Updated: Sep 29
Throughout 2020, the combination of COVID-19, the economic recession, and increased racial reckoning have further revealed the systemic inequities and injustices built into our current systems. Yet, these events have also demonstrated the resilience and resourcefulness of families and of the community-based organizations that work with them, in concert with and independently of schools.
These forces cry out for a redesign and reimagining of all the systems that support our children and families and educate and prepare our youth. Developmental and learning science tell an optimistic story about what all young people are capable of. Because researchers know so much more about the brain and development than they did when the 20th-century U.S. education system was designed, we can now use this knowledge to not only redesign that system but affirm a healthy learning and development ecosystem that fully acknowledges the role of families and communities as instrumental places for engaged learning. As learning is not simply content mastery or memorization but, ultimately, about meaning-making—connecting new information and experiences to those that have come before—an awareness of what young people are experiencing in the broader ecosystem is essential.
To guide this necessary redesign of all the systems that support our youth, the SoLD Alliance is excited to announce the release of Design Principles for Community-Based Settings: Putting the Science of Learning and Development Into Action. This playbook suggests a set of design principles that were developed by a group of educators, practitioners, scientists, and parents, building on the knowledge we have today and the contributions of many in the field to nurture innovations, new models, and new enabling policies.
Design Principles for Community-Based Settings: Putting the Science of Learning and Development Into Action is a companion to Design Principles for Schools: Putting the Science of Learning and Development Into Action.
Read a Medium article on the playbook here: https://medium.com/changing-the-odds/design-principles-for-community-based-settings-4f5bbf4dcddd
