Freeschool takes on ExCo
By Jessica Angelson
Supporters of the Freeschool want to make two things clear: they are not trying
to create the anti-ExCo; and they are not an establishment, or even an organization.
The Freeschool has been described by its supporters variously as a forum for sharing information
about free classes, a vehicle for new ideas about education and a way for people to find others
with the same learning interests.
We want people to be able to provide each other with free education, Bobby, a Freeschooler,
said (he and other supporters wished to go by psyeudonyms). Theres obviously a huge
financial aspect to education the way it is right now, he continued. You can have access
to Oberlin and its resources, but only if you can find a way to get tens of thousands of dollars.
A recent Freeschool meeting attended by 15 people included proposals for a workshop in yoga and
yogic lifestyles and a discussion group about macrobiotic living.
None of us are claiming to be experts, one Freeschooler said. The point is that
everyone has knowledge and everyone can educate each other. It shouldnt just be about a few
people with power and a degree teaching other people.
Others chimed in their agreement.
Personally, I have come to recognize that learning can be done without the hierarchy and
class division of private college classes, Bobby said. The worst is lecture classes.
It sets up such a strange power dynamic.
The way classes are set up creates such a distanced, sterile atmosphere, making it seem like
the material has no bearing on our actual lives, Joe, another Freeschooler, said. I
think this detached feeling comes from professors having a formula for success in learning
you know, 10 percent of your grade is participation, 50 percent is one test, stuff like that.
It appears, however, that in the minds of many Oberlin students an outlet for alternative education
already exists.
Thats what ExCos are for, one college junior said. We can already take
or teach whatever classes we want, in whatever format we want, so whats the big deal?
The problem is that there is a lot of bureaucracy around ExCos, Alex said.
Some Freeschool classes were first rejected by the ExCo Committee.
The ExCo committee never rejects an application based on whether or not we like the idea
for the class, committee co-chair Suzanne Friedman pointed out. If a class is rejected
its usually because the instructors didnt fill out all of the application. Its
bureaucratic, but we have to ensure that people are going to get a high-quality class.
The Freeschools supporters hope to distinguish themselves from ExCo by precluding certain
class requirements (there are no guidelines for either the number of hours a class must meet per
week or the number of classes there are in a semester) and by actively involving the community
outside the College.
The only way the Freeschool can survive is to have a strong base of support in the community
outside the College, Alex said. Actually, not being sponsored by [Oberlin] college
is core to the idea of a Freeschool. The fact is that the ExCo is just another wing of the college,
and people in the town see being able to take ExCos as a rich private college coming to the town
saying, Youre not educated, take these classes.
The ExCo committee insists that it exists because people want it.
If people didnt feel that there was something to get out of it, we wouldnt be
offering 95 classes this semester and over 1,000 people wouldnt be taking them, ExCo
Committee member Ben Seibel said
Supporters of the Freeschool, many of whom admitted to being enrolled in several ExCos this semester,
maintain that they are not trying to be anti-ExCo, they are just trying to promote learning for
learnings sake.
Its worthwhile to take an ExCo; we just want to facilitate for people on a greater
scale what they are already doing meeting people, sharing their experiences and knowledge,
Joe said. Most people already go to the Freeschool, they just dont recognize it yet.
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