"Is School Enough?" examines a new frontier that could reshape education --- the importance of breaking out of the classroom and connecting students into the wider world. This new educational approach encourages young people to make a difference by learning from what they care about most. As one expert puts it, there's a new understanding that school should not just be preparation for life --- but "life itself."
The film documents vivid examples of where this new philosophy is flourishing. Students in Maine work with veterinary and ecology experts and digital apps to prepare a new home for a retired circus elephant. Young people worldwide use the online Harry Potter Alliance to launch meaningful social justice initiatives. A gifted but bored teen crafts her own educational experience based on her passion for natural healing and yoga. A young man in Oakland produces state-of-the-art music videos to engage his community --- and himself.
Featuring some of the nation's most forward-thinking educators, the program chronicles powerful stories, demonstrating how when you give young people the opportunity to participate in solving real problems and pursuing projects that are important to them, they will excel.
"Is School Enough?" is the second in a series of programs about kids, digital media and education. The first program by filmmaker Stephen Brown, "Digital Media: New Learners of the 21st Century" explores students claiming digital media as a means of connecting, communicating, creating, and learning, while interpreting its importance and providing a window into 21st-century education.
"Is School Enough?" is a production of tpt National Productions in association with Mobile Digital Arts.
