The Heartbreaking Point

My family's struggle to resist the winds of educational change.

“I think that’s what school is for. It’s for sitting and learning,” another mother told me with a confident nod, the powerful lobby of common sense on her side. But the “tyranny of common sense,” as education reformer Ken Robinson once called it, has a short memory. As little as 15 years ago, most kindergarten classrooms were play-based. Many educators and researchers still believe that is how young children learn best.

Ken Robinson gets it.  And back in the day, kindergarten classrooms were a fun start to school.  My mom wouldn't send my siblings and me to the newly fangled kindergarten in the 60's because as she said – We already knew how to read.  We played all day instead.  Seemed pretty productive in the long run.  

Now 5 year olds and younger are sitting at the table day in and day out.  This reaction below is not uncommon.

His name was written on it, he said. It was his very own seat, he said. But by the end of the second day of kindergarten, he had figured out just how much he was going to be sitting there.

When I picked Griffen up after school, he gave me a stiff hug and whispered “Let’s go” with alarming desperation. On the drive home, he began to cry, then sob, then scream. He wouldn’t speak all afternoon, but that evening he startled me with his clarity.

“It’s all listening. There’s no playing,” he said, his still-wet cheeks reflecting the lamplight.

We had this in our family until we got smart and pulled our kids away from the public school desk.  Walking in a straight line down the hallway, raising your hand in the hope you would be called on to share your thoughts, asking to go to the bathroom with the possibility of having to wait were all a life from the past.  Our natural parental instincts prevailed.

The Race to the Top is just another Education Reform like No Child Left Behind that collects data and kills learning.  

You can also buy it for 48 hours here.

Documentary ‘The War on Kids’ compares U.S. public schools to prison system  

Here's one excerpt from the above linked Fox News article:

A review on children’s book publisher Scholastic’s blog noted that “the movie seems pretty over the top, juxtaposing interviews with (mostly white) parents angry about how kids are being treated and footage of (mostly black and brown) kids getting arrested or searched for drugs in school.”

That would be Alexander Russo's review - a Chicagoan.  He asks (and infers) these are "just incidents of random stupidity as it usually seems, an unfortunate byproduct of a fearful society but not that much more?" 

 I recall attending an informational meeting a few years ago at the Boys Club in a university town nearby.   A minority (black) group called the meeting because they wanted to know how to start homeschooling.  They felt their teens were being singled out and harassed at the high school.  They were concerned about "resource officers" brought into the school system.  How time flies and things do change.  From the News-Gazette in 2006:

Champaign Superintendent Arthur Culver said he believes strongly the school resource officers will benefit the school district, and the district will monitor the officers closely to ensure the concerns of the parents don’t become a reality.

"I understand some people are not in agreement with the SRO program. They’re disappointed, and they have concerns," Culver said. "But I really hope, prior to making those kind of quick decisions, they would at least give us the chance to implement the program." 

Maybe all has changed to the good since the implementation.  Or maybe they haven't.  That area's private schools (including homeschools) are growing by leaps and bounds.  

The Rutherford Institute's Take on The War on Kids

The New York Times reviewed the movie when it first came out in 2009, noting the "overwhelming evidence of institutional overreaction".  What Ails Public Schools? Better Ask, What Doesn’t?

Variety also reviewed the movie.

Docu then takes a giant if seamless step forward to suggest that the entire system of compulsory learning is designed, in the words of an award-winning teacher, "to infantilize the mass mind and condition it to take orders in a docile fashion," then leaps into left field by advocating home schooling as a viable alternative. Still, by and large, the docu's closely reasoned case synchs up nicely with Soling's freewheeling visual approach, including a satirical, vaguely Monty Python-esque animated sequence and the soundtrack's sardonic series of peppy school-day songs.

It's a different (not unpleasant) sort of change to see homeschool advocacy seen as a leap into left field.  How 'bout that?!  

Why do I care?  It's my community.  

During the trailer for a documentary - The War on Kids, John Gatto says this about the particular institution and its culture: "If you wanted to invent a mechanism to drive people insane, I mean literally insane, that's the system you would invent."  

There's a drug or two for that.  Where else could a school bus ride yield kids selling ritalin to kids as a  Little Helper.

