[MD] Barfuesserkirche (ZMM & Dewey)

Arlo Bensinger ajb102 at psu.edu
Wed Oct 18 10:05:45 PDT 2006


Was reading up today on Danish history and culture, and found this on 
Wikipedia...

"Perhaps the most important Danish contribution to education is the 
"folkehøjskole", introduced by N.F.S. Grundtvig in the 1800s. Literally 
translated as "folk high school," the folkehøjskole is a social education 
structure without tests or grades, putting its emphasis not on 
demonstratable achievement but rather on communal learning, self-discovery, 
and learning how to think. [1] Many young Danes attend a folkehøjskole for 
a few months or a year after they graduate from Efterskole, before going on 
to university. However, the folkehøjskoles, as "schools for the people," 
are also resources for lifelong learning. Some folkehøjskoles have 
particular focus areas, such as sports, music, or environmental protection. 
Most, however, offer a broad liberal arts education."

Also at http://www.scandinavica.com/culture/education/hojskole.htm one 
reads, " Of course this does not mean that what is taught in the various 
subjects is immaterial or not taken seriously. On the contrary: since there 
are no exams, no institutional constraints, no marking, the folkehøjskoler 
have to rely entirely on the willingness and commitment of their students 
and the ability of the teachers to motivate them." It continues, " Of 
course, this view of freedom did not simply emerge out of the blue. Its 
background lies in 19th -century Danish history, when various popular 
forces demonstrated a self-assured rejection of central authority. And ever 
since then it has been an unquestioned principle in Danish political life 
that this sense of freedom should remain inviolate."

I found this concept, this IMPLEMENTED concept, quite interesting 
considering Pirsig's take on grades in ZMM. Just passing it along for those 
also interested...

PS: Platt may respond well to this description of Danish education... " 
There is no legal obligation to attend school in Denmark, only an 
obligation to have some form of education. If a group of parents wish to 
set up a special school for their children because they have their own 
particular view of man and the world, they are entitled of state support 
for running it. Parents also have a right to educate their children at home 
themselves, so long as they can show that it is actually done. There is 
broad agreement both among the population at large and in Parliament that 
it cannot be left to a monopoly of public authority to lay down rules on 
the true way of life."





More information about the Moq_Discuss mailing list