ONE ROOM TO RULE THEM ALL: Talk to Aardvark co-founder Max Ventilla, and he'll tell you about his rehash of the "one-room schoolhouse" idea. The entrepreneur and longtime Google executive got a mention in TechCrunch last week for his most recent endeavor, AltSchool. Located in a one-room building in San Francisco, this alternative school throws out grade levels and standardized tests in favor of learner-centered curriculum, where each student receives a curriculum "Playlist" based on their individual learning needs. AltSchool teachers and faculty (predominantly consisting of entrepreneurs and engineers) decide what 10 or so projects and goals students will focus on each week. But the experience isn't cheap--tuition runs around $19K a year. Ventilla gives his own perspective into the school and its design here.
