A Truly Bold and Innovative Approach to Education

I've got a Google Alert set up for "bold education" and "bold school" and my heart gives a little hopeful flutter every time I open that e-mail with links to various mentions of these terms on blogs and Web sites.

But I'm frequently disappointed to read about a bold approach to raising test scores or a bold way to prepare students for college or career. They tend to be the same old ideas with a new group or title attached. And what worries me even more is that so many of the bold programs are profit-oriented ventures designed to attract parent or district dollars.

I've spent the last few years connecting with education reformers, and one thing that baffles me is hearing repeatedly that despite their passionate efforts to improve education, when it comes to their own kids, they haven't made a single bold or innovative move to give their sons and daughters their best shot at being prepared for the future. Perhaps it's a matter of the shoemaker's children having no shoes, but in too many cases, it's more: "Do as I say, not as I do."

And so, I wrote a book to describe the simple, low-cost, accessible and stunningly advantageous options that are turning typical U.S. high school students — from rural areas to big cities, from poor families and wealthy ones — into imaginative, skilled, self-directed and recession-proof leaders ready to rock the real world wherever they choose to live.

I'm not an education guru. I don't even have a master's degree. But I've spent the last decade teaching people how to pay attention and focus on what matters most. In addition, I'm a parent of four recently-launched daughters, all of whom graduated from college at 19 or 20 (the oldest earned her master's at 23) and are thriving in their chosen locations and career paths even in this economic climate.

We didn't spend a fortune sending them to fancy schools; in fact, none of us went into debt to pay for college despite our family's middle-class income level. And though our daughters are certainly self-directed, they are not superstars or geniuses. They blasted forward by doing things differently. None of them ever submitted an SAT score, took an AP or IB class, or played the college admissions game.

Like other students who are embracing what I call the Bold School (as opposed to Old School) approach, they are making their way based on experience and enthusiasm rather than relying on test scores, introductions or the name of their alma mater to get ahead.

In my book, I interviewed scores of Bold Schoolers and included many of their stories. The elements of the Bold School path aren't new. What's new is the way students are putting them together in custom combinations in order to create their best education.

The first step: letting go of the old four-by-four model (four years of high school followed by four years of college) in order to build excitement and momentum, develop clarity about interests and talents, and leap forward by engaging in the learning that lights them up.

Rigor: Good. Rigor PLUS Rapture: POW!

You don't have to be brilliant to surge ahead. This path is open to any reasonably motivated student interested in taking a look at their possibilities and maximizing their potential in exhilarating and personalized ways.

The new global American students are laughing at the lunacy of the current college-prep mindset, diving into higher ed early, and gliding into the global economy at 19 or 20 with:

• a red-hot U.S. or Canadian college diploma;
• sizzling 21st-century skills (including fluency in a foreign language — or two or three);
• outrageously relevant experience (including a year spent abroad before the age of 20);
• a blazing sense of direction; and
• NO DEBT.

In the book, I explain when it's smart to skip the SAT, tell why AP isn't the best way to advance, spill the beans about the best high school exchange program (less than $4,000 for a year with full scholarships available), describe the science behind the best way to learn a language (and why timing is critical), and give step-by-step instructions on how to design a college study-abroad adventure that is safe, leads to fluency and develops crucial personal skills for pennies on the dollar — and how to get every credit transferred back to their U.S. college.

In the next few months, I'll be touring to talk to people about my book and the Bold School approach and posting on my blog about the students we meet and stories we hear along the way. Bold Schoolers are getting a ragin' education on campus, online, on the road, and on their terms and timelines (and within the budget they set for themselves).

I invite you to read my posts here in order to see how a little bit of boldness and innovation can transform run-of-the-mill high school sophomores into confident, competent and creative 20-year-old college grads who leave their in-debt, what-should-I-major-in classmates in the dust.

Maya Frost is the author of The New Global Student: Skip the SAT, Save Thousands on Tuition, and Get a Truly International Education, published by Crown/Three Rivers Press (Random House) in May. The Boston Globe called it "funny, innovative and meaningful — a how-to guide with heart." Read more reviews and a sample chapter at www.NewGlobalStudent.com and check out the blog at www.NewGlobals.com.