The Meeting System
We believe democracy cannot be taught as a set of rights and responsibilities. Democracy has to be practiced in all aspects of school life, ranging from the way students are encouraged to care for each other, the way teachers care for students, the way rules are made and enforced, and how decisions are made.
The children at Kaleide International School are deeply involved in creating and maintaining the social structures by which the school functions. This involves rule-making and dispute resolution through the mechanism of whole school meetings and small meetings.
Our children also take ownership of their learning by making decisions on what to learn, how they want to learn it, when and with whom. In small groups and with the aid of facilitators, they lay a plan for their learning journey, set intentions for each day, prioritise some actions over others, design timelines, and reflect on their learning process.
The Meeting system is a safe structure and process for dispute resolution, reflective dialogue, learning conversations, community discussion, awareness and democracy in action. It encourages children's ability to question, ask, challenge, compromise and negotiate both with their peers and the adults who support them.
At meetings:
all children and adults at the school have the right to speak and give their opinion;
decisions are made through a process aiming for consent;
all Primary children have the opportunity to be a chairperson for a meeting, and they also have the right to decline an invitation to be the chairperson.
Through their participation in the Meeting system, children learn that fairness, understanding and respect inform the process, and they develop a high level of empathy, communication skills and emotional intelligence. The fact that they are part of the decision-making process encourages them to take responsibility for upholding the rules and decisions.
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