Unschooler Jessica Barker: "Redefining Success."

Jessica Barker is a lifelong autodidact based in North Carolina. Her blog is
http://lifewithoutcollege.wordpress.com/

Going against the entrenched mainstream belief that to have a successful life you have to get higher education, can you define your idea of what success means?

Through my blog I have discovered that "success" is quite a touchy subject. In this day and age it is very hard, even as an unschooler, to break through or get around what mainstream society preaches as "success."

The standard, at its core, seems to be college = wealth = success. College means you get into a high-paying job (whether or not you actually like it is irrelevant); wealth means you make tons of money at this high-paying job, therefore having the financial capacity to own signs of wealth, such as nice cars, a big house, etc. As an unschooler, this confuses me, which led me to want to redefine "success" in the first place.

To sum it up, I like to simply say, "success is what you make it," even though it's rather cliché. As an individual, there shouldn't be obligations to only see yourself as successful in the way the rest of the world defines the word. It's understandably difficult, though; no matter how much we say we don't care what other people think, we do, especially when it comes to big things like life choices. It's just the way we are made.

However, overall people will respect you more if you are feeling successful in your own way, whether that is by going to college and becoming a CEO, or by bypassing college and starting up a small gym downtown. Being successful is you doing what you want to be doing, in my opinion.

For me personally, success is very progressive. I don't just aim for some vision of success further on down the road, when I am 28 and run 3 online businesses, work as a seasonal naturalist, and spend my spare time recording music or whatever; I see myself as successful in whatever I am doing at the time.

I'm not a professional concert pianist, I just started taking piano lessons last year; but I consider myself a successful piano student because I am learning exactly what I want to learn and I am at the exact point I want and need to be in my lessons right now. And the same goes with everything in my life. So, to me, success is accomplishing exactly what I want and need to accomplish at this specific time in my life.

Are you working at things that bring satisfaction as well as $$?

At this very moment, not wholly. My job I have right now as a customer service/office admin is more of a means to an end, although that is not to say I am not learning from it, because I am. It is also a very mobile job, so I can take it wherever I go and I don't have to ask for vacation time. But other than that, my source of money at this present moment is not bringing me loads of satisfaction; however, I am thankful that, at this time, it provides time and money for me to find satisfaction in other areas.

Besides that, at this time I am focused more on learning. I am "only" 19; my mainstream counterparts are in their Freshman and Sophomore years of college right now. This is a wonderful, ideal time to be learning and discovering further what I want to do in life, all the while living in the "real world." My primary interests are animals, wildlife, nature, alternative education, writing, and music.

Right now I am doing a self-study project on chinchillas, volunteering at a local wildlife center, doing a marketing internship for Homeschool Leadership Retreats, writing my blog, "Life Without College," taking piano lessons, and I even have some spare time for performing with a local improv troupe I've been on for 4 years, and reading and writing.

I am also going to be volunteering next month on the inaugural Homeschool Leadership Retreat in Ashland, Oregon, as a mentor, lackey, dishwasher, and anything else the leader, Blake Boles, decides he wants me to do or learn.

These things are bringing me great satisfaction, and, again - I feel successful as I am right now in life. That doesn't mean I am not looking towards the future: to the contrary, I have many plans to both further my learning in my areas of passion, and eventually make money in those areas.

Tell us about your educational background and the pros and cons of an unschooling lifestyle.

I was an "unschooled homeschooler," if that makes sense. My parents wanted me to at least do the basics of math, reading, and writing; they only really had to "make" me do math, and I would read and write till the cows came home.

But I had a lot of freedom to pursue my own interests. I could often get kits and books through curriculum companies, and then I would take ballet and drama classes, read books from the library, and watch TV. Those were my forms of "learning intake." Output often was in writing, playing, painting, performing, and talking with great enthusiasm.

The pros of unschooling, for me especially, are the freedom of time and the freedom of pursuit. I have a feeling that, if I had ever been put in a 9-3 school environment, I would have died in so many ways. I would have no time to imagine and create, and no motivation or energy to pursue anything beyond what was being forced down my throat for the majority of my day.

