homework on schooling [public private or home]
i posted this picture on my fb page and it caused some discussion. i like discussion. sometimes i'm not the best fb "discusser" but over all i like when things strike a cord in people drawing to a conversation.
i didn't reply on fb bc i didn't find the time to gather my thoughts, but here goes...
keep in mind these are my thoughts and conclusions. i'm no expert, but i'm only my own expert as i do my own research.
i used to think homeschooling was weird. as a catholic school girl 1st-12th grade and growing up the only homeschoolers we knew of were through our church. the mom had long hair past her butt and swayed to the hymns with her hands held high and she had 6 or so kids (also not the norm). while this was deemed weird in my book at the time, i look at it now and think "sway away" to each their own. and kudos to them for going against the grain. today my views are changed, just like a large portion of what i believed growing up. that's what growing up is about isn't it? forming your own opinions on things, but not judging without looking at the other side of them. easier said than done and i still have work to do. who doesn't?
BUT, my view on homeschooling is so very different now. every homeschooling family i meet gets cooler than the next and the kids are amazing. (not that non homeschooled kids aren't amazing). i have a rich respect for the familes that successfully homeschool and those that are looking to do so. along the way, i've also met people my age that were homeschooled and wait for it: are normal!
i only knew what i knew growing up, which was private catholic school and even the public school kids seemed rougher and they may have deemed me weird because i wore a uniform etc so it's hard to jump out of a bubble and really check things out without jumping.
i'm not married to any form of education at this time, but i've started doing research.
i mean bird is not 2 yet, but by the time she is legally school aged i want to have a few roads to take with her in order to find the best balance for both of us (and other future harinniti's).
i love montessori.
i love the approach.
learning through real life situations at a young age and doing so in an environment that is unique for each student just makes sense to me.
the current system says what you need to learn and how you need to learn it. if you can't then you don't fit in the mold and you are deemed struggling.
not into that.
there's more out there.
there's hands on, real life learning and incorporated into that is a curriculum.
but, it's not all bad out there, but it IS a broken system. a system that i choose freely (freely for now) to opt out of it's brokenness. again these are my thoughts after doing my own research.
homeschoolers are tyically deemed odd with no social life, but little do people know the endless options for socialization. on top of that, i love that they do housework and cook and there's a real life agenda. ok, so what's my plan? to make a team of housewives and househusbands? no, but wouldn't it be something if kids did more pitching in around the house and were given the opportunity to cook and be creative. delegating is just the added bonus.
to truly be empowered?
my main issue is the one type of teaching model.
by book and what is written in the book. learn and you will be smart. or, at least, called smart.
which, going back to the photo that spawned this post, shows HS averaged much higher in subjects across the board. i think there's a lot to look into on how they created their sample and i appreciate the fact that someone brought to my attention that the "regular" schooled kids all were in the exact 50% average, but isn't it thought provoking to realize that the averages of non traditional schooling are much higher?
in my book, learning what's in the books is certainly important. absolutely. but values, and service and nurturing a human's development are just as important as knowing that columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492 (which, really... did he? we should question.) kids are capable of a lot more IF we let them.
i'm not saying i want my kid(s) to be dumb or sheltered, that's not my intention, but my intention is to have a learning environment that is multi sensory, unique to the child's pace, real life skills in addition to the book learning. i'm not sure certain systems will offer that. ...at least right now.
i disagree with a system that is only focused on testing one way, teaching to a test only so they can pass onward and hope to get into college and become in debt to a degree that they may not use or be able to use because of the state of our economy. forgive me if i'm not concerned about my child(ren's) college right now when i don't think that the system of college will remain in tact 17 years from now. it's more important to me to nurture the little person as much as possible and empower them to learn outside the box. and to be honest, who drew the stupid box anyway? it's a dumb box! sorry...
i'll also say that my views have shifted since i've become a parent. entirely and on education overall. it's amazing how that will shift when you meet your child and then as you witness them growing up.
while i'm grateful for my parents sacrifice to send us to a private, catholic school, i don't feel it's going to be a route we take, but nothing is completely ruled out at this point. i enjoyed my experience and thrived as much as i could (and got into college of course...) i'm just not married to that. it crossed my mind when starting to think about it, even pre-kids because i only knew that route. it was only until i did some research that i realized there are more options on top of private schools being different today than they were when i was a kid. and maybe i would have thrived more in montessori... or homeschool? who knows....
but moral of the story is that while it worked for me, it doesn't mean it's the right choice for my kids just because it was all i know.
i didn't reply on fb bc i didn't find the time to gather my thoughts, but here goes...
keep in mind these are my thoughts and conclusions. i'm no expert, but i'm only my own expert as i do my own research.
i used to think homeschooling was weird. as a catholic school girl 1st-12th grade and growing up the only homeschoolers we knew of were through our church. the mom had long hair past her butt and swayed to the hymns with her hands held high and she had 6 or so kids (also not the norm). while this was deemed weird in my book at the time, i look at it now and think "sway away" to each their own. and kudos to them for going against the grain. today my views are changed, just like a large portion of what i believed growing up. that's what growing up is about isn't it? forming your own opinions on things, but not judging without looking at the other side of them. easier said than done and i still have work to do. who doesn't?
