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In a message dated 2/9/02 7:30:06 PM, anderclan@... writes:

<< I really thought we were true unschoolers..but after
the lastest discussions concerning tv and food. >>

The TV and food stuff are way off the philosophical end, I think. It's not
the make-or-break of unschooling at all. It just seems to be at that
juncture of "why" and "how" that helps people make the jump to unschooling.
If a family sees that people will sleep and eat voluntarily if they're not
forced, it's easier for them to see that people will read and write
voluntarily.

So very often these discussions are sparked by someone's comment that has to
do with control and management and schedules (or an offhand insult about TV
watchers as a class of creatures <g).

I see the TV issue as a blind spot for some parents, a last bulwark of
prejudice about what is and isn't 'educational."

The food thing is related philosophically, and while it can be justified in
educational terms, and some families CAN "make bad learning" through food co
ntrol, it's also something that can be separated from unschooling.

Sandra