I am extremely self-directed, and, frankly, I like to do what I want to do, when I want to do it. Of course, it's not reasonable to apply that to everything in life, but when it came to learning in my "grade school" years, my curiosity and love for learning were able to flourish and grow because of the freedom I had.

I could spend two or three weeks finding out everything I possibly could about snakes; my mom suggested I write fact pages and draw pictures, and of course that reinforced my learning. And that, of course, has led to me getting to work with snakes on a regular basis now, and that is so awesome.

The cons of unschooling are, to me, very few and hard to acknowledge. (I'm not biased at all, can you tell?) But I can acknowledge that it isn't for everyone. Many people prefer or require a lot more structure, or need assignments and deadlines, or any number of things. There's nothing wrong with people that prefer classrooms; they aren't stupid or unmotivated or anything, they are just wired differently. And I respect that, even though I don't understand it.

Do you like the world you live in? How would you like to see it changed?

I love the world I live in. Sure, there are many downfalls to being a human on the earth today. But all the hate, and the wars... I can't help but look beyond that to see all of the wonderful people in this world and the beauty of the nature around us.

Every time I set foot in a different place, whether it's across the street or across the country, I see the most gorgeous landscapes and the most interesting quirks that land has; and I meet new people who, for lack of a better word, are amazing. There's the avid cuckoo clock-collecting poet; the old man with the family-run bakery serving the most delicious danishes; the "accidental" friend who shows you how to look at the world in a whole different way. There is just too much good in this world to only see its rough edges.

I guess the ways I would like to see it changed is that, overall, there would be more love and less hate. I feel a little like a silly hippie chanting "give peace a chance," but... I am a silly hippie, so it's only fitting. If we all loved more (and I'm not pointing fingers, except at myself because it's definitely something I need to constantly be working on), then I think the other sore spots in the world would begin to heal too. Of course, we can't hope for a perfect world, not in this life; but that doesn't mean we shouldn't strive for it together.

Unschoolers do Science

I've just been perusing an old Life Learning Magazine (July/August 2004) and came across an article by Jan Fortune-Wood, a free lance writer and parenting adviser, who home educated her own four children in Britain.
Fortune-Wood's article talked about plunging into degree level subjects without any background in the subject and not only finding "understanding, but also fascination."
It sort of speaks to some of the questions people have about unschooling not being up to tackling the sciences.
She asks,
"How does years of reading stories, doing the odd kitchen experiment, baking cakes, watching TV, talking, talking and more talking, become (with what seems like extraordinary rapidity when we haven't been able to witness the internal gestation) a love of philosophy,....a thirst for and understanding of complex scientific methodology and principles.....?"

She continues with;

"Children don't go from having no knowledge to university level science courses, but they can go from no formal study to university level science courses when they are accustomed to learning by living and when they are accustomed to the notion that whatever problem is facing them can be solved-in short when they are used to thinking they can do anything they are interested in and have enough passion for."

At the time of writing this, Fortune-Wood was happy to report that her "ultra laid back" household was now a hive of activity with her assisting with pre-university and undergraduate level courses in biology, science, philosophy and art while striving to maintain the autonomous environment in which "above all conversation predominates."

It comes down to what I've being thinking about recently and what the authors of Freakonomics have written about parents in their chapter 'What makes a perfect parent?' what really influences how your child will be as an adult is actually the person you are, not what you do.

This is important in the context of unschooling parents: Are you curious? How do you approach problems? Are you always challenging yourself or and learning new things? Are you reflective? and so on.
As Fortune -Wood concludes in her essay, "Flourishing educationally is not about preset outcomes, but about achieving whatever an individual wants to achieve. Years of formal preparation, constant testing and monitoring, and tuition by those who set themselves up as the guardians of knowledge are not the secrets of education after all.
The secret is to do whatever you want when you have the passion to do it.
The secret is having parents who may not be experts, but are as open-minded as their passionate, creative, inquisitive children. The secret is that life is the arena for learning."
Way to go Jan!

Unschooler Eli Gerzon:"I love my life."

Eli Gerzon of http://eligerzon.com/index.php is a grown unschooler or 'worldschooler' as he likes to call it. He shares his insights into finding one's own true path:

Going against the entrenched mainstream belief that to have a successful life you have to get higher ed can you define your idea of what success means?

Both my parents are college drop-outs who have started their own successful businesses so I never really thought you needed college for success.

For me, real success is being able to provide for whatever family I have and doing all I can to share my true gifts with the world and make some sort of meaningful contribution. In some ways that's more pressure than "conventional" definitions of success. In other ways, it's a very simple, humble, and humbling thing: you figure-out what you can do, you put your whole heart and all your smarts into it, and on some level you accept whatever big or small part you end up playing.

The way to find those "true gifts" I think is by following your bliss: your joy will naturally lead to what you're meant to do, what you truly want to do. But by "naturally" I don't mean easily! It can require facing some real challenges. Still I've found that after, or even while, facing those challenges I find real meaning and happiness.

Are you working at things that bring satisfaction as well as $$?

I've been busy recently with two things that bring me satisfaction and money. Since 2002 I've run my own natural landscaping business that I've used to make a living and finance my travels around the world to over a dozen countries.

Inspired by all the learning and growing I did during those travels, I started Worldschool Travel Tours in 2008: small group travel especially for homeschooling/unschooling teens and young adults to gain awareness of the world and experience personal growth. I'm leading my third tour this summer to Japan: July 20th-August 10th: http://eligerzon.com/traveltours.php. And there's still space available for one or two more teens who want to experience Japan this summer!

Landscaping gives me a great, simple, daily satisfaction. But with Worldschool Travel Tours I get a deep and meaningful satisfaction when I see or hear about how much a young person has grown and changed from experiencing a whole new part of the world.

Tell us about your educational background and the pros and cons of an unschooling lifestyle.

I went to a Waldorf/Steiner school for 1st and 2nd grade and then public school until 9th grade. At age 15, I chose to leave school and did homeschooling/unschooling for the rest of high school.

Why I chose to leave is something I've written a lot about. You can find a speech and an article on my site about it: http://eligerzon.com/writing.php. But suffice to say I had been frustrated for years with the lack of concentration on real learning and I think school was crushing my soul, to be honest.

The cons of my unschooling lifestyle have been that I've often had no idea what I was going to do with my life. That's been very challenging for me. I have been tempted to go to high school or college for the relief of being normal and having a set track to follow for awhile.

I've taken a few college classes and loved them. But I know I couldn't stomach going full time. Otherwise, who knows, I might have?

The main positive aspect of this lifestyle is that I have created a life I'm happy with and proud of. I've explored the physical world and the world of ideas in a way that may have been impossible if I was attending high school or college full time. In the end, because I didn't follow the usual track I've had the opportunity to find my own path that does actually work for me. It's not set, I can change it any time, but I'm happy with the direction I'm going right now.

Do you like the world you live in? How would you like to see it changed?

I love the world I live in and I want to see it change in many ways! Everywhere I've traveled around the world I've found an unbelievable amount of richness and beauty in the natural world and in people and the art, of all kinds, that they create.

As far as what I'd like to see change: we need to stop causing our own self-destruction and figure-out ways that actually work for us to live together in small or large groups. I spend a lot of my time trying to figure-out how we'll do that!

I don't think there's one answer or model to follow. Recently, I've been thinking it's about two things: foolishness and wisdom.

We need to be foolish enough to try new or old things that other people, or even parts of ourselves, think are ridiculous. We need that free-thinking and doing. Unschooling is a perfect example of this: what a ridiculous idea! Trust children? But, beautifully, gloriously, thankfully, it works.

In our foolish explorations of the world we need to learn from ours and others experiences and gain wisdom on which we can all build and create things that work. I call this "worldschooling".

Wisdom is when you have a deep understanding of something based on enough real life experiences that you're able to know when and how to apply it to other situations. We need to care about, work for, act on, and build upon wisdom.

What words of advice can you offer a young person who is trying to convince her parents that school/higher education is not the right place for them at the time?

Be persistent! Parents want to know that their children are going to be alright. Show you've done your research, you really care, and are really insistent about living without school for now. Let alone the info itself, when they see your dedication they can imagine you can apply it to other areas of life.

I have known high schoolers whose parents were reluctant to let their child leave school, or unschool, but the parents really came around. As far as college, it seems like it's usually the young person her/himself who wants to go to college.

I think they're often looking for an adventure, a challenge, meaning, and even a passage into and acknowledgement of adulthood, actually. My advice: travel! It's such a cheaper and more meaningful and real endeavor. Even the parties are better.

Still, sometimes it can feel like you'll never find your own path. And maybe you will decide to go to school or college and that will become part of your path.

But I decided to continue putting my trust in myself, my communities, and the world rather than a single institution, and for me it's paid off well: I have found a path that works for me and I love my life.

Where are all the unschooled doctors?

What's with the comments about unschoolers not being doctors and scientists and lawyers but end up in the 'the softer' professions-musicians, earth-lovers, cooks, writers?
I'm seeing this recent tendency popping up continuously on some blogs I'm following-undoubtedly, as an off shoot of Good Morning America's unschool trashing.
A video that radiofreeschool produced of unschooler Kate Cayley has been the target of similar type of commentary.
Basically what these commentators are implying is that if you are home educated or unschooled, you end up doing something that is not 'hard core.'

What these people don't realize is that those who are encouraged to pursue their passions do just that; and if we hear about people for whom being a doctor is low on their list then it is more of a reflection of their choice than of their ability.
Maybe because unschooled kids are encouraged to be in touch with who they are, they feel less pressure to perform or go into professions that will give them monetary advantage but might not be their calling.

Did you know that the head of the prestigious Human Genome Project was unschooled by his mother? Or that a professor of mathematics at MIT started teaching there at age 19 was unschooled by his father; never having touched formal mathematics until he was 12 (google Erik Demaine or listen to an interview radiofreeschool did with him a few years ago).

Any unschooler knows that if they want to be a doctor they will go to University. If they don't have the papers yet, they will get them (unless they prefer to enter as a mature student at age 19 and then switch majors).

My question then to those schooled 'nay sayers' is are you a doctor?

Is everyone in that huge pool of people you went to school with a doctor or a lawyer? If you answer is no then tell me why not?

Cameron Lovejoy: "Is this what I want to be doing the day I die?

Cameron Lovejoy of theautodidactsymposium shares his views on unschooling and living life without a university degree.

On what 'success' means:
Success, to me, is happiness and a passion for the work you do and the life you live. Yes, it’s cliché, but there is nothing more I want than to live a happy, interesting, and passionate life.

It can come in all sorts of forms for many different people: It can be found in a college where afterwards you have this certificate that could open a few doors to the line of work you want to pursue; it can be found adventuring in far away lands, journaling endlessly, and one day publishing your stories and adventures for the whole world to read; it can be found at home spending all your time demoing video games and then have a job working for Blizzard land on your doorstep; or it can be working job by job just to make ends meet.

As long as I’m healthy and happy with myself, I’m successful.

Success should be defined on a case by case basis, but for me it is waking up everyday and answering this question, “Is this what I want to be doing the day that I die?” Success has been enjoying the adventures I have each day, creating exciting projects, and waking up to something new.

Are you working at things that bring you satisfaction as well as money?

I’ve always worked joyfully with each job that I’ve had. Currently I have multiple jobs, which make it incredibly easy for me to travel, my main passion.

In the middle of March of this year I directed an unschooling conference for 150 people in my hometown in the Carolinas. The success of that three day gathering that I created on my own brought me an enormous sense of satisfaction and even some income on the side.

As I type this, I’m currently living in a small, single person cabin on the edge of a field in rural Georgia where I work six days a week on a large organic farm. I'm learning skills and gaining experience and discipline that I desire. Working in the sun, getting my hands dirty, and lifting large buckets of produce in order to to see the smiles of hundreds of people at the Saturday farmers' market is extremely rewarding.

I also work with my good friend, Blake Boles [www.blakeboles.com] with his project Homeschool Leadership Retreats [www.homeschoolleadershipretreats.com] in Ashland, Oregon. I have also assisted him with marketing and advertising for his other business, Unschool Adventures [www.unschooladventures.com].
These two projects provide very useful tools to growing unschoolers, and I benefit by seeing different ways of running two completely different and creative businesses from the inside.

Being able to travel, live, and experience life in such a unique way provides me with satisfaction as well as the funds to make this lifestyle possible and extremely enjoyable.

Tell us about your educational background and the pros and cons of an unschooling lifestyle.

I had eight years of traditional schooling at a private college preparatory school in South Carolina (two years of preschool and six years of grade school). There were obviously both pros and cons during these eight years of my life (I left school at age 12, and I’m now 22).

The pros being meeting three or four close friends whom I still see to this day, learning to read at such a young age that I don’t remember learning it, participating in/creating several cool and creative projects, and experiencing the school atmosphere.
The cons include loosing a lot of my curiosity for many things in life, having my love of reading and writing almost completely squashed, having mean and disrespectful teachers, experiencing an invasion of privacy, and—something I’ve been recently noticing about my body compared to my brother’s—not getting the sufficient amount of sleep needed for a growing boy.

But the lifestyle you are talking about (the self-directed lifestyle--unschooling) is much more free and challenging and interesting. My parents trusted me to make all my own decisions (not just now, but back when we started unschooling) about my money, where I travel, what I eat, what I do for work, what I read, what I write about, where my education comes from, and what my future holds.
Having this freedom has finally opened my mind to learning again, and now I’m unstoppable! There’s nothing I don’t want to learn about anymore, which was definitely not the case back in school. And having not been forced to read since leaving school, I have finally found my love of reading.

My relationship with my unschooling family is actually kind of abnormally perfect, and our respect for each other astounds me sometimes. I have an incredible network of friends, project partners, contacts, and people around the country (and even some across the globe) whom I share this lifestyle with. This network would have been impossible if I had stayed in school. I can go on and on about the positive side of this self-directed life I live.

It took me a while to come up with any negative aspects of this lifestyle. I suppose having complete control over your education (even if you do choose higher ed) can be very challenging and confusing. Occasionally I don’t know where to start with a project. Having so much I want to do can me crazy sometimes—but that’s more of a good thing, I suppose?

More so than not, it’s difficult to talk to people about this philosophy and lifestyle. It can sound very radical, counterintuitive, and absurd to the average person; and they probably just think I'm nuts.

Do you like the world you live in? How would you like it see it changed?

Well, this world is huge, and I haven’t seen even a tenth of it. But I’m guessing you mean the world that we have here in America. Every day I see different people, and I talk to them- strangers, old friends, new friends, travelers, businessmen, the homeless. The majority of them believe that you must go to a university to be successful. Many of them have been to college and are now working at jobs that they do not enjoy in the slightest.

Or they have collected school debts that they will still be paying off years and years after school. And often their majors are chosen on a whim.

What I would like to see changed is giving young people the time to choose and taste different parts of life and work in the real world before making a decision on their “one and final career.”

I'd also like us to realize that you don’t have to have one career for the rest of your life. Changing your mind is OK. Learning completely new things is OK. Taking things slowly is OK. Gobbling things up is OK. Quitting is OK. Having the freedom to choose and the time to change is important. As a young person, it is good---it is empowering---to be trusted and respected.

What words of advice can you offer a young person who is trying to convince her parents that school/higher education is not the right place for them at the time?

College should be attended for the right reasons. If you don’t have a real and personal drive to be there, then it can be a big waste of time and money. Go when you’re ready and only if you have a real goal in mind.

Learning can and does happen outside school walls. Travel, internships, apprenticeships, and entrepreneurial ventures are great ways to learn. Some colleges even accept these life experiences as credit hours for older students. Take the time to find and immerse yourself in your passion(s). It's trite, but the money will follow. Most of all, you'll be happy doing what you love.

Unschooling and what are you afraid of?

For those of you who never having heard of unschooling, received the extremely biased and negative introduction to the topic from ABC News (Good Morning America) this week as a first exposure, you can be forgiven for your initial outrage at what could be perceived as a irresponsible and negligent way of raising kids.
But my patience stops there.
As I would suggest with my own unschooling kids when confronted with a bewildering issue/question, I want you to dig a little deeper within your own self and ask yourself why is the idea of unschooling getting you upset?

Because, as with every other topic/concern/idea in this world, opinions need to be formed based on intelligent investigation, rather than a reactionary response.
Lets follow then for this occasion, the approach any unschooler child would take. Are you ready? Let me take your hand....

The first lesson, O New Comer, that the unschooling child would demonstrate to you is to approach a new thing with an open mind.

The beginner unschooler would then google the topic (or if he is too young, ask for your help doing this). He would take out books from the library; he would speak to the experts-other unschooling families.
This is known as research.

Find out all you can about the philosophy: this is the act of learning.

We think of it as immersion into the subject matter.
As unschoolers, we are unafraid of spending months, even years on one particular subject area: and this is called developing expertise.
After all, which would you rather:the doctor with loves his job, who is constantly adding to his knowledge and learning new ways to be a better doctor, or the doctor who is not really into doctoring, would prefer to be a playwright and spends most of his time dreaming up scripts?
Questioning, seeking understanding is what the unschooler is raised to do; all of which is natural to humans but gets booted out of people after years of being made to conform.

Are you still with me? Now that you have a better comprehension of the topic, you are now in the position to make an intelligent comment, O Newly Initiated.
From this beginning, a whole new world will begin to unfold. You might learn the history of education in our western culture and that institutionalized public education has only been around for 150 years; you might learn about the Greeks who preferred to learn in groups of 5 or 6 out in the world rather than in a classroom, you might learn about other sorts of educational strategies and opportunities such as apprenticeships, mentors and self education.
You might from there, become interested in history (and this is called following your interest) which might lead you to learn about slavery and how once upon a time, slavery was considered the norm.

Or by following this interest you might discover another passion; the history of women and their contributions and following that you might learn about a scientific method that intrigues you and that you can apply in your work.

When you get to the root of the word, etymologically the word education contains educare (Latin) "bring up", which is related to educere "bring out", "bring forth what is within", "bring out potential" and ducere, "to lead." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education).

You might actually discover that learning is a natural thing; and what is education if not a journey of self discovery; the bringing forth of that which is already there?

Wanted: A Godmother

My 11 year old wants a Godmother.

"So Mum," she says the other day, "what are you doing about getting me a Godmother? I really want one."

And here I am, still thinking that godmothers just magically appear like they do in fairy tales, when you least expect them to. But I'm guessing like anything worthwhile you have to work at getting it (in my world at least).
We talk:

"Why a godmother?"
"So that she can pay attention to me,and me alone."
"What do you want in a godmother?"
"I want her to be smart,and pretty and stylish, and she'll take me fun places and we'll talk and do stuff."

Aw. Who wouldn't want that? Get in line kiddo.

"And she mustn't have kids of her own. Absolutely not."

Ah ha. This is one bright kid. She's figured out that people with kids have limited attention and limited resources.

Here is a kid who has been volunteering in an old folks home so that she could hang out with seniors; "because they have something to teach me and I like them."

I get the feeling this kid is seeking to be mentored; she is looking for her own 'tribe' so to speak. She is trying to create that village that's so desperately needed to raise each child.

And she is getting good at it. For example, she wants a dog. She has wanted a dog for years now and has done all the research.

She has found a supporter in a family friend (who happens to have 4 kids of her own!!) and who is helping her with useful information, given her resources and offered to help with doggy upkeep (tooth brushing etc) as well as go dog walking together with her own dog.

Am I worried about this daughter?

No. I know she knows how to get to what she's after which is more than I can say for most adults who often, don't even know what they want. She'll get that godmother yet!

Unschooled for Life: Idzie's view

I've promised to post about grown unschoolers who by-pass not only high school but higher institutionalized education- period- in preference of a 'do it yourself' approach to living.

This doesn't mean in all cases that they will never enter institutions at some point; just means that they've done well without schooling so why start now if you can get what you want without the huge expense?
The idea is catching on as we re-examine our lifestyle choices and has now seeped into the mainstream. Scroll back to see a recent blog post about this very topic that was covered in Time Magazine: The 'Dropout' Economy (or 'Rise out' as some prefer to call it).

To begin then, here is more of an interview with unschooler Idzie Desmarais who writes a fantastic blog called I'm Unschooled. Yes I can write.

Idzie, 19 has no plans to go on to higher education; "I've managed to avoid the institutionalized schooling model my entire life, and I see no joy in spending lots of time in classrooms now," she says.

It's a question of taking the idea that formal schooling isn't the only way, all the way. Idzie says she doesn't want a "normal" job. The jobs she aspires to are occupations that don't need school; (she's already a very successful writer and has already been invited to speak at alternative education conferences!). Her job interests include natural medicine consultant, writer/editor, vegetarian/vegan cooking/catering, teaching primitive skills... which can be learned through apprenticeships.

"Going against the middle class/mainstream entrenched believe that to have a successful life you have to get higher ed can you define your idea of what success means?"

To me it's quite simple: success to me means nothing more or less than being happy. I find it pretty hard to comprehend how EVERYONE can not see this! Nothing really matters if you're not happy, or working toward finding a place in your life that brings you happiness.

"What would kind of work would make you happy?"

I just know I want to do things in a sustainable way, have a job/jobs that I don't feel guilty about. Something where I feel I'm doing good or bringing joy, something I enjoy, and something where I interact a lot with people, since I'm a very social person. Hopefully I'm not being *too* unrealistic with all of this...

"Are you working at things that already bring satisfaction as well as $$?"

I'm working at learning more about/gaining more skill at a couple of the things I've listed, but not currently earning money at them. I consider writing to be the thing that's most likely to earn money in the near future.

"What are you up to these days?"

Writing lots, working on finding/building community (one of the things I find THE MOST important!), organizing local unschooling meetings, organizing (along with my mother) a Summer unschooling gathering here in Montreal (http://smugunschoolersgathering.blogspot.com/), putting together the second issue of a zine called DIY Life Zine, trying to make more time for visual art, and spend LOTS of time outdoors, in the sun and wind and rain and swiftly alternating heat and cold that always seems to accompany spring...

"Do you like the world you live in?"

Hah, no. Or at least that's the short answer. The things I do love are people being authentically themselves, wilderness that isn't being destroyed, creatures that still survive, cultures that, despite everything being against them, are still holding on...

"How would you like to see it changed?"

Oh, boy. If I were to write a whole answer to this, it would be an essay! But the short answer is that I believe in radical decentralization, the rebirth of autonomous communities, and true sustainability. I believe in a deep respect for the land that supports us, and would love to see an end to totalitarianism, patriarchy, colonialism, and the destruction of the earth. Again, I feel like this doesn't say nearly enough, but I think It's the best I can do in a simple question/answer format...

"What is the best thing about growing without school?"

The freedom to grow and develop authentically, without all the pressure to conform conform conform. Living without the constant control of an authoritarian environment. Being in an environment where I felt (and feel) supported and loved, not watched and judged. Being able to truly get to know myself, because so, so many people really don't know themselves at all. Developing confidence that my shy, people pleasing, sensitive self would probably not have developed in school (I honestly think I would have been one of these people who leaves school with serious emotional scars). I see LOTS of advantages to being out of school...

"Do you see any disadvantages to not having attended school?"

Not having a piece of paper, which does limit jobs to some (debatable) extent (though if I chose to, I could study and get a piece of paper, so I'm not sure how much of a downside this is...).
Hmm... I guess not having *ever* been to school, it's a downside that many people say I have no right to be anti-school, because I've never experienced it (though apparently it's okay to be against poverty, even if you've never experienced it... This isn't to say that school and poverty are equal in bad-ness at all! Just to say that the argument leaves something to be desired...).
Honestly, I can't really think of much that I see as negatives!

Intentional Community

Wow! Just came from visiting an intentional community of 7 adults and 2 little kids. This isn't some fringe set-up in a remote area. It's just down the road in a bustling part of the city.
There are 3 houses between them, a shed that serves as a woodworking shop and bike storage for everyone.
There's a communal vegetable garden, and two vehicles that the families share. They eat and pray together once a week.

They work on projects together that help the community-one of the women has started a community garden for the local neighbourhood. Another does a bit of guerilla gardening on the side where she's planed native species, and fruit trees in abandoned sites and even behind the railroad tracks behind her house.
These folks are in their mid 30s; and this is the way of the future; living in community.
I felt really inspired by what I saw, especially the huge benefits to having many adults in the lives of kids. I have always adhered to the African teaching "it takes a village to raise a child." It does. And I want my village.
Imagine having that other pair of hands around to help; those extra pair of eyes. That extra bit of love. Fact is, our kids need more than we can give them; they need other caring, loving adults in their lives that aren't mum and dad. Even just one will do the trick.

And i believe that if there were more such adults in kids lives, we would all be treating one another better. Kids wouldn't be so quick to disrespect; parents would be more considerate of their kids; adults in the house would be more thoughtful talking to one another. I think it would be a natural way of keeping things in check.

Do any of you wonderful readers have any such experience with this sort of set up? Drop us a word or two if you do!

Must we 'educate?'

"I am coming closer to a place where I can see how to lead my kids in to being interested, instead of forcing them to work."

I took this quote from a post, written by somebody on a list I'm on.

On the surface it seems great. You want them to want to learn of course. And yet, the idea of trying to 'lead' your kids into what you think they should be interested in is some what manipulative.

How about this one;
"I'm taking violin lessons so that I can be a good role model for them."

Let's look at it closer. You're doing this so that you can be a good role model? Something inauthentic about this. Kids smell inauthenticity and don't like it.

What if, instead you did a thing for the love of that thing; or you did it because you are duty bound, or because you have to? By this I mean what if your reasons for doing a thing were to be transparent?

I can't help thinking it is better to be honest with why we are doing what we are doing rather than doing something to trick our kids into doing what we want them to.

When you get to the root of the word, etymologically the word education contains educare (Latin) "bring up", which is related to educere "bring out", "bring forth what is within", "bring out potential" and ducere, "to lead." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education).

It's the 'bringing out' that interests me. Something is already present; we help the child/youth 'bring forth what is within.'

That's why, more and more, I feel uneasy about about attempting to mold a person. Maybe it isn't a bad idea to suggest that a person should be in charge of educating him or herself.
The 'material' for education is abundant. It is every where. Shouldn't it be enough to expose kids to what's out there and then follow their lead?

We need role models and leaders; of course we do. We need teachers. But I sense, somewhere in my minimal understanding of things, that a true teacher does not set out to teach. A true teacher acts first. His actions teach.
Maybe what is needed is more people who are available to show their skills and share their knowledge and what they do.

adversity advantage

Instead of Education

What if we didn't 'Educate' at all? Would we end up being more educated as a population?

Imagine this: a world where we never talked about education. We simply learned. There were no curriculums, no bodies of information that we all 'ought to know,' 'should know,' 'must know' by a certain age. A world where people were left alone to unfold as they will. There would be that many more paths to take, that many more ways of being. Would our world look much different from what it is today? Would people be happier?

I mean, imagine if we obsessed about when our kids learned to walk. What if they had to pass a test to show that they could actually walk properly? I am certain that a lot of kids would 'fail' walking.

The idea of 'education as something distasteful and fundamentally wrong is not a new idea and has been seen suggested by great thinkers like Ivan Illich,John Holt and later writer Aaron Falbel.

Back in 1976, Holt defined education as "something that some people do to others for their own good, molding and shaping them, and trying to make them learn what they think they ought to know."

Influenced by Illich, Holt wrote,

"Education... now seems to me perhaps the most authoritarian and dangerous of all the social inventions of mankind. It is the deepest foundation of the modern slave state, in which most people feel themselves to be nothing but producers, consumers, spectators, and "fans," driven more and more, in all parts of their lives, by greed, envy, and fear. My concern is not to improve "education" but to do away with it, to end the ugly and anti-human business of people-shaping and to allow and help people to shape themselves." Instead of Education

John Holt produced a magazine called "Growing without Schooling'; Falbel proposed one to be called 'Growing without Education.'

Falbel writes in his essay "Growing without Education,"

I might quibble with Holt about that last bit regarding helping people to shape themselves, but I'll leave that for another essay. What I want to emphasize here is that Holt and Illich's critique of education is linked with a larger critique of modern society in general.

In other words, their objection to education is part of a certain political outlook, which homeschoolers may or may not share. My aim in writing this essay is not to convince readers to adopt this political outlook; but if readers do share these concerns about the fate of modern society, I'd like to invite them to explore the way in which education is a key component of the mess we're in.

Read more here:
http://www.aislingmagazine.com/aislingmagazine/articles/TAM28/GWE.html