What if school introduced you to exciting new possibilities and you got to choose what to learn?
What if school was a place where you could be yourself?
What if school was joyful? What if school was kind?

A Leader in the Field 

What is Self Directed Learning?

Self directed learning is a form of independent study where the goals and life experiences of the learner inform their course of study. It is self paced learning, with the speed of instruction and the "end" of the lesson dictated largely by the aims of the learners themselves.

The benefits of self-directed learning are many. Empowering students to take ownership of the pace and scope of their education helps foster crucial life skills like creativity, independence, time management, and goal-setting and achievement. Self directed learning is flexible and adaptable by nature, meaning students with a variety of learning styles, with their own unique strengths and challenges, can create a curriculum plan that best suits them.

How can Global Village School help?

Global Village School offers a progressive, accredited, customizable K-12 education via online and text-based curriculum, complete with individualized teacher services.
Our high school courses integrate peace, justice, and diversity studies with the core subjects. These guides are meant to be just that - guides - that can be adapted as needed. Many self-directed learners have found that GVS curriculum is a great jumping off point from which they can get started in the directions they want to go. This is especially true of self-directed learners who are interested in social justice topics.

We recognize students as individuals with unique needs, interests, and learning styles. We work to adapt our homeschool curriculum to our students, rather than forcing students to adapt to the curriculum. We empower our students to pursue their future goals in a way that enables them to prepare for college while building on their strengths and talents. We help our students lead authentic and meaningful lives, and they graduate feeling confident in their abilities to make an impact on the world.

Our Approach

• We meet students where they are, adjusting our approach to meet their needs.
• We empower students to care for themselves, their communities, and work toward sustainability for the planet and all its' inhabitants.
• We focus on core academic skills, self-knowledge, and global citizenship.
• Each child is the author of their learning journey. Students outline their learning paths based on their individual passions, interests, and skills.
• We support creativity and connection.
• We provide a personalized, nurturing environment.

Our Mission,  Vision, and Values

• We support families shaping tomorrow's global citizens with an individualized, enlivening, and holistic educational experience.

• We envision a vibrant, diverse culture where people live authentic and meaningful lives, understand their deep interconnection and interdependence with the rest of the planet, and are inspired to tend to our global community and environment.

• We value connection and relationship.
• We will treat you with compassion and respect.
• We are a non-profit organization; we exist to be of service to children and the world.

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Our Proven Track Record

• Supporting homeschooling families for over 20 years, since 1999.
• We have earned accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) through a rigorous and continual self-study process
• Numerous colleges have accepted our graduates.
• Our teachers have many decades of experience.
• We are an international community of kindred spirits: we have served families in 48 states and over 50 countries. Global Village families care about supporting their children’s unique gifts and talents while striving to make the world a better place.

How our program works

Global Village will be the official “school of record,” maintaining student files, providing written evaluations, issuing official transcripts, and providing diplomas upon graduation. We will provide curriculum (regular or customized) and individualized teacher support. Families can also choose to purchase curriculum only, or to work with Global Village teachers on selected courses. Other families may wish to have us develop a customized curriculum for them, and then work with it on their own. Families can also use our learning styles profile, whether or not they wish to enroll.

​Global Village families choose between structured text and online curriculum; fully customized curriculum based on their individual interests, needs, and learning styles; or – for those who are already experienced homeschoolers – using their own curriculum. We offer a wide variety of classes, including sustainability curriculum. Core subjects such as English, history, math, and science often contain peace, diversity, and environmental themes. We also offer specialized courses such as The Buddhist Path to Peace, Planetary Stewardship, Reflections on Peacemaking, Peace & Diversity Studies Seminar, Global Spirituality and Activism, and a variety of other classes that address current issues in the world and provide students with role models and examples of peaceful, sustainable social change. GVS teachers assist each student individually and provide feedback, support, and documentation.

Students can earn elective credit for many different kinds of life experiences, such as travel, participating in cultural events, performing in community theater productions, pursuing a career in athletics or the film industry, or starting their own business. Global Village youth engage in a wide range of activities for credit, including: studying science at local national parks and wilderness areas, volunteering at botanical gardens, investigating organic farming or learning about herbal medicine.

Come Alive with Global Village School!

​"There started to be 'wow' moments where Ni would start talking about a topic he had read about or worked on, and I had worried that nothing was really sinking in, but he would say something that demonstrated that not only had he learned it, but had integrated it with other 'subjects', things from the news, his own reading, etc.​"                                                                                                                                                                               
​   Laurel P., K-8 parent

Want to know more?

If you want to be a part of an alternative school, please take your time and explore our site. Feel free to contact us with any questions or ideas that may come to mind. We look forward to partnering with you as we continue in our mission of educating for a better world, one person at a time.

Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and then go do that,
because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
Howard Thurman

Learn more about Global Village School's accredited distance learning program

​​Please explore the wealth of information we've shared about the Global Village School homeschooling program.

Enrollment

Learn more about enrolling in Global Village

Enrollment

K-8 Curriculum

Learn more about our K-8 curriculum

K-8 Curriculum

High School Curriculum

Learn more about our high school curriculum

High School Curriculum