Fanning The Flames Of DiscontentThe International Modern School, (62 Fieldgate Street, Whitechapel, London, 1921). On Sunday 6th March 1921 the last of the English International Modern Schools opened in Fieldgate Street. There was still a small group of Jewish anarchists living in London who had been associated with the Workers Friend Group, Louise Michel's International Modern School and the anarchist commune at Marsh House during the war. Some of these people, C.B Warwick, Helena Applebaum, A. Gilbert, E. Michaels and H. and E. Samuels formed themselves into a group known as the Free Educational Group and announced in Freedom in February 1921 that they were looking for teachers. By June 1921, having started with 30 children, there were over 100 at the school, and there was an average weekly attendance of 85. The school declared it's aim: "...to combat the anti-social environment of capitalist education as operating through the state schools and the religious institutions, and to bring up the child in the spitit of freedom" The school intended to entertain: "...such subjects that may develop the young mind towards the love of nature, beauty. self-expression and social outlook and activity." Further, the method was to attempt to: "...interest and instruct without the use of domination." These intentions illustrate the way in which the school was part of a continuing movement to build a libertarian school in the East End which would challenge the orthodox view of education; a school that was in the Ferrer tradition. A. Gilbert recognised the school's debt to Ferrer in October 1921: "the present system of education which lays down hard and fast rules for children of all types is destroying their originality. The teachers and the Group, realising this, have one goal in view, the making of the individuality of each child, and to this end are following the rational methods as laid down by Fransico Ferrer." The school had classes in clay modelling, singing and story telling. These classes were aimed mainly at the younger children. There were other classes in freehand drawing, social science, free composition, hygiene, physiology and botany. There were also debating classes where children would bring different topics for debate each week. Lou Appleton was a pupil at the school for almost two years. His mother, Helena Applebaum, (Lou changed his name to Appleton in the 1930's when he was having difficulty finding employment) was part of the New Education Group, and he remembers the delight of attending the school where, in the words of his mother, he felt part of a movement helping to: "Fan the flames of discontent." However, Lou remembers the school even more as a rich cultural experience, where it was possible to learn in an atmosphere that was not straight-jacketed by rules and regulations, and where the teachers sought to offer a broad range of subjects. He remembers how often someone called Dr Salkind would come and hold everyone's attention for long periods with fascinating talks about evolution and science. He also recalls reading and singing the poetry of Morris Winchevsky. One poem in particular was recited time and time again. It was entitled Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. It began: "Our yesterday was very bitter Lou recalls that this poem must have been important to the Modern School because it focused everyone's attention on why they had to find an exciting form of education that would enrich people's experience rather than deaden them as the elementary schools did. Lou also sheds even more light on the thirst for knowledge that existed among Jewish families, and the way in which libertarian views about education legitimised and helped quench this thirst: "They had a terrific yearning to acquire more infomation. Mant of them had come from little villages in the Ukraine where Jews had very little learning, or else what there was was tied up with religion. You have to rember that Jewish children in Russia could not go to school. Well about one in every hundred could go but that was all. Anarchism embraced knowledge. That was how it was in the Sunday school. All the time we were broadening out minds." Lou also recollects going on many trips, often in old high brakes to Epping Forest. Freedom records that the school often visited the Zoological Gardens. In the June 1922 issue of Freedom there is a detailed report about another trip entitled May Day with the Modern School Children: "The children of the International Modern School took part in the demonsration in Hyde Park on 1st May, the day on which worldwide Labour, young and old, registers it's protest against Capitalism and exploitation. Starting from the Workers' Friend Club in a motorcharabanc, the children joined up with the East London contingent...Through the minories and then Lower Thames Street and...up Kingsway and along Oxford Street it went, the children singing and waving their flags all the way full of pleasurable excitement." There is not any evidence that the children were involved in decision making in the school to any large extent, but the children produced three magazines entitled The International Modern School Magazine. Copies have survived and, as in the case of the earlier East London Modern Schools, they offer a valuable insight into the school. In Issue One most of the writing is creative material with pieces about eclipses of the sun, ambition, domestic animals and a story entitled The Boy in Rags. There is also a revealing piece, Why I attend the International Modern School: "In the present circumstances I an compelled by law to attend an elementary school which, unfortunately is not to my liking. We find the discipline of the elementary schools very strict. It is not so in the International Modern School. Our discipline is self-respect, that is we do not run around like hooligans knowing that the teachers can do us no harm. By doing no harm I mean that they do not cane us. Some of the subjects taught in the International Modern School are: clay modelling, astronomy, natural sciences, drawing in absolute freedom. In the council schools we are taught to be patriotic, but in the International Modern School, we are taught to be lovers of freedom." There is a similar range of issues covered in the second issue of the magazine. There is a piece by P. Rotbart about ancient village communities, an open letter to the ferrer School at Stelton in America and short pieces about Russia, the Tate Gallery and INdia. Lou Appleton has a piece in the magazine about the life of Kropotkin. Perhaps the most interesting though, is a satirical piece which is continued in Issue Three, attacking the State School system and offering the Modern School as a real alternative. Issue Three is in exactly the same vein, and is superbly produced. In addition to a wide range of articles there are some interesting notes about the school. By December 1922 it was also open on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. On tuesday, classes in Esperanto were held by N. Whycer, and on Thursday there were plpay rehearsals. All of this is indicative of a continuing Modern School tradition, which by this stage was nearly fifteen years old. Lou Appleton eventually became a school teacher, spending most of his time in secondary modern schools. He believes that his time in the Modern School was very important to him, and gfeels that he took into the State Schoolsa desire to relate to the children as human beings, and an intention to try to constantly encourage them to think for themselves and to question all issues. The Fieldgate Street School continued until 1928, when it was forced to close because of a shortage of funds and difficulty in finding teachers. So drew to an end a twenty year history of International Modern Schooling in Britain that has unjustifiably remained buried ever since. From 'No Master High or Low - Libertarian Education and Schooling 1890-1990' by John Shotton review of book: www.spinninglobe.net/masternorev.html preface and foreward: www.spinninglobe.net/intronomaster.htm |