The Stench of Education, Educational Needs (?) and Learning under 'Conditions of Scarcity'

I'm on an Ivan Illich kick. If you don't know who this is, Illich wrote Deschooling Society back in the 70s. It was a book that got alternative education models going in earnest.

But what is significant is that at the time of publishing the book, Illich was already revising his thoughts on education.
In a forward note to Deschooling our Lives, a collection of essays edited by Matt Hern, Illich wrote;

I called for the disestablishment of schools for the sake of improving education and here, I noticed, lay my mistake. Much more important than the disestablishment of schools, I began to see, was the reversal of those trends that make of education a pressing need rather than a gift of gratuitous leisure. I began to fear that the disestablishment of the educational church would lead to a fanatical revival of many forms of degraded, all-encompassing education, making the world into a universal classroom, a global schoolhouse. The more important question became, "Why do so many people - even ardent critics of schooling - become addicted to education, as to a drug?"

What a piercing idea-education as 'a gift of gratuitous leisure' rather than a 'pressing need.'
When Illich's recantation was published in the Saturday Review, that same week the book came out, it was to explain that

the alternative to schooling was not some other type of educational agency, or the design of educational opportunities in every aspect of life, but a society which fosters a different attitude of people toward tools. I expanded and generalized this argument in my next book, Tools for Conviviality.

"Fostering a different attitude of people towards tools." That is something I would like to spend some time on and would appreciate input from readers of this blog.
When you think tools, what comes to mind and how does this bear on how you thing about education?
Illich goes on to point out that the educational function was emigrating from the schools and that, increasingly,

other forms of compulsory learning would be instituted in modern society. It would become compulsory not by law, but by other tricks such as making people believe that they are learning something from TV, or compelling people to attend in-service training, or getting people to pay huge amounts of money in order to be taught how to have better sex, how to be more sensitive, how to know more about the vitamins they need, how to play games, and so on. This talk of "lifelong learning" and "learning needs" has thoroughly polluted society, and not just schools, with the stench of education.

Wrapping up this short foreward, Illich says;

When I wrote Deschooling Society, the social effects, and not the historical substance of education, were still at the core of my interest. I had questioned schooling as a desirable means, but I had not questioned education as a desirable end. I still accepted that, fundamentally, educational needs of some kind were an historical given of human nature. I no longer accept this today.

As I refocused my attention from schooling to education, from the process toward its orientation, I came to understand education as learning when it takes place under the assumption of scarcity in the means which produce it. The "need" for education from this perspective appears as a result of societal beliefs and arrangements which make the means for so-called socialization scarce.

And, from this same perspective, I began to notice that educational rituals reflected, reinforced, and actually created belief in the value of learning pursued under conditions of scarcity. Such beliefs, arrangements, and rituals, I came to see, could easily survive and thrive under the rubrics of deschooling, free schooling, or homeschooling (which, for the most part, are limited to the commendable rejection of authoritarian methods).

What does scarcity have to do with education? If the means for learning (in general) are abundant, rather than scarce, [and I think at this point we can think about the tools for learning and how accessible they are to everyone] then education never arises - one does not need to make special arrangements for "learning." If, on the other hand, the means for learning are in scarce supply, or are assumed to be scarce, then educational arrangements crop up to "ensure" that certain important knowledge, ideas, skills, attitudes, etc., are "transmitted."

Education then becomes an economic commodity which one consumes, or, to use common language, which one "gets." Scarcity emerges both from our perceptions, which are massaged by education professionals who are in the business of imputing educational needs, and from actual societal arrangements that make access to tools and to skilled, knowledgeable people hard to come by - that is, scarce.

Illich concludes with his wish that;

If people are seriously to think about deschooling their lives, and not just escape from the corrosive effects of compulsory schooling, they could do no better than to develop the habit of setting a mental question mark beside all discourse on young people's "educational needs" or "learning needs," or about their need for "a preparation for life."

How does that make you feel?

G20 Summit-Fickle Democracy

Want to know how suddenly and unexpectedly your democratic rights in your democratic country can be overturned? Watch this video!

"Constant vigilance!" says Mad Eye Moody (from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter)

Unschooling is 'self-learning' (and I think I'm dumb)

It's happened. The "I don't know anything," and the "my school friends know this and that, and I don't" period when they are betwixt stages-transitioning from a happy, creative, self-directed kid to the gloomy, uncertain pre-adolescent, worried about where her path will lead her (without school).
"I'm 'behind' (in whose line up?) and it's your fault (naturally)."

It's okay. I saw it coming-especially since the two older girls go to school now.
And of course, she has no idea of how much she actually does know; the 'meaningfulness,' the relevance to her of all she has learned in her short life already. Learning married to context; content wedded to personal life-not what the teacher wants you to know so that you can pass a test.

The irony of it all. Pearls before swine-that's what unschooling is. How many kids would give an arm and a leg to be unschooled? As is often the case, we don't see the value in what we have.

To unschool is to self-learn; to learn about yourself. What moves you?  What interests you? How do you feel about this? What do you think about that? And actually embrace the whole you-and honor that 'youness.' You are working/learning from a place of love; of authenticity. The process is life-long.

