What Learning Orgs Could Look Like

Some of the best advice I ever received when it came to running a school or a group of schools came from kids – not adults.

I had student advisory groups when I led a middle school and when I led a high school. I even had a student advisory group when I was a regional superintendent when I supervised 60 schools and around 54,000 students.

But for all the great advice those students gave me as a principal and superintendent, they were ignored by most when they offered opinions regarding how they would redesign schools to make them better places for learning.

Back in October of 2025, The New York Times asked this very question of young learners – how would you redesign school to make it better? Below are some of their responses:

“In my ideal school: We would integrate Mindfulness and Emotional Literacy sessions into the weekly schedule. Students would learn real-world techniques for stress management, healthy conflict resolution, and identifying signs of anxiety in themselves and others.”

“Standardized tests would be greatly reduced, replace by project-based learning and portfolio submissions that showcase creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking. We’d focus on mastery, not memorization.”

“Mandatory course in Financial Literacy (budgeting, taxes, investing) and Basic Civic Law would ensure every graduate leaves with the practical knowledge they need to navigate the adult world.”

“A student with a healthy mind is a far more effective learner and a better citizen than one who is simply scoring high on a test. Education should be about building whole, resilient humans.”

(Navid in Taiwain)

“If I could design a school, I would create one focused on life skills and careers. Not every student can go to college, so my school would help students learn how to succeed in the world. There would be classes on personal finance, cooking, car maintenance, job skills, and mental health. I would like people from the community to come in and teach students on what their job is like. After school activities would be internships and volunteer work. The cafeteria would teach students how to cook and plan budget friendly meals. Students at my school would be ready to take care of themselves and make smart choice by the time they graduate.”

(Tyra from North Carolina)

“If I could design my own school, I would love to create a performing arts school that focuses on enhancing the students’ creativity on the arts that they’re passionate about. I would offer classes such as creative writing, theater acting, and film production as the core subjects. I would provide many facilities like a library for students to focus on creative writing, film labs complete with sets, equipment, and green screens; and a black box theater for plays and student-directed productions. The skills I’d offer in my school would be practical creative skills to help them excel in the performing arts career paths that they choose. My students would learn public speaking to improve their confidence to teach them how to pitch ideas and present themselves effectively onstage or on camera. They would also have good collaboration skills thanks to all the group projects they’ve had to do, whether it’s from writing scripts together, performing as part of a play’s cast, or working together as members of the same production team.”

(Laura from Indonesia)

“If I were to design a school, I would focus on environmental sustainability, offering classes in renewable energy, conservation, and eco-friendly design. Local environmental scientists and activists would be my preferred instructors, bringing real-world experience to the classroom. The cafeteria would serve plant-based meals, and after-school activities would include community cleanup projects and sustainability workshops. Students would gain practical skills in environmental care, preparing them for careers in green industries and activism.”

(Gillis from CPHS)

“If I had the power to design a school, there would be classes on everything, and everyone could take whatever classes they wanted whenever they wanted. They could even take classes on how to weave a basket, or even classes focused on foreign languages. Students would gain from this kind of school because they could focus on their strengths.”

(Alvin from San Carlos, California)

“If I were to create my own school, it wouldn’t be as strict, and would rather have a more laid-back education system. I would make it mandatory for three hours, math, English, and history, after those three hours you could go home. If you were more willing to learn and want to be more advanced, I would make advanced classes for advanced people.”

(John from Ellisville)

“I would love school to feel less like a chore and be more practical and fun. Sharing ideas, making things, and sometimes fail without ruining our grades. Having extracurriculars that fits both genders, lot of outdoor learning experience instead of sitting inside rooms and reading books as well as lot of tasks given.

(Renata from Indonesia)

“If I were to own a school, I would try to base it on hands-on projects. I would try a focus on math, reading, all that fun stuff, but I would try to make the classes go outside for reading to read under trees. For math, we would go on field trips and learn math we would need in the real world. For science, we would do experiments and make hypotheses. I would encourage my students to ask questions and share their opinions.”

(Cabella from Nova Scotia)

“Teachers aren’t usually paid enough around the world, so their dreams of being a role model are crushed by the school system. What I would change: allow teachers to make their own curriculum but also pay them enough. Some schools force teachers to juggle multiple tasks such as parenting students and organizing their classes. Paid teachers are happy teachers and happy teachers teach better.”

(Bred from Glen Ellyn, Illinois)

“If I were to design a school, its main focus would be on the principles of kindness, compassion, and manners. I would offer a highly sociable class where students are able to interact with each other and learn to communicate with kindness and have a complete understanding on how to use proper etiquette. This would be a great learning environment for students who don’t have a proper teaching of this stuff at home and would like to learn.”

(Brian from Ellisville)

Two important points to end on.

First, what these students state as important to them is not visible in most traditional schools today.

And second, few traditional schools are interested in moving in the direction these students suggest.

Much of the traditional K-12 world is built on what adults believe is right for young learners. Young learners have little to no influence on what their learning days look like.

Til tomorrow. SVB