It's also been a bit shocking how the socialization aspect keeps regurgitating regarding the importance of school.  If you want to make a homeschooler roll their eyes, bringing up that "S" word will do the trick.  Illinois inserted Social and Emotional Standards of Learning into their official education onslaught of words. The Standards have much to do with being School Ready. Often homeschoolers and other enlightened parties realize this has little to do with learning.  

Prison is the only other place an innocent party can be routinely called into an authority's office and bullied and coerced into squealing on your friends or peers. In the school environment, it could be to find out who was at the busted kegger last weekend.  Shows who's The Boss.  

But prison is for criminals.  This enforcement could surely do some damage to young minds forced to bow down day after day for most of their childhood.  

Regarding school as most in our communities know it from a Critique of Public School Culture (Village Voice review of The War on Kids:

I haven't seen all this War on Kids documentary yet, but the points are issues homeschoolers have been driving home for decades.  Mostly in defense of what we do while trying to mind our own family's education.  Freedom to learn is important.  

I sent the review on to my adult kids, who had been homeschooled and public schooled.  One replied with this:

Who's living in a democracy? Seems to me that they are being socialized quite well in fact.

Indeed.

Naomi Wolfe submitted an article a few years ago:  Fascist America, in 10 easy steps

A related post: Elephant in the Room: “Children don’t like school because they love freedom”

Some optimism in use within our tiny homeschooling minority: Open Education – It’s the Learning that Counts

This documentary airs on May 6 at 8 and 9 pm ET/CT

Hat tip to Home Education Magazine's Networking yahoo group.  

In 1976, the Hansens moved to Minneapolis. Rollin began working for FreemanWhite, an architectural firm.Mckenzie dove into motherhood, raising and homeschooling their son and daughter.

They started homeschooling when it wasn't quite so cool to homeschool.  When you read their experiences, it makes sense the natural flow was to homeschool.  They dived into travels to India and made opportunities out of unfortunate situations like being laid off:

Not one to sit around with idle hands, Rollin focused much of his time on the miniatures he had been working on as a hobby since 1980."Our daughter was 3,"Rollin said, "and I wanted to build a dollhouse for her. That's when my interest with miniatures began."Rollin and Mckenzie have a lot of the necessary equipment for creating and building in their home workshop.The couple focuses on being creative and authentic. Everything is built to scale.Self-taught, they have put in a lot of time researching information needed for whatever project they are working on.

On Homeschool Online, Jamie offers Tips for Wrapping it Up! – Blogs – Parent Community and Forum. Some homeschooling families are finishing up a semester of school and practical tips are offered for success.

Moving along to next year, My Domestic Church posted Homeschool Connections – one way to add some zing to the next semester!

Chris submitted a insightful article all families should consider when their children approach the young adult stage.  Is College Right for Your Home School Student can be read at Home School vs Public School.  Following Chris' family experiences, he recommends consideration to: "balancing if a college education is correct for your home school student. Looking at several different factors that may influence their decision. Is a college degree necessary for what they want to do with their life?"  Indeed, college is not for everyone.

Read Aloud Dad reviewed Dinosaur Cove: Attack of the Readaloudsaurus at Read Aloud Dad.  His children have jumped right into 'paleo mode' with the gift of books.

South African homeschooling mom Melanie Grant submitted some suggestions on How to Get your Children Reading and a Great Giveaway posted at Mel's Mouthful on Mothering.

Guiding Dad with the 3-wheeler construction..  Now he's driving a 4-wheeler.

Sabrina suggests homeschoolers take note in  Phys. Ed. Failure – Let's Get REAL, Homeschoolers! at the 7Sisters Innovative Homeschool Helps.  Our family also has some of each – competitive athletes and non-athletes – and the recommendation is to think "outside the gym class box" while teaching your kids to be healthy.  Common sense and fitness prevails. What more can you ask?

Granny nanny Kaye at the SandwichINK blog offers up Grandparent and Grandchildren Educational and Musical Fun – Teaching Multiplication Facts Through Songs.  This is a way to enjoy learning multiplication facts with songs, which is great for homeschool fun learning, errands with the grandkids, and more.  

Annie Kate is loving her blissful and refreshing week off.  Her post Ah, Holidays! at Tea Time with Annie Kate reflects the family time that is so precious to us.  

Please pass along your Carnival of Homeschooling submissions for 2012 via the instructions.