Visiting the iSchool in New York City, down in Soho, was impressive for a number of reasons. The high school within a school has a very customized program, originally modeled after HIgh Tech High in San Diego, where teachers are encouraged/required to innovate and customize the educational experience of their students. I saw samples of very innovative work on the boards in the hallways and watched very engaged students, collaborating on real world issues, composing music and working from a dramatic reading of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. As one of our tasks is to relate this visit to our own research on 21st Century Schools and our reading from Daniel Pink, Drive, I saw many examples of a curriculum laden with the opportunity for, in Pink’s words, autonomy, mastery and purpose. This was a humbling visit! 

http://www.thersa.org/events/rsaanimate/animate/rsa-animate-drive