There is an image of a school growing up in my mind all the time; a school where some actual and literal constructive activity shall be the centre and source of the whole thing, and from which the work should always be growing out in two directions — one the social bearings of that constructive industry, the other the contact with nature which supplies it with its materials.
— John Dewey to Alice Chipman Dewey and children, November 1st, 1894, John Dewey Papers
I stumbled across this quote while reading The Metaphysical Club, a fantastic book about the birth and evolution of the Pragmatic tradition in the United States. What struck me most was that it an almost perfect reflection of how I thought about our work at Dev Bootcamp.
One of the most common questions about Dev Bootcamp I got from students, press, and other entrepreneurs is something like, "How did you think to do something so innovative? Do you think this model is the future?" I'd always reply that what we're doing isn't particular new or innovative, at least not if by "innovative" you mean something surprising. Rather, it's as if we're taking an old, long-forgotten song and publishing a cover for a modern audience.