There will be a Unschooling family on the Today show this morning

[mom2denj]

We do not unschool, but I am still interested to see this in a bit.

[gingersmom]

I'm waiting to see it also.

[Snickerdoodle]

POst the link later for those of us who don't have a telly.

[mom2denj]

Oh my, I just reread the title to my thread. :O Terrible grammar. It's a good thing that they are not interviewing me. =)

[mom2denj]

I thought that overall it was a good interview and segment. The family that they interviewed were well spoken and REAL. Matt Lauer and the specialist talked about the positive and negative aspects of unschooling, ending the interview on a postive note. For once, the media did not mock the homeschooling community, and gave us a fair voice.:001_smile:

[mom2denj]

I'm waiting to see it also.

 

What did you think??

[KristenR]

Darn I missed it. Any link out there?

[Garga]

I didn't get to the see the segment. I'm glad it went well.

 

I just wanted to say that I'm so tired of the media only showing unschoolers.

Viewers see that and think ALL homeschoolers unschool. And since unschooling is soooo different from the norm, they make their snap judgements and end up being against homeschooling more than ever. The media picks out the one type of homeschooling that'll confuse most of their viewers just to get reactions to their "reporting."

[....]

Here's the link (I hope):

 

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/44902003#44902003

 

If the link doesn't work, go to the Today Show homepage and there is window on there called Unschooling: Kids decide what to learn.

 

The 15 yro was just a really neat kid. :) I'm also glad they interviewed parents who work with their kids, instead of something that would have drawn serious negative attention on unschooling.

[micheller1]

I thought they interviewed a great unschooling family BUT I don't understand why both "experts" they interviewed were obviously both not pro-homeschoolers. Voicing their concern over and over and over that homeschoolers were not regulated enough, tested enough and not socialized enough.

It would lead any non-homeschooler who knows nothing about homeschooling to believe that we at the end of the day every child who comes out of the homeschooling way of life will have gaps in their education (as if public school children don't?) and will need remedial testing etc.

 

You can say what you want with a smile on your face, but you could clearly see she (the main expert) was clearly against homeschooling.

[southernm]

I missed it but watched the link. I did not like Matt Lauer's attitude about it. I feel like who threw in all the negatives about it. It really irked me when he asked how the unschooled children could be "judged" and "assessed" against those in school. I do think that they made it very clear that this was different than traditional homeschooling which was good. I have a hard time with unschooling myself. I don't understand how a child who wants to be a "NASA scientist" can be unschooled but that's just me!

[Retired]

Can't stand Matt what ever his name and so tired of the testing, socialization, junk questions

 

But the 15 yo was articulate and was a great example for homeschooling

[Matryoshka]

That was refreshing. The family seems to be a very involved unschooling family (not "the kids play video games to learn and stay up till 3am"), the kids were articulate, and the "expert" seemed actually to have a clue and have intelligent answers for the skeptical interviewer. (so often the "experts" tsk tsk and shake their heads right along with them).

[butterflymommy]

I thought it was interesting that Lauer brought up the money issue-- he's right that the trip taking is feasible primarily for middle/ upper class families, and HSing is predominantly in households with SAHMs (again a middle/ upper class thing).

 

The "experts" were annoying as hell!:glare:

[Snickerdoodle]

OH MY GOODNESS!! Those kids have not been assessed!!!

 

 

Merriam-Webster Online:

Definition of ASSESS

transitive verb

1

: to determine the rate or amount of (as a tax)

2

a : to impose (as a tax) according to an established rate b : to subject to a tax, charge, or levy

3

: to make an official valuation of (property) for the purposes of taxation

4

: to determine the importance, size, or value of <assess a problem>

5

: to charge (a player or team) with a foul or penalty

[mom2denj]

I thought the lady "expert" was very fair with her answers. I didn't feel like she was "just putting on a smile". The man was a bit more critical, but I didn't think that he had much talk time. As for Matt Lauer, I thought he asked the questions that people want to know, and I thought that he did it graciously.

 

It is funny how differently some of us see things. I started to second guess my thoughts, but then I hit the rewind button and watched it again. I still felt the same.

 

Overall, I didn't think it was offensive or belittling to homeschoolers.

 

It is interesting to hear the different opinions here.

[jillian]

True. Maybe other types of homeschoolers aren't interesting enough for television. :glare:

I agree. It annoys me to see only unschoolers. We are as diverse and varied as any other segment of the population on the planet.

[LauraGB]

Darn! I can't get the video to play. Dd told me one of her friend's family was going to be on GMA - possibly she was mistaken and it is this show.

