Now that I’ve had a couple of weeks to digest all this “unschooling” stuff, I have some loose thoughts floating around about it.
- Unschoolers (Christian ones, that is. I don’t know about the rest of them.) attribute a lot of successes to their style of teaching that are really a product of good parenting. Engaged, self-disciplined, emotionally mature, academically capable children are not as unusual as unschoolers (at least the ones in my comments) seem to think.
- Unschoolers make good points about the innate drive to learn that children have. People who don’t educate their own children tend to lose sight of this fact because education is, sadly, no longer seen as the parent’s responsibility . Home educators of all stripes are quite aware of this, though, and I think unschoolers should give the rest of us a little credit. Your children aren’t brilliant because of your methods, and our children aren’t dull because of ours.
- Unschoolers are right: Education should be individualized. There is no reason to stuff every child into the same academic box. Again, unschoolers aren’t saying anything the rest of us disagree with. Most of us homeschool because we know the assembly line education system is no way to raise thinking children.
- Life is full of math. No kidding! We must be unschoolers, because we had an impromptu math lesson in the kitchen yesterday. Unschoolers keep saying that regimented math isn’t important (unless the child likes drills) because life is full of math. Math concepts, yes. Math facts, not so much. Memorization of facts means not having to stop in the middle of conceptual work to do simple calculation. We don’t have to enjoy multiplication tables to benefit from them. Advantage: traditional math.
- For certain personalities, relaxed academic expectations might just be the best way to go. I see no harm in that. As a recovering underachiever, I can attest to the psychological usefulness of sneaking up on goals rather than facing them head-on.
- I wish Christians on both sides would stop trying to spiritualize learning styles.
- Discipline-wise, as long as unschoolers are insisting on good behavior and not unchurching their children, I see no harm in allowing children to follow their bliss (or whatever you like to call it) academically. I don’t think unschooling is the most efficient way of getting a well-rounded education, but efficiency is not the most important thing in the world. Neither is a well-rounded education. Don’t beat me for that, moms. It’s just the truth. Some of us were born to be hairdressers, not Harvard graduates.
- Contrary to the assertions of unschoolers, allowing kids to decide what they will and will not do is not teaching them self-discipline. It’s teaching them self-indulgence. However, discipline can be learned in other ways, so again, unschooling seems ok to me on this front.
Those are my top-of-the-heap thoughts for the day. What do you guys think?
{ 21 comments }
“I wish Christians on both sides would stop trying to spiritualize learning styles”
Amen to that. Why are we always so desperate to pick fights? Let’s stop missing the point and be friends.
Resounding agreement with Cindy and ericaceae; “I wish Christians on both sides would stop trying to spiritualize learning styles”
On the comment : “Some of us were born to be hairdressers, not Harvard graduates.”; I’m curious to see if anyone takes issue with that. I don’t. Anyone familiar with how many lawyers pass the bar every year who then can’t find work? Why? Because if you’re not a doctor/lawyer/research chemist/[insert your own supposedly important profession], then it means you’re not a very useful engine.
Poppycock. The world would stop dead if it weren’t for janitors, trash men, laborers, and the myriad tradesmen who do the work we forget but desperately need. Someone’s children have to take on this work, and as long as it fulfills their basic needs, I don’t mind if it’s mine. Or yours. I’ll be proud of them for who they are, not what they are.
I’m not sure I understand why you are even writing about unschooling. You aren’t an unschooler. You seem to not embrace the concept. And you might be perpetuating incorrect perceptions in the minds of people who would otherwise be interested in or open to unschooling.
Let me try that again, a little more nicely. I’m posting about unschooling because I am interested in the concept. If my words make people consider unschooling in a different light, then I’ve done my work. I want people to think about unschooling. I want people to think about education in general.
This blog is a vehicle for expressing my thoughts. Sometimes my thinking leads me in different directions than others might go. If you’d like to convince people that I’m wrong, bring an argument. That’s permitted here. Telling me why I shouldn’t be saying what I think, on my blog? Very, very uncool.
You make the statement “And you might be perpetuating incorrect perceptions in the minds of people who would otherwise be interested in or open to unschooling”.
