Interview on Unschooling

My sister, Emi, was kind enough to be willing to answer a few questions about unschooling on video! It's rare that she agrees to go along with my random whims, so I'm very happy that she said yes to this short interview! *Grins* As a bit of background, Emi is 16 years old and has been an unschooler for many years.

Oh, and my apologies for the random skips that cut out the odd word or two. Either my camera or my computer is screwy! :-S

Category:

Education

Tags:

• unschooling
• unschoolers
• homeschooling
• education

[Georgeqaws]

The problem is that most kids just sit there and watch TV and play video game all day. Also their social skills are almost always worse. The only way I believe unschooling work work is if their parents are wealth and can expose them to many things.

[catzie690]

@Georgeqaws #1: "most kids just sit there and watch TV and play video game all day." I think the most concise way I can say this is "you're wrong." Kids, given freedom over their own lives & learning, might play video games and watch TV sometimes, but that's certainly not all they'll do (I would get into how TV & video games are not the horrible things people make them out to be, but I think a YT comment is too limited for that!). Learning is fun if it's never made into a chore!

[catzie690]

@Georgeqaws #2: Social skills. Again, you're showing your ignorance. If you've even met an actual unschooler in your life, I'd be surprised, never mind enough of us to make sweeping statements like "unschooler's social skills are ALMOST ALWAYS worse!" Social skills are just another skill in life that comes more easily to some than others: & I've seen absolutely no difference in that between unschoolers and regular schoolers, & unlike you, I do have extensive experience with both!

[catzie690]

@Georgeqaws #3: "USing only works if you're wealthy." Well, guess what, my family is firmly in the lower middle class, always has been, & unschooling "worked" quite fine for us. Life is all you need to learn, & provides more than enough people, information sources, & experiences whether or not you have much money.

Spouting off ignorant shit you know nothing about just isn't a good idea, 7 makes you sound, well, ignorant!

[creativecompanion]

Your videos are a wonderful service to parents and children. Thank you.

[ColdBlankStare]

I think the reason why people currently in school thinks that they couldnt handle disciplining themselves to actually learn things because public schooling has made kids lazy.

[sarsan207]

@Rosebunse (The comparison may seem extreme, but it's true.)

[sarsan207]

@Rosebunse People have a right to choose who they spend their time with, and even if a kid is getting bullied they still don't have the option of just never seeing the bully again. They have to go back every single day. That sort of bizarre, forced social interaction isn't natural or healthy at all. The only place where you're just forced to endure the company of the same group of people day after day, regardless of how poorly they might treat you, is in a prison.

[sarsan207]

@Rosebunse Um, I never mentioned volunteering, if you thought that's what I was talking about I have no idea why...

Anyway, once again, the actual 'real world', outside of a school, is pretty good ground to interact with other people. I think a big problem about school is that it /forces/ you to interact with people you don't want to, day after day, without you having any choice in the mater.

[Rosebunse]

@sarsan207 Well, when I said "real world", I meant outside of any type of schooling period. What I meant was, one good thing about public schooling that you may not get from home schooling is that it forces you to interact with people you probably wouldn't otherwise. I don't mean through volunteering, which is great, but sometimes you need to deal with different people from different backgrounds in a more "level" environment. Most homeschooled people I know are rather lacking in that area.

[sarsan207]

@littleseamstress I am a teenager, and planning on wearing capes until I'm senior citizen :)

[sarsan207]

@Rosebunse (Also, as a side note, people in school also have 'real' lives. I don't see how anyone can have a fake life. Unfortunately, our school system is part of the 'real world', and as such we all spend the days of our real lives living in the real world.)

[sarsan207]

@Rosebunse The real value is in learning to make yourself do some things you don't want to do if it'll help you achieve the things you do want, not in being forced to live your entire childhood and adolescent life doing whatever the school officials have decided you should.

[sarsan207]

@Rosebunse from the area you live in, who are currently going through a similar life experience to you: being at the same school every day.

In 'real life' you have to do some things that you don't want to, which everyone learns by living every day in their real lives in the real world. No one needs the concept artificially forced on them by parents and teachers arbitrarily making them do things they don't want to do.