[kewb]

The overall subtext that I heard was that there should be more testing of unschoolers. I did not care for that at all. However, overall, this was certainly one of the more balanced segments I have seen.

[Princess Peach]

I thought it was pretty fair, actually. And I found myself agreeing with Matt on a couple points - the family would need to be able to afford the activities and trips and also the question about how unschoolers provide transcripts for colleges.

[zenjenn]

I don't understand how a child who wants to be a "NASA scientist" can be unschooled but that's just me!

 

I don't unschool but.... my younger child has made me realize that maybe you COULD be unschooled and become a rocket scientist. There actually ARE people who are completely self-motivated to learn mathematics (and everything else) in a manner that makes a formal curriculum irrelevant. (Hard to believe, I know.)

[Parrothead]

I like the family well enough. I thought Matt Lauer was being a jerk.

[mom2denj]

Darn! I can't get the video to play. Dd told me one of her friend's family was going to be on GMA - possibly she was mistaken and it is this show.

If it is any help to you, the family lives in California.

[Veritaserum]

I thought it was a decent segment. I liked the family. The parents were clearly very involved. The girls weren't playing video games and running wild. (I have a strong negative reaction to that style of unschooling. One particular family I know.... *shudder*) The 15yo seems like a really neat kid. :)

 

The smirk/restrained laughter displayed by the male expert when he talked about parents' right to choose their children's educations ticked me off. It was obvious that he does not believe parents should have a say. :glare:

 

I laughed at the horror over homeschooled children not being assessed frequently. Egads! Won't somebody think of the children?! :lol: And, of course, socialization reared its head. :rolleyes:

 

I wish they'd feature homeschoolers who aren't unschoolers, religious, or following a public school curriculum. Show a family doing Latin chants, reading and discussing great literature, discussing world history, conducting experiments, doing structured lessons, etc. It would be great for them to feature a secular homeschooling family following a classical model. :) (No, I'm not volunteering! ;))

[simka2]

I like the family well enough. I thought Matt Lauer was being a jerk.

:iagree: I mean good gracious, "Who is assessing and judging these kids compared to their peers?" He said something like that. Normally I am not very pro unschoolish, but that was a neat family.

 

Matt Lauer's comment really rubbed me wrong, and felt very out of touch.

[TracyR]

I thought the lady "expert" was very fair with her answers. I didn't feel like she was "just putting on a smile". The man was a bit more critical, but I didn't think that he had much talk time. As for Matt Lauer, I thought he asked the questions that people want to know, and I thought that he did it graciously.

 

It is funny how differently some of us see things. I started to second guess my thoughts, but then I hit the rewind button and watched it again. I still felt the same.

 

Overall, I didn't think it was offensive or belittling to homeschoolers.

 

It is interesting to hear the different opinions here.

:iagree:

I totally agree. I think Matt asked questions most people would want to ask.

I thought him asking about money was very good. Most people would say: I can't afford to do that. I was actually interested in that question.

yes the assess and test question was a bit annoying but truly even I'm curious as how unschooled kids do against their brick and mortar school kids. Even traditional homeschooled kids , those who use a curriculum and tests in their home. Do they do better, the same, worse? Sadly without testing them to find out how they do, no one knows. If they were tested and it showed that it was a more superior form of education would more families be willing to do it?

 

I wish i could make that jump to unschooling. But we live in a state that requires testing, and proof of education ( portfolios and teacher evaluation). Plus my children aren't that motivated regardless of the fact that i've always have tried to make learning as fun as I humanly can. If it were up to my kids they wouldn't do anything. But then maybe you have to start unschooling from the beginning. I don't know.

 

But for once I think it was a good segment.

[coralloyd]

My questions to Matt- Who is assessing and regulating the journalists? Who is making sure they are matching up to their peers? Who said it was fair to not have any homeschooling experts, along with the skeptics? It is a little thing called freedom of the press. It doesn't alway work well, but that is the funny thing about freedom, sometimes we fail sometimes we succeed. At least we have the freedom to do so :).

[Guest DrRobyn]

I thought that overall it was a good interview and segment. The family that they interviewed were well spoken and REAL. Matt Lauer and the specialist talked about the positive and negative aspects of unschooling, ending the interview on a postive note. For once, the media did not mock the homeschooling community, and gave us a fair voice.:001_smile:

 

Hi everyone! Thank you for the many kind comments you made about the segment about unschooling on the Today Show this morning. I'm thrilled to hear that so many of you were happy with how homeschooling and unschooling were represented. I'm Dr. Robyn Silverman-- the one who was interviewed on the segment. I see some of you are having trouble viewing the video so I thought I would post it here along with some of my notes.

http://goo.gl/241YT

 

As no type of education is perfect for all children, there are benefits and drawbacks to all forms. I think it's about finding the right match for every family and every child. I've worked with some children who have been unschooled, homeschooled, and traditionally schooled and have seen what worked and didn't work for each of them. There is no perfect recipe but it's good to know that people have choices. A combination of learning opportunities may be the answer for many children out there.

 

Enjoy the segment and thanks again for your kind words. They mean a great deal to me as a Child Development Specialist and as a mom!

 

Dr. Robyn

[shinyhappypeople]

As no type of education is perfect for all children, there are benefits and drawbacks to all forms. I think it's about finding the right match for every family and every child. I've worked with some children who have been unschooled, homeschooled, and traditionally schooled and have seen what worked and didn't work for each of them. There is no perfect recipe but it's good to know that people have choices. A combination of learning opportunities may be the answer for many children out there.

 

I like how you phrased this. THIS is what so many people don't seem to understand. My choice to homeschool is not an indictment of your (general you) choice to public school. As long as someone isn't abusing their kids, I really don't care where they go to school or what their parenting style is. I have enough on my plate figuring out my own kids!

 

Anyway... I liked the segment. I think Matt's questions, as annoying as they were, addressed what most of the viewers were probably wondering.

 

They male expert (can't remember his name) seemed to be spouting the same party line ignorance that we've all heard a hundred times before. :tongue_smilie:

 

I saw an attempt to make the piece balanced, and I applaud that.

[Jennifer3141]

I like how you phrased this. THIS is what so many people don't seem to understand. My choice to homeschool is not an indictment of your (general you) choice to public school. As long as someone isn't abusing their kids, I really don't care where they go to school or what their parenting style is. I have enough on my plate figuring out my own kids!

 

Anyway... I liked the segment. I think Matt's questions, as annoying as they were, addressed what most of the viewers were probably wondering.

 

They male expert (can't remember his name) seemed to be spouting the same party line ignorance that we've all heard a hundred times before. :tongue_smilie:

 

I saw an attempt to make the piece balanced, and I applaud that.

 

 

It was one of the most balanced reports on home education I've ever seen and that's not exactly a credit to our media.

[mom2denj]

Hi everyone! Thank you for the many kind comments you made about the segment about unschooling on the Today Show this morning. I'm thrilled to hear that so many of you were happy with how homeschooling and unschooling were represented. I'm Dr. Robyn Silverman-- the one who was interviewed on the segment. I see some of you are having trouble viewing the video so I thought I would post it here along with some of my notes.

http://goo.gl/241YT

 

As no type of education is perfect for all children, there are benefits and drawbacks to all forms. I think it's about finding the right match for every family and every child. I've worked with some children who have been unschooled, homeschooled, and traditionally schooled and have seen what worked and didn't work for each of them. There is no perfect recipe but it's good to know that people have choices. A combination of learning opportunities may be the answer for many children out there.

 

Enjoy the segment and thanks again for your kind words. They mean a great deal to me as a Child Development Specialist and as a mom!

 

Dr. Robyn

Hello Dr. Robyn and welcome!! I am so happy to hear you say the above that I have in bold. I thought you were genuine and that you did a great job balancing the positvies and negatives. We as homeschoolers, know that homeschooling is not for everyone. It is nice to hear from a professional that, yes, it does work for some families. Enjoy browsing! Have a great day! We are off to the pumpkin patch to learn about estimation by investigating pumpkins. =)

[Georgiana Daniels]

I didn't get to the see the segment. I'm glad it went well.

 

I just wanted to say that I'm so tired of the media only showing unschoolers.

Viewers see that and think ALL homeschoolers unschool. And since unschooling is soooo different from the norm, they make their snap judgements and end up being against homeschooling more than ever. The media picks out the one type of homeschooling that'll confuse most of their viewers just to get reactions to their "reporting."

 

:iagree:

 

Why can't they show a WTMer?

[In the Rain]

Overall, I felt the video clip spent a lot of time not saying much. I was glad though that they distinguished between unschooling and other types of homeschooling.

 

For another perspective- A friend who is "open to" homeschooling, but doesn't know much about it, sent me the link this morning. She viewed it as a negative portrayal of homeschooling.

[justamouse]

Every time I see these segments, they're with unschoolers-I'd really like to see classical schoolers interviewed because I think the public sees the word 'homeschooling' and automatically equates it with 'unschooling'.

 

I think Matt asked questions everyone would want to ask-but I think there could have been better questions asked. They also have such a short amount of time, I'm sure that makes a big difference as to what gets asked.