Wouldn’t it make more sense to rebut that possible incorrect perception than to just imply that it exists whilst asking the author to remain silent?
If you have a disagreement, state it; that’s what comments are for. I’m curious about what you have to say.
Love you, Jess.
Cindy, I’ve been impressed with the neutrality that you’ve used in this debate and the way you have attempted to understand unschooling rather than attacking it. Most bloggers would not have handled this quite as well or impartially.
I agree with most of your rebuttal, but I do have problems with the statement about Christians spiritualizing learning styles. While I don’t believe that our teaching methods can bring about spiritual salvation, I do believe that our theology can be seen in our teaching methods. What we believe about our children will influence the way that we teach them. So it is a spiritual matter. What we believe about God, life, and human nature is of the utmost importance. In fact, there is nothing greater.
Mary Jo, I think you’re mostly right. There is a worldview problem here. I think our view of God and human nature definitely informs our choices in everything from education to eveningwear. That is why I’m not unschooling! (It’s also why I’m a Calvinist. Don’t tell my Wesleyan dad, who is wrong, but a fine Christian man all the same.)
However inconsistent their thinking is (and it is at times laughably inconsistent), what they have is a logic problem, not a heart problem. (yeah, go ahead and tell me you can’t separate those. I can’t, but some people have trouble with that thinking stuff.) Either God will bring them around to understanding the Biblical view of these things, or He won’t. I don’t think there is any need to push that particular point.
Obviously, they are wrong about human beings coming equipped with discernment about what is good for them and the ability to do what is right without being “forced”. If they didn’t already know that, they wouldn’t be setting rules in other areas of life for their young ones, like brushing their teeth, tv watching, etc, as Sonita says they do.
I think what they’re doing is not really unschooling at all. Which leads me to wonder why they insist on calling it that. All the same, since the only thing Christian unschoolers are so lenient about seems to be “education”, this seems to be more about learning styles. They just haven’t named it properly, for whatever reason.
As long as they’re not doing the same thing in weightier matters than PE or math (like giving their children no spiritual guidance or not “forcing” them to go to church), I’m content to call it good.
I won’t tell dad
I wouldn’t consider Sonita an unschooler, either (mostly because she does 4.5 hours of school, like the state requires). I would say, if anything, she’s a relaxed eclectic…. but who really cares about labels.
When you say “as long as they’re not doing the same thing in weightier matters” what exactly are you referring to? If some one were not to “force” their kid to go to “church” (the institution), would that make them unchristian or unbiblical? Or if they didn’t make them brush their teeth or turn off the tv???? are those the “weightier matters”?…. interesting….
“Either God will bring them around to understanding the Biblical view of these things, or He won’t.”…. so you’re saying that it’s not biblical, then?
“Obviously, they are wrong about human beings coming equipped with discernment about what is good for them and the ability to do what is right without being “forced”.” I’m pretty sure that none of us have any illusions about sin nature. I sure as hell know I have one. But…. nobody forces me now, and I get on fine (without murdering anybody or stealing from a store cause I don’t feel like paying) and even pay my bills on time and clean the house every once in a while (without so much as a swat or having privileges taken). Why is it such a stretch to think that kids would also learn to get along in society just by living in it?
There is a difference between being disciplined and being self disciplined and the one does not lead to the other.
I have the same question as Brittany (which you seem to not wish to respond to):
She said:
““Either God will bring them around to understanding the Biblical view of these things, or He won’t.”…. so you’re saying that it’s not biblical, then?”
You said “I wish Christians on both sides would stop trying to spiritualize learning styles.”
Isn’t that what you are doing? Maybe God will bring us around to seeing things YOUR way?! Sounds to me like you are trying to say that your way is biblical and ours is not….
“I wish Christians on both sides would stop trying to spiritualize learning styles.”
and then you said
“Either God will bring them around to understanding the Biblical view of these things, or He won’t. I don’t think there is any need to push that particular point.”
That is illogical. You ask us not to make this a spiritual matter, and then you turn around and make it just that very thing. That is a form of subjectivist fallacy (your opinion is subjective, therefore it doesn’t apply to your premise).
