ABOUT THE FILM
SKOOL probes youth seizing power over their own lives and place in society, starting with their education. In a world that is changing before our eyes, kids now need to reinvent themselves in a way no previous generation has ever had to imagine. So why we are stuck with an education system left over from the Industrial Age?
“Jumping off the cliff and building the parachute on the way down — (these kids) have to be able to do that. They have to be able to think quickly and think critically,” explains Teresa Poppen, Founder of One Stone School and one of the few ‘adults in the room’ advocating for kids to become leaders and empowering them to actually do so.
Not content to sit on the sidelines any longer, this generation is taking part in the design of their education and their future. “The student in the education system is the customer. When you go to Wal-Mart you see the Suggestions Box and right now there’s no Suggestions Box in schools. So we’re going to get our own Suggestions Box for what we want and how we want to learn it,” says Nate Simpson, a 17 year old high school student and education software designer.
Says filmmaker Jon Long, “When it comes to education, isn’t it crazy how little say kids actually have in the equation?” If you were to walk into just about any room where people were deciding on the design of education, or any education conference or school board for that matter, how many kids would be in that room? In the current system, kids just don’t have a real voice, they don’t really have the power to effect change. So we set out to find people who were actually doing something about it.”
Shot in stunning 8K from Brooklyn to Bangladesh, SKOOL features One Stone, a school run by young people, along with a diverse and global cast taking bold steps to bring students to the decision-making table at all levels of education. Their methods and ideas offer an example that any school can draw from to rethink educational approaches and change the balance of power to give more agency to the true stakeholders of education: young learners.
The kids in SKOOL take risks, encourage failure, employ design thinking, act with empathy, and approach teaching and learning in a way that can move as quickly and fluidly as Silicon Valley—a stark departure from the system they’ve inherited. These kids not only embrace change, they thrive on it. This new generation of changemakers truly sees the world through a different set of lenses than the lenses that have shaped our culture for generations. They are focused on creating a more inclusive, equitable and better world.
SKOOL makes us question the tired assumption that we need more “adults in the room” and makes a bold proposal that could change the face of education overnight: What if what we’ve actually needed all along is more kids in the room?
JON LONG – Producer / Director
Jon Long has produced and directed films, television programming and multi-platform media campaigns for over 20 years for companies such as Universal Studios, IMAX, Disney, Universal, Entertainment One, National Geographic and PBS. His passion is the creative process and finding innovative ways to bridge entertainment, technology, distribution and education. He founded The Earth Network to create media projects and experiences that engage audiences and inspire positive social impact. Many of his projects have extensive community engagement and educational initiatives. He created EXTREME for IMAX theaters, which became one of the most successful documentaries of all time and, recently, THE SEARCH FOR FREEDOM for Universal.
LAURA ZEMAN – Producer
Laura Zeman is a Co-Founder and Producer of The Earth Network and The SKOOL Project and is helping to lead The SKOOL Project’s global grassroots community engagement campaign. Previously, Laura worked as an Associate Producer, Production Manager and Music Supervisor on The Search for Freedom, a story about living in the moment and doing what makes you feel the most alive. The Search for Freedom was a co-production between The Earth Network, Universal Picture and eOne.
Laura has a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership, where her main focus of study was on how we can cultivate the intelligence of emotion for personal leadership and organizational leadership. Following her education, Laura designed leadership and emotional intelligence focused curriculums for adult learners and taught adult learners at various colleges. Pursuing her passion in working with youth, Laura has also designed and facilitated programs for youth that have offered a platform for them to nurture their passions, vision and leadership skills.
A NOTE FROM DIRECTOR JON LONG
Disclosure: I’m not an expert in education, or an educator. I make documentary films and I have two young kids of my own. A while back, I decided I wanted to make films about change makers; people who create social impact rather than waiting around for someone else to do it for them.
I recently watched the promo video for the one of the world’s largest education conferences, which features a full roster of speakers who are leaders in their fields and are promoting an amazing array of ideas at the forefront of education and innovation. But I also noticed something that’s been true in the education space forever: A lot of adults talking about education with few, if any, kids in sight, let alone at the front of the room.
About three years ago, I set out to make a series based on the premise that the most impactful idea in shaping the future of education is that youth should have a real voice and decision making power about the design of their education and their future. Victor Hugo said that, “nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come.” This idea’s time has definitely come and things are about to change. SKOOL features people who live this idea and are helping spark a revolution that shifts the balance of power so that those most affected by education and those who will shape our future actually have a voice that matters.
SKOOL shows why it’s so important for youth to be active participants and work in partnership with the “adults in the room” as we think about how education must change to prepare kids for the world of today and tomorrow, and not the world of the past. Our goal in creating this television pilot is to inspire schools, school boards and education conferences to really bring youth to the decision making table. Each school, each community, each system can do this is their own way. It takes curiosity, imagination, creativity, collaboration and the desire to be inclusive and equitable. The time has come.