BUT, my view on homeschooling is so very different now. every homeschooling family i meet gets cooler than the next and the kids are amazing. (not that non homeschooled kids aren't amazing). i have a rich respect for the familes that successfully homeschool and those that are looking to do so. along the way, i've also met people my age that were homeschooled and wait for it: are normal!
i only knew what i knew growing up, which was private catholic school and even the public school kids seemed rougher and they may have deemed me weird because i wore a uniform etc so it's hard to jump out of a bubble and really check things out without jumping.
i'm not married to any form of education at this time, but i've started doing research.
i mean bird is not 2 yet, but by the time she is legally school aged i want to have a few roads to take with her in order to find the best balance for both of us (and other future harinniti's).
i love montessori.
i love the approach.
learning through real life situations at a young age and doing so in an environment that is unique for each student just makes sense to me.
the current system says what you need to learn and how you need to learn it. if you can't then you don't fit in the mold and you are deemed struggling.
not into that.
there's more out there.
there's hands on, real life learning and incorporated into that is a curriculum.
but, it's not all bad out there, but it IS a broken system. a system that i choose freely (freely for now) to opt out of it's brokenness. again these are my thoughts after doing my own research.
homeschoolers are tyically deemed odd with no social life, but little do people know the endless options for socialization. on top of that, i love that they do housework and cook and there's a real life agenda. ok, so what's my plan? to make a team of housewives and househusbands? no, but wouldn't it be something if kids did more pitching in around the house and were given the opportunity to cook and be creative. delegating is just the added bonus.
to truly be empowered?
my main issue is the one type of teaching model.
by book and what is written in the book. learn and you will be smart. or, at least, called smart.
which, going back to the photo that spawned this post, shows HS averaged much higher in subjects across the board. i think there's a lot to look into on how they created their sample and i appreciate the fact that someone brought to my attention that the "regular" schooled kids all were in the exact 50% average, but isn't it thought provoking to realize that the averages of non traditional schooling are much higher?
in my book, learning what's in the books is certainly important. absolutely. but values, and service and nurturing a human's development are just as important as knowing that columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492 (which, really... did he? we should question.) kids are capable of a lot more IF we let them.
i'm not saying i want my kid(s) to be dumb or sheltered, that's not my intention, but my intention is to have a learning environment that is multi sensory, unique to the child's pace, real life skills in addition to the book learning. i'm not sure certain systems will offer that. ...at least right now.
i disagree with a system that is only focused on testing one way, teaching to a test only so they can pass onward and hope to get into college and become in debt to a degree that they may not use or be able to use because of the state of our economy. forgive me if i'm not concerned about my child(ren's) college right now when i don't think that the system of college will remain in tact 17 years from now. it's more important to me to nurture the little person as much as possible and empower them to learn outside the box. and to be honest, who drew the stupid box anyway? it's a dumb box! sorry...
i'll also say that my views have shifted since i've become a parent. entirely and on education overall. it's amazing how that will shift when you meet your child and then as you witness them growing up.
while i'm grateful for my parents sacrifice to send us to a private, catholic school, i don't feel it's going to be a route we take, but nothing is completely ruled out at this point. i enjoyed my experience and thrived as much as i could (and got into college of course...) i'm just not married to that. it crossed my mind when starting to think about it, even pre-kids because i only knew that route. it was only until i did some research that i realized there are more options on top of private schools being different today than they were when i was a kid. and maybe i would have thrived more in montessori... or homeschool? who knows....
but moral of the story is that while it worked for me, it doesn't mean it's the right choice for my kids just because it was all i know.
in the end, my main goal isn't to raise a smart kid that gets A's to get into college. the goal in sight is to raise a self-aware, questioning, empowered, knowledgable, creative child and young adult. traditional education works for some, but it's not fair to have one bubble and expect great results. that should be the caption to that picture after all.
best of luck to those looking into an education system that works for their family. there really are a lot of options if you look closer. it's not all black and white.
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