As long as you actally learn to be an intelligent member of society, does it matter where you learn it from?
Poll: Unschooling: Parenting at it's worst
- Thread starter Always_Remain
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A bit narrow-minded wouldn't you say OP? Home-schooling and its ilk may have a good chance to be messed up but I'm not sure how readily I'll defend the worst public schools against it. Think about it, public education is by nature going to be just that, public, standardized, you can't accommodate to all the little kiddies' preferences because you have too many, with homeschooling? You learn exactly how you want to.
God forbid anyone be allowed to do anything against the grain.
Jesus Christ, Escapees, I thought you would be more open-minded, yes the kids won't be intelligent, but Jesus Christ, let them do what the fuck they want and let them reap the consequences knowing they did what they wanted.
I chose to go to School, I got an education, I would do it again, but dammmnn, I wouldn't shove that down peoples throats.
Live and let live.
But hey, I guess I'm the Chaotic Good to your Lawful Neutral
I see no problem with being sheltered.
Jesus Christ, Escapees, I thought you would be more open-minded, yes the kids won't be intelligent, but Jesus Christ, let them do what the fuck they want and let them reap the consequences knowing they did what they wanted.
I chose to go to School, I got an education, I would do it again, but dammmnn, I wouldn't shove that down peoples throats.
Live and let live.
But hey, I guess I'm the Chaotic Good to your Lawful Neutral
What's wrong with that?Shynobee said:
I see no problem with being sheltered.
While I agree that these people are complete morons, this theory can work on very young children. Most education professionals agree that very young children learn better by doing, so theoretically this should be a viable way to get young children to learn. However since those children aren't even old enough for normal school, I doubt they would fall into the category of Unschooling.
Well it's not always the child's choice. Those kids in the video were pulled out of school as early as first grade so they grew up doing and got used to it. So really the parents are harming their kids in a way. And what child would want to go back to school after not attending for however long?Cmwissy said:
As someone who is trianing to become a teacher (currently a TA) I think education is very important. The fact is that unless you went to University and got a degree and then studied teaching techniques yourself, then a teacher is going to be vastly more qualified to teach your child than yourself.
I think it can be useful to teach kids certain things etc, growing things to learn about nature is not a bad thing, neither is reading as it improves your reading and communication skills, as a substitute for educaton and school though I don't think its a good idea. School is for learning, home is for fun, relaxing and games.
There is also the social aspect of school as well which is very important. Children need to interact with one another and adults as well.
I think it can be useful to teach kids certain things etc, growing things to learn about nature is not a bad thing, neither is reading as it improves your reading and communication skills, as a substitute for educaton and school though I don't think its a good idea. School is for learning, home is for fun, relaxing and games.
There is also the social aspect of school as well which is very important. Children need to interact with one another and adults as well.
Not sure if I'm understanding the concept correctly, but they had a school like this not long ago here in Holland. The children only had to learn what they wanted to learn, meaning that the teachers would tell them what they asked and explain things they wanted explained. End result? By the time they were 18, they couldn't read or write on even an elementary school level and knew absolutely nothing about anything. They'd spent all their time playing and having fun, which is precisely what kids (and most adults) want to do all day. The whole reason school exists is because learning is not something kids want to do.
Unfortunately, for every child that might benefit from this, there will be 1000 who won't. And considering that these types of homeschooling are usually done for religious reasons (at least in the US), how could a future employer expect anything from such "education?"
Besides, what other way of assessing competence exists, other than degrees from accredited institutions?
Besides, what other way of assessing competence exists, other than degrees from accredited institutions?
In my opinion unschooling sounds like you're trying to reprogram your kid into forgetting what they have learned at school. Look teaching your kid practical skills at home is all well and good, but they should at least receive some schooling (IT'S FREE PEOPLE!)
Ah, like going to school is a 'choice' right? -_^Always_Remain said:
School -cripples- the spirit of learning. School teaches things, valuable things to be sure, but it is not invested in the kind of high-minded growth and learning people seem to be ascribing to it. In function, it focuses primarily on creating viable workers for base positions, people who can read and write and perform basic arithmetic and who are unlikely to be socially maladjusted. By and large it succeeds in this regard, however, this kind of environment is not for everyone, and indeed can do more damage to a person's education and development than other methods.SwimmingRock said:
Of course, as has already been mentioned, the system can not cater to, nor should be expected to cater to everyone. That's why there need to be other options available to those that require them.
