BEYOND THE ACADEMICS.

The article examines the non-academic learnings that can be of lifelong assistance to young people. It differentiates between an essentialist and existentialist educator. The essentialist educator is concerned with content and standards, prerequisites and sequences and tries to develop new techniques and finds new experiences. On the other hand, the existentialist educator is concerned with present and personal relevance than with compatibility with already existing values. The author contends that majority of secondary English teachers find it difficult to evaluate student writing because of the lack of traditional criteria for acceptable mechanics, grammar and syntax. The author concludes that community writers workshop and theater are two relevant examples of how students can grow emotionally and intellectually in a nonacademic setting.