During the COVID-19 pandemic, Despina and Taso made the decision that the traditional US public school system wasn’t suitable for their eight-year-old daughter. Taking a leap of faith, the Greek-American family relocated from Massachusetts to the Monferrato wine region in Piedmont, northern Italy, where a new Village Forest School had recently opened its doors. Despina, now a mother of twin boys, explains, “We have the ability to work remotely from anywhere and we were drawn back to Europe culturally. The new school offered the kind of education we had always dreamed of for our children, one that allows them to enjoy their childhood for longer.”
The Village Forest School follows a unique daily schedule. The children start their day singing songs together, incorporating counting and language skills. They then have two blocks of classroom-based lessons, which cover subjects like math, history, and geography, taught by both Italian and English teachers. The school embraces the principles of the Weston Price diet for lunch, providing non-processed, nose-to-tail food options like rice soaked in bone broth or ragù made from whole cow or pig organs. After lunch, the students engage in art, crafts, woodwork, and various activities such as horseriding and grape-picking during harvest time.
The families of the students have fully embraced the local lifestyle, engaging in activities like winemaking, olive oil production, farming, and local house design. The population of the hilltop village of Montaldo, where the school is located, has grown from 70 to 110 due to this influx of families. Six of these families have purchased homes to renovate and rent out on Airbnb, launch yoga retreats, or create eco-lodges. Meanwhile, the children have injected life into the village by exploring the surrounding fields. According to local estate agent Riccardo Riva, this has led to an increase in property prices in the area.
The rise in alternative international schools around the world has been driven by families with corporate backgrounds or work-from-anywhere roles who believe that traditional schools do not align with their lifestyles. The COVID-19 lockdown shed light on the shortcomings of traditional education, leading many parents to seek alternative approaches. Ben Kestner, head of The Learning Project, a self-directed learning school in Ibiza, explains, “Parents realized during the lockdown that there was a lack of real-world connection in their children’s education.” Roland Witherow, an education consultant, also noted that traditional schooling methods are not adapting quickly enough to the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence.
There is a growing demand for schools that prioritize sustainability and mental wellbeing. However, holistic, creative, and experiential learning schools like Montessori, Steiner Waldorf, and Sudbury models have been in existence for some time in the US and Europe. “Unschooling” movements, which allow children to direct their own learning rather than following a preset curriculum, have also gained popularity. The Green School in Bali, for example, has 500 pupils and has expanded to include branches in South Africa and New Zealand.
The Janssen family, originally from Singapore, initially planned a sabbatical at the Green School in Bali but eventually decided to settle there permanently. The school focuses on practical, independent learning and environmental awareness, allowing children to pursue their own interests. Another example is The Green School in New Zealand, where Emily Puetz and her family from Boulder, Colorado, relocated to immerse their children in a different culture and live a sustainable lifestyle.
While these alternative schools offer unique educational experiences, their long-term success has yet to be tested. Some progressive schools struggle to adequately prepare students for exams at the secondary level. As a result, parents sometimes seek private tutors to help bridge the gap. Despite potential challenges, families continue to seek progressive and alternative education options, particularly in regions like Sintra, near Lisbon, Portugal. The area offers a Portuguese Steiner Waldorf school and a new forest school with an English curriculum called the Hypha Learning Hub, catering to three to five-year-olds.
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