone needed to refill their water bottle. Unfortunately, only one other Learner needed to, which highlighted that we were not drinking enough water. I wrote a note to myself to bring up the hydration concern at the end of the week Check-in and Change-up meetings. After I returned with a full water bottle I found two Learners sketching in the park. I broke out a book and began to read, while Facilitator Ariel tried coaxing a Learner to get up and move around after he had complained that he was bored. I offered the Learner some books to read, and some art supplies to play with, but he said he just wanted to go home. Eventually Facilitator Ariel got him to stand up and do some partner stretches with him. We all observed some people doing a very slow moving but intense workout with what looked like a weighted bar with a ball on the end. When one of them walked by our group at the end of his workout I stopped him and asked him what he was up to. He said that the bar was a steel mace and the movements they were doing is called steel mace flow. He was super enthusiastic about sharing it and told us to consider getting involved in it ourselves.

We held our afternoon roundup in the park, during which Facilitator Ariel sparked a conversation about labels and what labels each of us are comfortable and uncomfortable with. Then he asked if we were willing to act upon a Learner’s concern about litter by having a trash pickup day on Wednesday, and a bike day on Friday. Three of us eagerly opted into the trash pickup, and surprisingly the two Learners who were concerned about litter or the environment said they didn’t want to. I offered to bring trash bags and gloves, as it seemed that they were not wanting to touch the garbage directly, and I highlighted that it would not take up the entire day, but a portion of the day. They then said they would participate! Three of them also said they would like to bring their bikes on Friday.

The other cell had a relaxed and joyful day. There was lots of time spent hanging out on the dock, playing in the water, painting and playing the cougar stalks deer game. They also debated whether boars or mountain lions were more dangerous. They were going to play soccer but the sun was too intense when they were ready to play so they decided to hold off for another day. Here are some pictures and videos from that cell.

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.

Raising Resisters

The 2016 presidential election campaign reminded many Americans that while our society likes to boast about its commitment to equality, justice, liberty, and tolerance, that an often stronger undercurrent of bias, bigotry, oppression, and hate courses through the veins of American culture. Prior to the election of Donald Trump, and coming off two terms of America’s first black president, both the political left and right were generally dismissive of what appeared to be a rising tide of hostility toward immigrants, black and brown communities, Jews, Muslims, the LGBTQ community, and women. However, since the election, the hostilities against marginalized and oppressed groups have continued to rise, while fascist and white supremacist organizing has moved out from the shadows and into the streets. Although the fabric of society may have changed very little over the past year, the aesthetics have changed significantly.

As organic and organized protests began to grow after election day, and leading up to the inauguration, it became apparent that many previously inactive people were looking for ways to become engaged. While more established political and non-profit entities were eager to pull those people into their organizations, a small group of Austin activists came together as the Oh Shit! What Now? (OSWN) Collective to find ways to introduce those people into more radical activist circles that focus on direct action tactics. OSWN has since helped organize and plan study groups, discussions, trainings, and workshops aimed at building a diverse community of resisters, and equipping folks with radical skills that they can share with others to push back against hierarchical and oppressive forces within society.

The younger generations have historically been one of, if not the primary driver of radical social change, while their caregivers or guardians, as well as those who contribute to the development of the younger generations (e.g., teachers), help shape whether the youth believe that they can drive social change. Therefore, OSWN came together with Abrome, the Crustacean Zine Library, and Austin Yawp to launch Raising Resisters, a discussion group that focuses on anti-oppressive parenting and education tactics.

Parenting, education, and activism have a long history of interrelatedness. Radical leftists and anarchists have often understood that oppression is more easily dismantled within the family than within societal institutions, and that young people could be spared being conditioned by mainstream schooling into accepting authoritarianism, capitalism, nationalism, and other hierarchical belief systems. For example, in the 19th Century, Henry David Thoreau, Louisa May Alcott, Leo Tolstoy, and Francisco Ferrer Guardia all led alternative schools that were the precursors of radical free schools and democratic schools wherein children had full control over their educational experiences. In the 20th Century, in conjunction with the rise of the free schools, writers such as Paul Goodman, George Dennison, and John Holt helped introduce the notions of deschooling and unschooling as a means of resistance into a wider counterculture that was already questioning American foreign policy, racial segregation, and assumptions about social norms. Holt, being the most influential of these people, even forewarned of today’s rise of fascism and the inability of system reforms to effectively stave off that rise.

OSWN, Abrome, the Crustacean Zine Library, and Austin Yawp invite parents and educators to join us at our monthly Raising Resisters discussion group meetings to continue the tradition of marrying parenting, education, and activism so that we can build community to resist, and create something better.

Upcoming dates (meetings at 6:30pm at Austin Yawp, 4548 Page St., Austin, TX 78723):

·      Thursday, June 15th

·      Thursday, Jul 20th

·      Thursday, Aug 24th

·      Thursday, Sep 21st

·      Thursday, Oct 19th

·      Thursday, Nov 16th

·      Thursday Dec 14th

Originally posted on the Alt Ed Austin blog.

Abrome Weekly Update: April 19, 2017

This week at Abrome: social justice. 

The Private School Tuition Criticism

American society has been trained to believe that schools are necessary vehicles of education. Without school, it is believed, one would not learn to read, write, find a job, or stay employed. And if we accept that schools are necessary for success in life, then we are left to ask, how would people of lesser means ever compete in a capitalist society without the benefit of schooling? The misguided conclusion that comes through generations of people being subjected to a monopolized and compulsory schooling system is that we need schools, and that those schools must be publicly funded.

@ecomentario IOW, there will be no legitimate will to fix all public schools as long as white, wealthy parents have an alternative for *their* child.

— Jenn Borgioli Binis (@JennBinis) April 13, 2017

This morning, a critic of alternative education reminded me that Abrome charges tuition, and lots of it. This was meant to be a trump card that should somehow lead to the false conclusion that we (and other alternatives to traditional school) are undermining education in society.[1] More specifically, this critic wanted me to blindly accept that the current institution of public schooling was inherently good for society, and that the real problems are that we criticize coercive schooling too much, and “white, wealthy parents” refuse to leave their children in district public schools (meaning they refuse to invest their children into the system to try to make public schools better, as opposed to investing in education for their children).

I cannot accept that the current institution of public schooling is an inherently good thing for society. As I have pointed out in the past, traditional schooling hurts students, their families, and society. Traditional schooling is inherently bad because it introduces coercion and illegitimate authority into the lives of children, it harms the current and future happiness and health of children, and it undermines the learning process. The practices and structures of traditional schooling were put in place for a variety of reasons, the bulk of which were nefarious (e.g., producing compliant industrial workers and obedient soldiers, promoting nationalism, destroying marginalized or oppressed cultures, sorting students to determine which ones received resources and opportunities, preserving class privilege, entrenching racial hierarchies). When the effects and history of schooling are highlighted to alternative education critics, they tend to double down on the funding mechanism of alternative schools as their proof of the superiority of traditional, public schooling.

Attacking progressive schools for charging tuition is an unfortunate but common tactic of alternative education critics. Like public schools, progressive schools need to be able to pay the bills (e.g., a living wage for educators, rent, utilities). How can anyone take seriously a public school advocate who believes that private schools should not be charging tuition, while also not being publicly funded? Their argument is less about funding and more about existence; they simply do not want viable alternatives to exist.

The one point this critic made that had some merit is that tuition-charging private schools are not an option for all families. But this critic took that to mean that unless every child has access to the same options, then no alternative options should exist. We fully agree that tuition charging private schools are not universally available to all students, but a non-coercive public school option is not available to any, much less all students. We acknowledge that there are disparities in access to educational options according to socioeconomic status (and geography). But because those disparities manifest themselves in both public and private traditional schools, it is left to progressive educators and radical communities to create alternatives in the here and now.

@JennBinis @ecomentario @korytellers Fortunately for parents, they don't have to wait for systems of oppression to reform themselves.

— Abrome Education (@AbromeEd) April 13, 2017

Abrome greatly values diversity within our learning space. Diversity strengthens the learning environment by way of promoting tolerance and empathy, increasing creativity and innovation, and reducing bullying. And we consider socioeconomic considerations to be central to our diversity efforts. Therefore, our full-pay families subsidize the cost of attendance for our lower SES families. But while alternative school critics feign indignation over our sticker price, they also make clear that even a $1 tuition would be too much, because they believe that giving “white parents of means” an alternative to coercive schooling is the reason public schools are not working.

While economic barriers to self-directed learning environments are unfortunate, it is worth pointing out that there would be no need for tuition funded alternative education options such as Abrome if public schools were non-coercive.[2] In fact, there are plenty of alternative education advocates who believe in public education, just not coercive public education.[3] But the only thing these critics seem to take offense to more than school tuition is the notion of self-directed learning. Perhaps that is because a belief in the need for publicly funded, coercive, compulsory schooling requires a belief in the superiority of those who work within the institution of schooling over what they believe are ignorant and incompetent children.

@JennBinis @ecomentario @korytellers Sacrificing your child to a system that refuses to reform itself is not honorable. It is stupid.

— Abrome Education (@AbromeEd) April 13, 2017

For those alternative school critics who argue that cost of tuition is problematic, I encourage them to expand their understanding of cost. The current cost of coercive schooling is a society that is filled with unhappy children and intellectually dead adults. A society that is deferential to authority and disdainful of those abused by authority. A society unwilling to learn from the past, live in the moment, or prepare for a complicated future. There is a mental health cost to coercive schooling, and it is paid in part through youth depression and suicide. There is an opportunity cost to coercive schooling, where young people forfeit their childhood and their future in order to participate in a race to nowhere. There is a social welfare cost to coercive schooling, where low SES families and people of color are repeatedly told that they are inferior, and where affluent, white families are convinced that they have a cultural or genetic right to the advantages that society unjustly provides them.[4] When all the costs of coercive schooling are compared to the tuition costs of progressive schooling, it becomes clear that coercive schooling is the one that produces a deadweight loss to society.

One final note: we do not criticize coercive schooling too much, but we are working on it.

1.  Although we are not undermining education in society, we hope to undermine the status quo of coercive schooling.

2.  Even the poorest families can provide their children with self-directed learning environments via homeschooling, unschooling, and cooperatives.

3.  We believe in voluntary, community education; not government funded, monopolized, compulsory education.

4.  It is ironic that the people who recognize the privilege that rich white families have in society are unable to acknowledge that the institution of coercive schooling compounds that privilege.