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Bennington college: Where the world is your classroom and experience is the exam
“Experience is the teacher of all things,” a timeless truth spoken by the great Julius Caesar, known not only for his military genius and leadership but also for his transformative reforms in Rome. He dismantled the crumbling political system and emerged victorious in the civil war, reshaping the course of history.
Yet, this profound wisdom seems to have been erased from the modern dictionary of life, particularly in education. In today’s world, consumption is often prioritized over conception. Society has forgotten that true learning lies in the richness of experience.
While we can delay the inevitable, we cannot deny that AI is reshaping the world. As it is happening, we’ve allowed our minds to forget their true purpose. Students often rely on AI to complete overdue essays and projects, sacrificing creativity in the process. Our minds are increasingly trapped – stripped of the ability to question and experience. We’re taught to believe that life is nothing more than a book filled with someone else’s knowledge. Yet, the educational system fails to prepare us for a future beyond these confines.
The only way to thrive in the coming era is through creativity. Those who allow their minds to wander freely, like a child on their fathers feild, will be the ones who truly live and adapt.
In the rush to meet standardized benchmarks, credit requirements, and overwhelming academic workloads, the true value of experiential learning has been overlooked. Colleges, fixated on quantifiable outcomes, often fail to recognize that success in the real world demands more than theoretical knowledge it requires hands-on experience. Without these practical opportunities, students may struggle to apply their learning in meaningful ways, ultimately hindering their ability to thrive in their future careers.
Away from all this, an institution not known by many but not any worse than the Ivy League or prestigious colleges with time sucking entrance exams, offering a curriculum where experience is not merely an afterthought but the foundation of learning. This is none other than Bennington college. In the world of Bennington ,where the world is your classroom, experience is the exam and learning is your mentor. A place where the wisdom of Julius Caesar’s words is embraced, and where education is not confined to classrooms or textbooks. Here, students are empowered to engage with the world around them, gaining hands-on knowledge that equips them to navigate complexities and innovate within their fields.
Founded in 1932,it had been a step ahead in the field of education than others. formed during the Great Depression, with a vision to create an educational institution that would provide opportunities for students to explore intellectual and creative freedom. Bennington was also one of the first colleges to admit women on an equal basis with men,a idea which is still not fully accepted in this day and age. It offers a place for each and every student who don’t only look outside the box but also why it is there and what it is it made off.
Best for its curriculum that allows students to develop “The plan”, a individualized academic plan that each student creates with the help of the faculty advisors. The Plan allows students to create their own curriculum by modifying it to their interest, objectives, and career objectives to make their studies meaningful and pertinent to them. Bennington emphasizes independent study so students have the ability to build their own research projects and explore topics most important to them. This assists in a sense of ownership in education and helps students become autonomous learners. A capstone project based on their experience with academic content and creativity is created by many students upon completion of education. This project should be in whatever format be thesis, portfolio, performance or research projectt. This type of curriculum remains stagnant primarily as a deception to the majority as studies are rigidly timetable and books coded.
Knowledge is like a cobweb, one topic leads to an another. At bennigton,It is highly believed that collaborative learning plays a major part in the process of learning, one subject is paired up with another. This allows students to better understand the ways of the world and improves their understanding and reasoning skills. Bennington encourages collaborative learning through Integrative Seminars aswell. These seminars allow students with different interests to come together to explore a central theme or issue from multiple perspectives. These discussions emphasize critical thinking, problem-solving, and interdisciplinary engagement, helping students to broaden their viewpoints.
We often observe at Universities and colleges usually have a strength of 50-100 students which makes the students will to learn lessen and doze off due to the lack of attention but at Bennigton ,the quote “less is more”is firmly belived.the small and controlled student to faculty ratio at Bennington helps keep the students at their toes and present. A feeling of personal mentorship helps the students understand concepts better and in a safe space.This helps the professors to truly understand the child’s capabilities and goals.They are encouraged to directly with their professors on research, projects, and creative work.This helps deeply understand the concept and to learn more
Apart from the barrel of oozing benefits it has to offer, their grading system is the reason why it truly stands out from the crowd. Instead of providing letter grades (A, B, C, etc.), Bennington College offers a unique narrative evaluation for each course. These evaluations are personally written by the professors to help students better understand strengths, and areas for improvement. This helps the student truly understand where they stand and how they can improve in their field of work.
At the end of their studies, Students at Bennington are encouraged to engage in self-assessment as part of the evaluation process. At the end of each term, students write a reflective piece about their own academic and personal growth. This leads them on to the road of self reflection which helps them take up self critics early on and improve accordingly. The goal of Bennington’s grading system is to provide students with meaningful advise and help rather than giving them a one letter grade which quite often has them wondering where they went wrong.
For students completing their individual capstone projects or final projects(at the end of their college years), evaluations are based on the quality and depth of their work rather than a specific grade. As a result of its narrative evaluation system, Bennington College does not include letter grades on students’ final transcripts. Instead, the narrative evaluations are sent to employers, graduate schools, or anyone else who requires “a marksheet” of a student’s academic achievements. This is to show that a students potential is far more than a letter marked in red.
As much as it doesn’t believe in letter grades,it shares a unique passion towards experience learning. It provides a mandatory internship or work experience that occurs for a minimum of 7 weeks each year, typically in the winter or spring. The FWT(Field work term) allows students to gain real world experience in their field of interest, work with top mentors, and apply the knowledge they’ve gained in the classroom in real life situations. Thanks to Bennington strong alumini network, faculty connections and partnerships, students have access to a broad network of internship opportunities, including positions with prestigious organizations, startups, arts institutions, and social impact groups.
Due overwhelming work stress and the limitations of traditional learning methods, many students struggle to engage and end up quitting, viewing education as a burden rather than a privilege Bennington is an institution teeming with artists, each equipped with their own paintbrush, ready to contribute to the larger picture of a brighter tomorrow. Bennington might not be as famous as some of the big-name schools, but its approach to education offers something different—something that a lot of students are looking for these days.
By promoting colleges with unique curricula that embrace creative learning, we can help students enjoy the process and inspire them to make meaningful contributions to the world. These students will go on to create innovations that truly matter, leaving a lasting impact. Who knows? By incorporating such curricula, we may even uncover the next Robert Frost, whose work will fill 10th-grade textbooks for generations to come.
By: jeejasri
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