 

BUT, I thought it was a good segment overall. They choose a good family, the oldest daughter was articulate and the family was exactly what a good unschooled family is-plugged into their kids. That being shown was a breath of fresh air.

[LauraGB]

If it is any help to you, the family lives in California.

 

Ah, then nope, it wasn't them.

[Garga]

I wish they'd feature homeschoolers who aren't unschoolers, religious, or following a public school curriculum. Show a family doing Latin chants, reading and discussing great literature, discussing world history, conducting experiments, doing structured lessons, etc. It would be great for them to feature a secular homeschooling family following a classical model. :) (No, I'm not volunteering! ;))

 

 

:iagree:

[kitten18]

I thought the lady "expert" was very fair with her answers. I didn't feel like she was "just putting on a smile". The man was a bit more critical, but I didn't think that he had much talk time. As for Matt Lauer, I thought he asked the questions that people want to know, and I thought that he did it graciously.

 

 

:iagree:

 

 

 

It was by far the best segment I've ever seen on unschooling.

[justamouse]

I thought it was a decent segment. I liked the family. The parents were clearly very involved. The girls weren't playing video games and running wild. (I have a strong negative reaction to that style of unschooling. One particular family I know.... *shudder*) The 15yo seems like a really neat kid. :)

 

The smirk/restrained laughter displayed by the male expert when he talked about parents' right to choose their children's educations ticked me off. It was obvious that he does not believe parents should have a say. :glare:

 

I laughed at the horror over homeschooled children not being assessed frequently. Egads! Won't somebody think of the children?! :lol: And, of course, socialization reared its head. :rolleyes:

 

I wish they'd feature homeschoolers who aren't unschoolers, religious, or following a public school curriculum. Show a family doing Latin chants, reading and discussing great literature, discussing world history, conducting experiments, doing structured lessons, etc. It would be great for them to feature a secular homeschooling family following a classical model. :) (No, I'm not volunteering! ;))

 

 

Lol, exactly!

[caitlinsmom]

I agree with others, it was the best media coverage thus far. Could have been better but we all know it could have been much much worse.

 

The man "expert" wasn't allotted much time and for that I am thankful. He didn't strike me as the "we all have our freedom to choose" kind of fellow. :)

[Teachin'Mine]

They did show the chalkboard at the beginning showing the difference between traditional homeschooling and unschooling, although there were a lot of generalizations about both. Clearly the expert would like to see more regulation so all the states require testing. :glare: I noticed a lot of smirking by all on camera. except for the homeschooling family. I thought they did a great job in the short time given! :)

[southernm]

They did show the chalkboard at the beginning showing the difference between traditional homeschooling and unschooling' date=' although there were a lot of generalizations about both. Clearly the expert would like to see more regulation so all the states require testing. :glare: [b']I noticed a lot of smirking by all on camera[/b]. except for the homeschooling family. I thought they did a great job in the short time given! :)

 

I think that's what bothered me the most. It was the smirking and the tone used in some of the questions.

[Tranquility7]

I was happy with the segment, though I do think it would be so interesting if they would have another segment showing the other side of homeschooling - such as a WTMer, as a PP suggested. Here are two suggestions, Dr. Robyn:

 

- Susan Wise Bauer herself! (and her family, of course).

- Marcia Somerville (author and founder of Tapestry of Grace curriculum - a rigorous integrated curriculum designed for moms who are hsing lots of kids of different ages).

 

OR there are also a bunch of great hs moms on this forum who would make excellent candidates for an interview like that! SartoriSmiles (Angela) comes to mind, since she is awesome (although she might not be the best choice since she is atypical with a small family)! But there are others who have lots of kids of different ages and are managing to hs all of the successfully with structure and rigor as well as freedom and joy! Any suggestions from anyone else? Marcia Somerville could probably recommend a great TOG family too. Anyway, just a thought. It would be SO different than any hs segment I've ever seen before...

[Aubrey]

"We don't KNOW that the kids are learning...parents MAY not be effective educators..."

 

As opposed to ps, right--where we KNOW that (in some cases) they're NOT learning? Where we're debating whether TEACHERS are effective educators? ;)

 

ETA: It's funny--Really Advanced high school work, such as the IB, are designed so similarly to this & *lauded.*

Edited October 14, 2011 by Aubrey

[Farrar]

I actually thought Matt Lauer did a good job of asking the stupid questions you know the AUDIENCE is thinking but without laughing at the whole idea or rolling his eyes or anything. He was clearly trying to be fair, I thought. Unlike that piece last year on ABC on unschooling where Stephanopolus (whose name I've probably just misspelled) was literally calling them kooks. I was also relieved that the family seemed normal and grounded and that they didn't cut it to make them seem nutty. Not a perfect rah homeschooling (or unschooling) piece, but not bad either.

