Deprogramming Kids From how to "Do School" Could Improve Learning

[umsami]

Preaching to the choir, I know...

 

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/12/how-deprogramming-kids-from-how-to-do-school-could-improve-learning/?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=2046

[Ellie]

John Holt was one of the founding members of this choir. :D  I read all of his books in about two weeks, resulting in withdrawing my dd from first grade at a private Christian school during Easter break.

[Guest submarines]

Do most homeschoolers subscribe to those principles as well? Or is it more of an "unschoolish" way of thinking?

[Um_2_4]

Do most homeschoolers subscribe to those principles as well? Or is it more of an "unschoolish" way of thinking?

 

I think many do. It depends why you homeschool. For me it is philosophical opposition to institutionalized schooling along with a myriad of other reasons (family, academic, religious). And I was a teacher pre-kids.

 

The whole idea of studying for the exam, get that point to boost your grade.......I did that in high school. But for me now, I teach till my kid shows proficiency. No grades, no test looming over our heads. Even my B&M Kg classes had standardized tests! (We do chapter tests for math, but no pressure, more as review without mom's help, do the best you can. In the next couple of years we will start practicing for standardized tests for my oldest.)

 

I am not an unschooler by any means, but I think for many one of the pluses for homeschooling is we can skip what our child knows, work on skills they lack and allow for some "fun" or interest based learning. I do think there are some things that NEED to be memorized or just learned. While other topics lend themselves to inquiry/projects.

 

Even just modeling how to learn is something that many B&M students will not always get from school. Just the other day my son had questions about a topic I am not familiar with, so we found out together and spent a nice afternoon reading and watching a documentary. That for me is one of the pleasures of homeschooling.

[lllll]

..

[merry gardens]

I was most touched by the bolded part that I quoted from the article, "...he was most touched by his struggling math class. 'I saw that my kids had been told they were stupid and failures, but I saw so much potential in them,' Holman said.  They've never been given the time to master a concept through multiple tries."

 

Thank you for sharing that article. It may be preaching to the choir, but even the choir sometimes needs to hear some good preaching. :)