Opinion

Bird'S-Eye View of Education

By JOHN GATHRIGHT

This year for our family vacation we really went out on a limb. Really, I kid you not! We put ourselves out on a limb in America, where we stayed for five days at the Out 'n' About Treehouse Resort in Takilma, Ore.

Because we live in a miso barrel treehouse ourselves, when we learned that there was a treehouse resort in Oregon, we knew this was an opportunity not to be missed.

There were all kinds of wonderfully different treehouses: treeboats (treehouses in the shape of boats); treepees (tepees up in the trees); a Swiss Family complex; and a deluxe suite unit complete with antique furnishings, running water, a kitchenette, refrigerator, microwave, master bedroom and children's rooms all way up in the trees. If there is a heaven on Earth we were sure we had found it. It was a great place for a family vacation. But what impressed me most was that while swaying in the wind, eye to eye with birds and other tree-dwelling animals, kids were encouraged to study. There were fun classes such as elementree forestree, ecology and treecology, plus a number of on-ground educational activities. During the off season the resort is used by local schoolkids as part of their studies.

Not only this resort but other local businesses and private homes invite the kids to study "out of class" at their facilities. The kids love it and get great school grades as well.

When I asked one of the local elementary schoolkids about his school he said, "The schoolhouse is small but the campus is huge. It is the size of the whole village."

Art classes are held at a local artist's home, hard and soft metal science studies at the blacksmith's and biology in the barn of a local farm. Sometimes it takes an extra 20 minutes to travel between classes but the quality of education far outweighs the extra travel time. It is believed that this open-air learning has contributed greatly to the high level of academic achievement of these students. When I talked to one of the parents of these kids, he said, "It takes a village to properly raise children. Educating the kids is everybody's business and it is fun too. Keeps us old folks from becoming fossils because without actually going back to school we keep learning too."

Couldn't this type of education be a possible remedy to some of the educational woes that Japan is facing? Opening the system to the outside would encourage students to be part of the community and would possibly reduce students' stress, which is said to contribute to the wave of school violence. This type of system would also encourage parent and community participation in the schools.

I honestly believe that there are a wealth of untapped hands-on learning opportunities surrounding our schools.

We have invited the local elementary school to spend a couple of days studying in our treehouse starting this September. A couple of the teachers have actually volunteered their weekends to come help us prepare for the classes. When a local rock carver heard about the kids coming to our place he offered his workshop for rock and earth studies.

I hope the kids are excited because we parents sure are!

Let's take down the schoolyard fences and open the doors to the community. Parents, let's make educating all kids everybody's business.

Shukan ST: Aug. 21, 1998

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