[Guest DrRobyn]

I was happy with the segment, though I do think it would be so interesting if they would have another segment showing the other side of homeschooling - such as a WTMer, as a PP suggested. Here are two suggestions, Dr. Robyn:

 

- Susan Wise Bauer herself! (and her family, of course).

- Marcia Somerville (author and founder of Tapestry of Grace curriculum - a rigorous integrated curriculum designed for moms who are hsing lots of kids of different ages).

.

 

I will keep it all in mind. The press comes to me with the segment ideas (rather than the other way around, typically)-- but if they propose another homeschool segment on any of the shows I do, I will let them know of your suggestions! Thanks again for your kind words. I know the segment was short-- we only had 3 minutes-- which is why I always write a blog post of all the things I would have LIKED to have covered if we had more time. http://goo.gl/241YT I was happy that the segment came off fair- nothing is ever perfect when it's live-- it's just real!

 

Warm regards,

Dr. Robyn

Edited October 14, 2011 by DrRobyn
Forgot something!

[SeekingHim77]

"We don't KNOW that the kids are learning...parents MAY not be effective educators..."

 

As opposed to ps, right--where we KNOW that (in some cases) they're NOT learning? Where we're debating whether TEACHERS are effective educators? ;)

 

ETA: It's funny--Really Advanced high school work, such as the IB, are designed so similarly to this & *lauded.*

 

This is the only problem I really had with the segment. Overall, I think it painted unschooling in a very fair and balanced way. :001_smile:

 

I'm not an unschooler, just for the record. Most of the unschoolers I've been around were examples of the kinds of homeschoolers you definitely don't want to see on T.V.!

[WishboneDawn]

I will keep it all in mind. The press comes to me for segments-- but if they propose another homeschool segment on any of the shows I do, I will let them know of your suggestions! Thanks again for your kind words. I know the segment was short-- we only had 3 minutes-- which is why I always write a blog post of all the things I would have LIKED to have covered if we had more time. http://goo.gl/241YT I was happy that the segment came off fair- nothing is ever perfect when it's live-- it's just real!

 

Warm regards,

Dr. Robyn

 

I think that's probably the most frustrating thing for me as a viewer and it's got to be worse for the folks like you actually exploring the issue on camera. It's also why I generally don't watch current events coverage on North American channels or even TV much anymore.

 

3 minutes is insufficient regardless of the issue being presented and explored. It's a bit of a tease that gets lost once the next feature comes on.

 

I think you were right on in your first post about hsing having advantages and drawbacks though. I spent many years thinking homeschooling was superior to school in every way. Now I realize that choosing to homeschool has meant I've had to give up some things for my kids like easy access to extra-curricular activities and big class experiences (some urban homeschoolers can make up for that - I'm out in the boonies). But shucks, that's what choices are about. You gain some things, lose others and on the whole homeschooling is a great fit for us.

 

ETA: Thanks for your comments here and thank you for the link to your blog post. It provides an excellent jumping off point for someone new to the idea of unschooling or even homeschooling.

Edited October 14, 2011 by WishboneDawn

[justamouse]

I will keep it all in mind. The press comes to me with the segment ideas (rather than the other way around, typically)-- but if they propose another homeschool segment on any of the shows I do, I will let them know of your suggestions! Thanks again for your kind words. I know the segment was short-- we only had 3 minutes-- which is why I always write a blog post of all the things I would have LIKED to have covered if we had more time. http://goo.gl/241YT I was happy that the segment came off fair- nothing is ever perfect when it's live-- it's just real!

 

Warm regards,

Dr. Robyn

 

Thanks for the blog link!

[SweetMissMagnolia]

interesting......the experts did throw in things to make it sound negative and tried to make it sound like it was crazy and that if you don't test and sit in a desk all day that it wasn't learning.....lol :glare: and omgosh---if you don't test the sky is going to fall down or something LOL oh boy!!! the kids were well spoken.....we "unschool" at times but I try and keep a balance between the book learning and unschooling.....lost my train of thought.....

Edited October 14, 2011 by SweetMissMagnolia

[Teachin'Mine]

We know how well all that testing works out in schools don't we? They test them again when they get to community college and they're placed in remedial classes. Testing is not the be all and end all that they assume.

 

I remember relatives always questioned how I knew that my dd was doing well with her school work when I wasn't testing, or only testing math. I think the better question to ask is how are so many students getting A's and B's without having learned much at all. :glare: