The Ruling Classroom (1980)

"The Ruling Classroom" is a documentary following a unique social studies project with a seventh-grade class in Mill Valley, California. The students transform their classroom into a self-governing nation, managing it themselves. Teacher George Muldoon designed this unconventional approach, setting aside standard lessons so students could learn about government through practical experience. The film highlights the students' curiosity, collaboration, and the effectiveness of hands-on learning. It also shows the school administration's response, especially when the principal steps in to end the students’ experiment in self-rule.