I think everyone is subject to illogical thinking- my point was that when you critique an educational choice of your fellow Christians, it is not good to ask one thing of them and not hold yourself to that standard.
Now- I am not saying you can’t judge whether you believe unschooling is in line with what the Bible teaches. But is it essential? Does it divide us as sisters in Christ? I would hope not! ;0)
I would rather walk with those who might not agree with me on the non-essentials, but are overflowing with grace that those that agree with me on everything and look down on those that don’t. Even if their thinking is illogical and I don’t understand their reasoning for some of their choices.
I’m not saying you are doing that here- but I think we need to be careful about how we portray those that we don’t agree with.
Hey, guys! I’m not going to respond to these comments, because, honestly, I can’t even remember writing this post or what I was thinking. Nor do I care about this topic in the slightest anymore. This is an old post. I’ve moved on.
I think that’s probably a good call you made. Looks like I contradicted myself. Have a great day!
Totally agree with you here! =)
Aw, come on! I was hoping you’d have something else for me to chew on!
Twitter: SmockityFrocks
April 6, 2011 at 10:45 pm
AWESOME, Cindy!
My 16yo daughter made the same point you did about math concepts vs. math facts before we even got to that part of your post!
Also, one of the commenters has children who clean their rooms and fold their clothes without being forced?! Where can I get one of those?!
You can get two of those at my house but I’m not keen to share them. You can move your own that direction, though. Mine weren’t born doing chores for fun. I just taught them empathy and respect and natural consequences. I don’t force mine to do much (not sure I could if I wanted, to be honest, they’re stubborn as mules when pushed). I ask politely. When they were smaller and I said, “Would you mind helping me fold these clothes?” I heard “no” a whole lot. So I folded clothes. Eventually they figured out that certain things happened when Mom had to spend half the day folding clothes. Mom didn’t have time to do things with them. Mom didn’t have the energy for playing very hard. Mom was sad sometimes about missing out on other things she wanted to do. So they started helping me fold clothes so that I would have time and energy to do more with them and because it made me happier. Then they discovered that if we were ALL folding clothes together we could even play while we worked. We could play fun word games or tell stories to make each other giggle or a whole lot of other cool stuff.
Twitter: whatever_41
April 7, 2011 at 10:59 am
I got into an online discussion with a group of unschoolers, who took issue with my insistence that my daughter clean up, and pay the store owner for a mess she made in a store, after being told (by me) not to touch a display of cookie sprinkles. (I believe she was 9 at the time). THIS is where I part company with some unschoolers, because I believe children should face the natural consequences of their behavior…and many of them viewed my intervention as “punishment”.
Cleaning up the messes they make, paying for damages they cause, (with MY MONEY, I might add) and having to face the person they have wronged and admit the wrong…are natural consequences of behavior. Not teaching your children respect other people’s property isn’t so much unschooling (in my mind) as unparenting.
I see far too many children who suffer from “unparenting syndrome”, who are both public schooled, and home schooled. Parents who are too afraid to be the bad guy in their children’s eyes, because they find it unpleasant. I feel sorry for their kids.
Twitter: whatever_41
April 7, 2011 at 11:23 am
Whoops! I hit submit before I was quite done…multi-tasking isn’t all it is cracked up to be! Anyways, I think it the unparenting people have issues with. And that is not limited to home schooling families, but is a major problem in our society as a whole.
Take a look at the Sudbury school videos to see what unschooling looks like in “school”. It’s kind of interesting, as the graduates have above average test scores.
I had this year all planned out and then had a “once every 10 year” kind of morning sickness. The maps in geography made me dizzy. You might say we reverted into a level of unschooling. I don’t negotiate on a bare bones reading session for my dyslexic or getting behind in math for my 6th grader, but we did learn other things this year. My oldest learned to cook a whole lot of food as I couldn’t look at it. At our co-op, I’ve discovered that the child I thought couldn’t write can turn out a five paragraph essay in minutes (for someone else!). I’d like to think I was doing the Harvard psycholgist-approved Sudbury model. It makes me feel less negligent. Next year will be different, hey now the baby’s out, next week can be different! Next year may start Monday bwah ha ha!