Recently I wrote a six-part article in defense of unschooling. While it may not be the best choice for all families, it is a viable method of education. Here are ten reasons why people might want to consider unschooling their children.
10. Flexibility
Families who work odd hours, wish to travel the country (or world), or simply want to adhere to their own schedules rather than ones set by a school might try unschooling (or other forms of homeschooling).
9. Socialization
While many people believe the opposite, unschooling and other methods of homeschooling offer more frequent—and diverse—opportunities to socialize than traditional public schools. Instead of being grouped with peers due to a single commonality—age—children get to make friends with people of different ages, races, cultures, vocations, you name it. It is not uncommon for an unschooled child to have friends in multiple counties—even states or countries—with whom he or she frequently visits or speaks with.
8. Knowledge
Rather than learning a set curriculum determined by a few individuals that may or may not be necessary in their lives, unschoolers have the freedom to explore subject materials that are relevant to their lives now and in the future. As job trends shift, employers seek critical, creative thinkers rather than cookie-cutter produced test-takers, and new jobs we can’t even conceive of are being created daily, it’s more important than ever for tomorrow’s work force to be prepared in ways that public schools cannot currently execute.
7. Well-Being
Unschooled students do not face many of the possible harms that can result in public schools, such as bullying, drug abuse, teacher abuse, forcible conformity, loss of creativity and imagination, fear of failure, and many other issues detrimental to learning and growing as a human being. (Of course, any of these can occur in unsafe home environments as well.)
6. Global Shift
Touching back on number 8, the people we are producing in today’s schools are not equipped to handle tomorrow’s problems. Without focusing on the be-all, end-all success paradigm that public school presents—country comes first, money is important, college is imperative, and buying stuff is the best thing you can do for your country—which only aids in the continual destruction of our planet, unschooled kids are free to develop their own philosophies and understanding of success, often allowing them to concentrate on leading more meaningful lives that better the world instead.
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