Poll: Unschooling: Parenting at it's worst

[Always_Remain]

So I was getting on yahoo and I stumbled upon this video :

[link]http://news.yahoo.com/video/health-15749655/extreme-parenting-radical-unschooling-19218933[/link]

For those to lazy to go to the link here's a description from a support site; Unschooling.com:

What is unschooling?

Have you ever described 'red' to a person who is color blind? Sometimes, trying to define unschooling is like trying to define red. Ask 30 unschoolers to define the word and you'll get thirty shades of red. They'll all be red, but they'll all be different. Generally, unschoolers are concerned with learning or becoming educated, not with 'doing school.' The focus is upon the choices made by each individual learner, and those choices can vary according to learning style and personality type. There is no one way to unschool.

That lovely tidbit is followed by:

If you don't do school, what do you do?

Read, play, sing, dance, grow things, write. All of these things and more are things unschoolers do. We do them because they interest us and bring us joy or because they help us accomplish our dreams. We do the things that have meaning in our lives and contained within those activities is real learning.

So basically parents just let their kids running around doing whatever.

I personally think any parent who decides to do this isn't on the smart side. How does this prepare children for the real world? Are these parents waiting for a day where their kids decide they actually prepare for a career? Am I just being narrow minded?

Citation: [link]http://www.unschooling.com/library/faq/index.shtml[/link]
More info: [link]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unschooling[/link]

Edit: Homeschooling and Unschooling aren't the same. Homeschooled kids parent's actually buy textbooks and attempt to teach their kids and what not and these unschool parents don't seem to do anything.

 

[Pegghead]

Any parent who subscribes to this notion deserves a good whack across the face, 'nuff said.

 

[Spaceman_Spiff]

I thought laws said you have to go to school, must be a lie my dad told me.

Anyway this is a huge mistake, schools may be horribly underfunded with below adequate facilities and staff but education is still important, even ridiculously standardised education.

 

[LWS666]

No OP, you're not being narrow-minded.
Isn't their a law against not sending your child to school?

in scotland you have to jump through hoops, i am home educated and it's not as simple as telling the head master that you're not comming in any more.

 

[Cabisco]

I think the whole idea sounds quite flawed, sure at the time I thought school was terrible but I look back on it as some fantastic times where I learned so much. I don't think unschooling a child will really help them in the long run, I don't see them realising the vast potential they have.

The idea of someone missing out that important part of life just doesn't seem like a good idea to me, I'd like to know why the parents decided this method I think i'd be interested to find out the answer.

 

[Robert0288]

Sounds like a pretty stupid idea to me. I know atleast in Canada you have homeschooling. Basicly you can teach your children in what ever way you want but at the end of the year the kids must still be able to do things set out by the province. There are also standardized tests for various things at the gr3 lvl, gr6, gr.9 math, gr.10 literacy. There are also other provincially mandated tests all over the place

 

[Cherry Cola]

I learn tons of stuff from things not having to do with school. School is much more of a guaranteed certificate that you know something than the only way you can learn something. What I mean by that is that if you finish school, people who want to hire educated individuals will know you at least know something. If you don't go in school, they'll have no way of knowing your potential unless they test you extensively, something I don't think many really wants to bother themselves with. Therefore, unschooling is bad more because people won't take you seriously than because you'll turn stupid.

Unschooling isn't the worst, it just isn't very good by today's norms. Parenting at it's worst would probably be something like that family in USA teaching their children that being Gay means you'll burn in hell and all that stuff.

 

[Mechsoap]

i rather learn my own way then haveing to do all that

 

[Gunner 51]

Judging by the rubbish education Britain has these days, perhaps this home-schooling malarky might just work out. But home-schooling, like school itself is only as good as the teacher giving the lessons.

 

[mb16]

wait is is this: 'school+this thing' or 'this thing on its own'
if its the school+this im for it. Learning about different things is always good
if its the just this thing im against it. Only learning how to sow/ride a bike/ fish is bad

PS 'this thing'=unschool

 

[Darth Caelum]

Well. It depends on the Definition.
If they do things "their own way" and what, they're grade school? Then things will be lopsided.
You may know calculus at 10, but don't know basic Human Reproduction.
Depends on the Implementation really.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

Well, let's see. I think it's fine, if they are properly motivated.

Nearly everything I learned in school is pointless. And *most* college degrees end up being useless and you end up with heavy on-the-job-training, anyway.

Note, I said most. Clearly, a doctor and a lawyer needs training in medicine and law.

 

[Cabisco]

Judging by the rubbish education Britain has these days, perhaps this home-schooling malarky might just work out. But home-schooling, like school itself is only as good as the teacher giving the lessons.

I'd disagree, at least where I am it's not so much the schools fault as it is that of the child and parents. I fully accept where I live might be the exception and not the norm, but I wouldn't trust some of the people near where I live to educate a child as all he would know is how to go to the shops for them and how to roll a cig.

 

[Eicha]

Judging by the rubbish education Britain has these days, perhaps this home-schooling malarky might just work out. But home-schooling, like school itself is only as good as the teacher giving the lessons.

I'd have to disagree on your last point. Schooling can only be as good as the retarded controlling money sucking administration will allow the teachers to be. My mom is a special ed teacher and she and all her peers treated like morons. They're mandated to use a 'program' for reading, by using a manual, to teach kids to read. And the kids have a par by which they must test. They treat the kids like cattle. Then again, I'm in California. We're more concerened with operation more state prisons than any other state or country rather than give two shits about the educational system. Hooray for society.

On topic, its a very good idea IN THEORY. But people are too dumb to implement it.