Education As Life
Todd M.
Education As Life
by Donna M. De Poalo
http://educationalfreedom.com/pages/editorials/ddepoalo_102002.html
Those of you familiar with my writing know that most of the time I tend to
focus on the political side of education. I often hesitate to focus on the
things we do that would actually fall under the "homeschooling experience"
label for a couple of reasons. As my daughter grows older it is
increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to make a distinction between
her education and her life. I have also found it rare for one method or
resource to work the same for all children and families thus I am hesitant
to suggest that one book or another would be a good one for you.
Today I would like to talk about this concept of education as a part of
life. Sometimes when I describe my daughter's education as being another
aspect of life, it is interpreted to mean that we simply wait for things to
happen that can be classified as educational. In fact, many times in
discussions with home educators -- and I am sure you have witnessed this --
individuals will attempt to prove how various life skills can be "counted
as school". This is especially true when a parent new to homeschooling
expresses concerns regarding the ability to insure their child receives a
comprehensive education.
But in the rush to reassure and calm the fears, an important point is
missed completely and a great disservice is done to the individual
expressing concern. The choice to educate a child at home generally means
that for one reason or another the school idea did not work for the child.
Since it did not work, it makes little sense to replicate any part of the
school system. Many times it is assumed that as long as you don't set up a
classroom in your home and follow a rigid schedule you have successfully
avoided following the school model. However, I would suggest that as long
as we are justifying any activity by drawing comparison to the school model
of education we aren't doing a very good job at getting away from the
school mentality.
I think you will agree that there are a wide variety of skills that are
necessary or important to our children before they go off on their own.
Many times the acquisition of these skills would not require formal
curriculum or even books, but rather are learned through and by actual
experience. Often we will "teach" skills and impart knowledge to our
children without lesson plans and in a very natural way as the child needs
or shows an interest in a particular area or topic. In our home, cooking is
a good example of this.
My daughter has helped me in the kitchen in one way or another since she
was only nine months old. She is almost ten now and capable of preparing
many things, and for the most part with little assistance. Since I have
always enjoyed cooking, I am very pleased that my daughter also enjoys it,
and look forward to many years of baking scrumptious things together. This
learning has been and will continue to be accomplished as a part of life;
however, I do not think of cooking in terms of school. I don't describe the
various activities I participate in as "educational", nor do I justify the
time my daughter spends cooking by categorizing it by subject such as
science, math and/or reading which then can "count as school".
Another problem with the reassurances that living life may be counted as
school is that often this is presented as being enough for all children.
Reassurances often include some form of the statement that "children learn
what they need to learn when they need to learn it". I do not dispute this
statement, and in fact, am quite supportive of this point of view. However,
relying only upon this leaves out those things that, as parents, we may
feel are necessary and important. I often say that educating a child is
simply another aspect of raising him and there will be times, even in
education, when you may require your child to do things they would not
choose on their own. Let me clarify that I am not advocating creating an
environment where the child is being forced to "learn", which I believe is
impossible anyway. However, there will be topics that you as a parent will
consider a necessary part of your child's education. For example, it is
important to me that my daughter read good books. I do not subscribe to the
belief that reading is good regardless of the quality and content of the
material. As a result, there are books I will not purchase and I carefully
select reading material for her. I do not assign reading nor do I tell her
when, where, and how she should read. I simply provide the materials that I
approve of and don't buy the ones that fall short of my criteria. Some
books I purchase may sit on our shelves for as long as six months before
she becomes interested; others never quite make it to the bookshelf at all.
Education is one aspect of raising our children. I believe that the
language we use to express our ideas regarding life with our children and
parenting decisions, and every nuance of that language, warrants careful
examination so that it will reflect our beliefs as accurately as possible.
As parents who have chosen to accept and exercise completely our
responsibilities toward our children, it is important that the words used
do not imply guidance from or validation of the school model. Our children
are not in school, and there is no reason to categorize their activities
according to school-defined and determined terms. You, the parent, must
define a child's education, determined by what you believe is important.
And most definitely_not_according to what can be "counted" as school.
