Gabe Cooper on Starting a Public “Unschool”

Many dream of combining the principles of unschooling with the resources of public school — and Gabe Cooper is one of those few who has actually done it. In this episode Gabe discusses “Unschool” (sanjuan.edu/unschool), the program he founded in the San Juan Unified School District of Sacramento, California. We talk about his disillusionment as a public school teacher and administrator, what inspired him to start Unschool, his victories and challenges so far, his commitment to equity via public education, and his plan for keeping Unschool alive in the future. Gabe also offers practical advice for other public school teachers who want to convince their own school districts to approve such an initiative.