I was unschooled through high school, and I don't believe it's done me any harm. I'm currently an honours student at a major Australian university, and I have no more trouble keeping up with the work than any of my conventionally educated friends. True, I never did much advanced maths or science. But I did a lot of reading; I studied history and literature extensively. I wrote - fiction, poetry, short articles and reports. I taught myself computer programming. And I even found a new interest in maths. In primary school, when we were using a much more conventional curriculum-based approach to homeschooling, I hated maths. It was boring and difficult and frustrating. But when I no longer had to do it, I started to appreciate it as a mental challenge. I still wasn't very good at it, but I didn't grudge the time I spent on it.
That said, I do have concerns about people who trumpet unschooling as the One True Way of educating children. To me, the great thing about homeschooling is how easy it is to tailor your educational program to the specific needs of each child. I loved unschooling and found it very rewarding. My younger sister, on the other hand, found the lack of structure and direction very frustrating. For her, a more conventional approach was better. (She eventually chose to go to school for her last few years of high school, and was very happy with that decision.)
That said, I do have concerns about people who trumpet unschooling as the One True Way of educating children. To me, the great thing about homeschooling is how easy it is to tailor your educational program to the specific needs of each child. I loved unschooling and found it very rewarding. My younger sister, on the other hand, found the lack of structure and direction very frustrating. For her, a more conventional approach was better. (She eventually chose to go to school for her last few years of high school, and was very happy with that decision.)
Normally, I would make a remark about them spending the rest of their lives cleaning toilets, but without high school degrees they probably won't even be hired for custodial work. 
These parents are very irresponsible.
These parents are very irresponsible.
The concepts expressed in the video, such as going as far to never being punished for actions is a horrible concept. Because of this, there is no concept of consequences that are built which means lack of consideration for any actions one might take. Not to mention just a complete lack of responsibility. Sure, some kids might be proactive in getting things done or pursing knowledge, but at certain ages, most aren't and it takes the some pushing from someone else to get them started or getting interested.
The kids in the video in particular really don't seem to have any sense of motivation or even care that they don't seem to have any real skills. I have to wonder if they will ever be able to hold down any basic job at all. Home schooling makes more sense than this.
The kids in the video in particular really don't seem to have any sense of motivation or even care that they don't seem to have any real skills. I have to wonder if they will ever be able to hold down any basic job at all. Home schooling makes more sense than this.
Well, the video is heavily biased- you have reporters saying things such as "sounds like playing hooky" before the parents even get to present their case *cough* poisoning the well *cough*, showing images of the kids playing in what looks like a chaotic manner, and then going on almost to insult the parents by implying that their children are "feral." Also, I understand that the United States school system is pretty fucked up. Still...kids need structure, mmmkay. This "unschooling" idea doesn't seem to provide that.
Wait a minute, are you saying that as a parent, I should let my 5th grader CHOOSE if they want to go to school or not? And that they have learned all that they need in life by 4th grade. This just seems to be a recipe for disaster.AndyFromMonday said:
If my mom didn't force me to do things when I was a kid, I wouldn't be who I am today. As an example, I just wanted to play video games, she made me pick a sport. Found out I was pretty good at running. When I broke my ankle, she made me pick something else, so I chose theater and still have friends to this day from it (17 years). Part of being a parent is making our kids get out there and experience things that they would normally not do. And like it or not, school is part of that. Good parents want their kids to have a better life and, statistically, getting an education is part of that goal. And some of us actually use things like calculus and advanced English skills for our everyday jobs, and this wasn't taught to us by 4th grade.
Didn't mean for this to get this long. So, to each their own. All I know is that I've met a few too many people that dropped out of high school and now have 2 kids on a salary from a fast food place. Maybe if someone kicked their ass and made them stay in school, they would be a better place now.
Oh a crafty one. No it's not but the alternative is to not be able to get employed. Actually it's a choice of the parent. COUNTER CRAFTINESS!GothmogII said:
Eh looking back, Yeah it's basically a segment from fox news. At least the reporters in the video had a (good) reason to be biased.SuperMse said: