I just finished an episode of Dr. Phil that aired this past Friday. The topic: schooling options. The discussions included traditional schooling, home schooling and "unschooling."
From what I understood from the show, unschooling is similar to home schooling but without a curriculum. It is "child-lead learning." The child experiences learning by experiencing life. The child isn't taught in a traditional way, with his parent or another adult being the teacher. The child is exposed to many different experiences, and through that exposure gains education.
Home schooling is a well-known alternative to traditional schooling. The parent acts as teacher of the child, and the child isn't taught in a public forum but instead is taught at home (I do realize that many home school families try to share teaching resources and the parent may teach a certain subject to more home schoolers than just their own children).
Traditional schools are what Mark and I both experienced growing up. And, of course, even traditional schooling has many alternatives today. Public, private, charter, Montessori, and other types of schools are all options. The commonality is that kids are taught in a classroom setting with other children.
Schooling is just one of the many "hot buttons" of the parents of our generation. I personally know people who are choosing every type of schooling mentioned (except unschooling - that one was new to me). Everyone seems very passionate about their choices. Of course, we are no exception.
Our children will be schooled in the public school system. In fact, the school system was a big factor in choosing the location of our home. We have a lot of information about the system. We both attended the public schools for our entire education. Mark's mom is a teacher at one of the elementary schools. My sister's children have all attended the same system for all of their educations (and have all gone through the same elementary school where Abby and Ethan will attend). Mark and I are very comfortable with the education we received, and felt very prepared for college.
It is important to me that my kids experience all that the public school can offer. From the ride to school on the bus to the extremely diverse population which is enrolled in our public school system, our kids will be preparing for "the real world" that awaits them when they graduate. And the system provides a challenging education as well.
I won't go into the reasons that home schooling, unschooling, or any of the other traditional schooling options are not our first choice. I respect other parents' right to choose what they feel is best for their children without criticism. I just feel strongly that as of right now, the public school system that our kids will attend is our best option to educate our two precious children.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
I haven't ever even heard of Montessori...what in the world is that? It doesn't really matter... I think that our kids will go to public school too. I certainly would not enjoy teaching them from home, I don't think it would be a good thing for any of us! :) I liked my education too... especially my math class and lunch when I got to be with Jeremy. :)
Having attended a public school through junior high and a Catholic school in high school, my opinion regarding those two choices is that it's a half dozen of one and six of the other. From the perspective of a student, I found them to be pretty similar, especially socially. My parents might not have the same opinion.
In Virginia, I'm concerned about how public schools are assigning daily home work beginning with kindergarten. I thint that is far too young and is actually giving the parents homework, not the children. That doesn't happen as much in a private school. They are also teaching about 9/11 beginning in the first grade. That's way too early if you ask me.
Still, it's a parent's responsibility to stay on top of the education system that was chosen no matter what form that takes. For a concerned parent, there's no easy ride no matter which route you take.
Post a Comment