If School Didn't Exist

School.

It's something we just do.

Where I come from, when you are around 4 to 6 years old, you leave your home to start attending school.  Most parents do not have specialized training in teaching so we do what everyone else is doing.  We send our kids to qualified teachers who have degrees and certifications and who know best what our children need to learn and how they need to learn it.

When the majority of people are doing something a certain way, sometimes we forget to stop and ask if this is really the best way and  if there is a better alternative.

I've been thinking about education a lot lately.  I strongly feel that while there are some basic things that we all need to know, as individuals, we all have different interests and goals for ourselves and our children.  Our children also have their own interests and goals.

We don't always think about it, but when we go to school, we are allowing someone else to decide what our interests and goals should be.  We allow someone else to decide for us what is important to learn.  We let someone else tell us how to spend our days.

Is there a better alternative to public schooling?

What would happen if there were no such thing as public schools?  

I imagine some of the big  questions would include; 

• How would my kids learn how to read, write, and spell?
• How would they learn social skills?
• How would they learn anything?

Let's have some fun and pretend for a minute that there was no such thing as public school.  This means that there is no provision for someone else to teach your children and there is no required curriculum.

• Would your child be doomed to be uneducated?
• What would be required on your part to make sure your child was educated?
• Do you really need to be certified to teach your child what they need to learn to be successful in life?
• What would you personally consider to be important to teach your child so they could be properly educated?
• What are all the ways your child could learn the things you both felt were important?

I know a lot of people who are homeschooling and not sure if they are doing it right and I know others who are thinking about homeschooling and they are scared or overwhelmed about where to begin.  I think considering what life would be like if public school was not even an option is a really good way to begin to figure out what's really important to you personally.  

I know this is a new blog but I would really like to hear some feedback on this way of thinking.  You can either comment or write about this on your own blog and let me know so I can link to it.  

In my next homeschooling post, I will answer the question I keep getting asked when I tell my friends I am pulling my kids out of public schooling and that is, "What is your plan?"