A school with no homework or grades sounds like a child's dream but for the students of Toronto, Ontario's Alpha Alternative School, opened in 1972, that was very much the reality. The public school's policy was founded on the principal of democracy and according to Debbie O'Rourke, the school's volunteer coordinator, kids learn at their leisure. "We value general knowledge, social sciences, arts, and literacy but kids are valued and not judged," O'Rourke told Yahoo! Shine. "There are no grades and we don't waste kid's time by loading them up with homework. Allowing them to learn organically through playing and interacting with other kids in a nurturing environment will help them grow into smart individuals." For the school's 40th anniversary in September 2012, former Alpha student and photographer Michael Barker shot portraits of alumni in a series called "Alpha Alternative School 1942/2012." So what happens to kids who don't get grades or take tests? See for yourself.

