I have been a parent in all facets of schooling, literally my kids have done public, private, e-school, charter school, homeschool with co-ops and with out. That’s a lotta schooling but my kids are moving and grooving and doing their thang. Now you may wonder as the parent orchestrating all of these methods which was my favorite? To be honest I did not have an issue with any method because they all served a purpose at the time. I can tell you issues I’ve had in each but the processes were eh just that processes.
If your interested in reading more about my take away from each, I can write about that in other homeschool articles. My flow now is to break down more specifically the monster of “schooling today”. Why has it gotten so crazy in these streets of education? As parents all we want is a productive way forward to educate our kids without destroying their love of learning, not creating ridiculous expectations but to also keep their minds semi-sane from the sneaky creeper as shown recently in Disney’s “Inside Out 2” the anxiety monster. It’s out of control and wreaking havoc on especially our young people today!
Our Public School Experience: A Machine in Need of Repair
Currently, I have a high schooler that over the last year was in homeschool half of the year. She hated her co-op group (lack of friendships and engagement) then moved to a private school where it was fine but not a good fit for another year. Her sister on the other hand loved her homeschool group but had to shift away because of big sis. Now your probably thinking why didn’t you leave her there.. Yeah, logistics people logistics, gotta make a plan if I plan for it to work you know. Fast forward to this year, we are now in public school. The high schooler is making it through by the hairs on her chinny chin chin and the middle schooler is lets just say getting ready to transition back to homeschool.
The experience has been interesting in this journey and I can’t wait to share more on how each part plays to one another. Public school is what I’ve always seen it as, a machine producing what we hope to be the next productive groups to society. We need to be conscious of how we tweak this machine and become aware of the product the world is receiving at the end of production. I am convinced our machine needs repair and I have a lot of whistle blowers that agree. In my true spirit its not about demolishing the machine but we do need to build other models and innovate a new version.
I love that homeschool gives that option for some and are dreamed by many. The only thing I constantly hear is “If I could just get someone else to teach my children…” Oh yeah I forgot to mention micro-schools.
The current education system often focuses on standardized testing and rigid curricula, which can create a perception that academic achievement is the sole measure of success. This can lead to anxiety, stress, and a disconnect between a child’s true potential and their perceived abilities.
Related article: Perception is Reality
However, alternative models like homeschooling allow for a more personalized and holistic approach to education.
Till the next school rap session. I have so much to talk about!
