To some extent, these massive districts are rejuvenating the “whole-child” approach integral to what’s known as “progressive education”—a model that was once viewed as incompatible with urban school systems. The contours of this model, which is often vaguely defined as schooling that is “child-centered” and focused on “active learning,” are outlined by the educator Tom Little and writer Katherine Ellison in Loving Learning: How Progressive Education Can Save America’s Schools. Little (who died last year) toured 45 so-called progressive schools in 2013 and found several consistent features: attention to relationships; the students’ freedom, within limits, to follow their interests; and hands-on, creative projects.

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