©Donna M. De Poalo
October 2002
---------------------------------------------------------------
"Respect the child. Be not too much his parent. Trespass not on his solitude."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
by Donna M. De Poalo
http://educationalfreedom.com/pages/editorials/ddepoalo_102002.html
Those of you familiar with my writing know that most of the time I tend to
focus on the political side of education. I often hesitate to focus on the
things we do that would actually fall under the "homeschooling experience"
label for a couple of reasons. As my daughter grows older it is
increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to make a distinction between
her education and her life. I have also found it rare for one method or
resource to work the same for all children and families thus I am hesitant
to suggest that one book or another would be a good one for you.
Today I would like to talk about this concept of education as a part of
life. Sometimes when I describe my daughter's education as being another
aspect of life, it is interpreted to mean that we simply wait for things to
happen that can be classified as educational. In fact, many times in
discussions with home educators -- and I am sure you have witnessed this --
individuals will attempt to prove how various life skills can be "counted
as school". This is especially true when a parent new to homeschooling
expresses concerns regarding the ability to insure their child receives a
comprehensive education.
But in the rush to reassure and calm the fears, an important point is
missed completely and a great disservice is done to the individual
expressing concern. The choice to educate a child at home generally means
that for one reason or another the school idea did not work for the child.
Since it did not work, it makes little sense to replicate any part of the
school system. Many times it is assumed that as long as you don't set up a
classroom in your home and follow a rigid schedule you have successfully
avoided following the school model. However, I would suggest that as long
as we are justifying any activity by drawing comparison to the school model
of education we aren't doing a very good job at getting away from the
school mentality.
I think you will agree that there are a wide variety of skills that are
necessary or important to our children before they go off on their own.
Many times the acquisition of these skills would not require formal
curriculum or even books, but rather are learned through and by actual
experience. Often we will "teach" skills and impart knowledge to our
children without lesson plans and in a very natural way as the child needs
or shows an interest in a particular area or topic. In our home, cooking is
a good example of this.
My daughter has helped me in the kitchen in one way or another since she
was only nine months old. She is almost ten now and capable of preparing
many things, and for the most part with little assistance. Since I have
always enjoyed cooking, I am very pleased that my daughter also enjoys it,
and look forward to many years of baking scrumptious things together. This
learning has been and will continue to be accomplished as a part of life;
however, I do not think of cooking in terms of school. I don't describe the
various activities I participate in as "educational", nor do I justify the
time my daughter spends cooking by categorizing it by subject such as
science, math and/or reading which then can "count as school".
Another problem with the reassurances that living life may be counted as
school is that often this is presented as being enough for all children.
Reassurances often include some form of the statement that "children learn
what they need to learn when they need to learn it". I do not dispute this
statement, and in fact, am quite supportive of this point of view. However,
relying only upon this leaves out those things that, as parents, we may
feel are necessary and important. I often say that educating a child is
simply another aspect of raising him and there will be times, even in
education, when you may require your child to do things they would not
choose on their own. Let me clarify that I am not advocating creating an
environment where the child is being forced to "learn", which I believe is
impossible anyway. However, there will be topics that you as a parent will
consider a necessary part of your child's education. For example, it is
important to me that my daughter read good books. I do not subscribe to the
belief that reading is good regardless of the quality and content of the
material. As a result, there are books I will not purchase and I carefully
select reading material for her. I do not assign reading nor do I tell her
when, where, and how she should read. I simply provide the materials that I
approve of and don't buy the ones that fall short of my criteria. Some
books I purchase may sit on our shelves for as long as six months before
she becomes interested; others never quite make it to the bookshelf at all.
Education is one aspect of raising our children. I believe that the
language we use to express our ideas regarding life with our children and
parenting decisions, and every nuance of that language, warrants careful
examination so that it will reflect our beliefs as accurately as possible.
As parents who have chosen to accept and exercise completely our
responsibilities toward our children, it is important that the words used
do not imply guidance from or validation of the school model. Our children
are not in school, and there is no reason to categorize their activities
according to school-defined and determined terms. You, the parent, must
define a child's education, determined by what you believe is important.
And most definitely_not_according to what can be "counted" as school.
©Donna M. De Poalo
October 2002
---------------------------------------------------------------
"Respect the child. Be not too much his parent. Trespass not on his solitude."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson