Redesigning School

"Everything about the way we structure school communicates that failure is the opposite of success," writes Julia Hodges in The 'F' Word. "You either pass a class or you fail a class; and that pass/fail determination is made on a rigid timeline and leaves a permanent mark.... According the rules of school, failure is to be avoided at all costs."In the real world, though, failure is the genesis of success and a natural part of creativity and problem-solving. " Outside of school," Julia notes, "failure is not the opposite of success; it’s part of the process."What better way to start Season Two of the ReDesigning School podcast than an eyes-wide open examination of this failure to understand failure? Julia is a Hawken teacher and member of the design team shaping The Mastery School of Hawken. She also teaches a Macro course in Engineering that seeks, in part, to reframe failure so that students come to see it as an essential and even welcomed aspect of making so