And so, now she's discovered she would like to know things in that systematic, linear way that kids her age at school 'get taught,' and are 'given' information.'

Motivated, most likely, by fear she wants curriculum. That is okay. This too is her self-learning path and I honor it.

She is still the learner in control of her learning- a scary thought for people who want to be told what to do. She gets to experience what it is like to be told what to learn; what to know and what not to know based on other people's conception and most people's agreement and acceptance.

Because simply put: education is an agreement and nothing more. Others determine what we should know and we agree. To step outside of this is to be daring and feels dangerous for most people.

For those brave enough to march to the 'sound of their own drum,' and follow that tune, and refuse to be spoon fed from the universal diet, (in school or out of it) an adventure awaits them; very different from the 'to do list' that we are expected, and expect ourselves to follow.

Respecting Kids, fulfilling ourselves?

Unschooling parents ask, "Can we satisfy our kids needs and fulfill our own as well?" This was the topic of discussion on an unschooling list I'm on.

A woman wanted to do theater and her 8 year old had a very hard time with it-separation anxiety that lead to hysterics, really not wanted her to do this.

Was this child being manipulative? Shouldn't she have to toughen up and stop being a baby and let her poor mother have a thing of her own?

It's complicated. The comments and advice were thoughtful: some urging the mother to go ahead and audition for upcoming plays since she expressed real happiness and passion for her newly discovered interest. A few voices told her she should respect the child's wishes, (it was a bit more complicated then that-but that was the basic idea), children are small for a short time-they grow up so fast and then you'll have time for your interests.

My thoughts? What is fulfillment anyway? It's a tough one.
I know that i have 'put my 'career' on hold -Wait! What career? It never really took off-for my kids. Was it a sacrifice? Not really. I never thought of it as that. I never thought that what i was doing was stopping me from doing other just as important things. Until they started to get older, and i felt that I had 'put in my time.'

As a matter of fact, even when they were very small I made sure I had some time carved out for my interests. And my daughters are not an easy ride either.
I always took a course at the local community college- photography, singing, guitar (as well as volunteering, and i included the kids in all my volunteer work).

These courses required very little time commitment overall, but at the time, I felt the need to get 'my mental health' time, to feel that i was doing something for me.

Now thinking about it, not sure what really was the motivation behind it. Perhaps I was motivated to take time away so that I would be appreciated more; or to really feel like i was a multifaceted person (but I all ready knew that-grin!). Or to keep a foot in the potentially working world.

Far too often, unschooling mums don't get time for 'changing their focus/ideas' to translate from the French (changer les idees).
Sometimes though, a child' has serious anxiety separation and it would be hard on the child to simply be toss her concerns aside.

Other times, the timing is just not right. I got accepted into a Masters' program at York but when it really came down to it, there was no way in hell I could go full time (as the program required) and still unschool my 10 year old.
I couldn't put her into school just because I wanted to fulfill my need to get this masters. I figured, it could wait. I didn't do it. And now even if I had the time and resources, the program i wanted to do wouldn't be my first choice after all! So-in the end it was a win win for both of us.

I think being sensitive to what is really being communicated is what is important. Evaluating the situation carefully and really listening to what is being said without clouding the true motivations behind the emotions and the words with 'i deserve' or 'it should be like..' type of thinking.
What about you? What are you thoughts on the issue?

Unschooling; accepting your child's learning path

As parents, it is sometimes difficult for us to see the value in what our kids are interested in.
Where will it lead them? we wonder anxiously.
But following an unschooling philosophy often means accepting that you might not always like or approve of the 'educational path' your child might be on!

For instance, my daughter watches hours and hours of America's Next Top Model. I get seriously annoyed with her; I get to see too much of the back of her curly hair! I can't help worrying that not only is she 'wasting' good time, she is filling her head with nonsense and being exposed to an unhealthy models of womanhood that are harmful to a growing girl's body image.

So what do I do? I want to stop her but then I take a moment to think this through:
She is obviously gaining something of value from this. But what? I listen and look at the program over her shoulder and see that indeed there are things that are worthwhile.
The models visit Paris, London and exotic lands- so she gets a glimpse of the landmarks of the country as well as some cultural exposure (beautiful Indian saris, foreign animals etc).
Competing models get to test their mettle, are challenged by being photographed with snakes, dropped off dizzying heights, buried in the earth.

Then there's the actual grueling competition which I find degrading to the competitors: but it shows the stress that modeling really is-how much you actually have to put into attaining a thing if you really want it. The pettiness of other wannabee models! Is this what any sane person would really want to put themselves through, we ask ourselves?
They have to endure extremely uncomfortable physical situations; they have to conquer fear they have to persevere. It is a lot of self-discipline; and too be self-disciplined is a good thing isn't it?
We get the chance to discuss other issues that are important to me as well: cancer causing cosmetics, slave labour, exploitation of women, consumer culture etc etc .

Obviously it's more than the fashion-which is after all fun, and colourful and artistic. I value traditional art forms, she appreciates art in fashion and design. To each her own, I guess.

world view

The teachers that said I'd be nothing
This is the modern world that I've learned about
This is the modern world, we don't need no one
To tell us what's right or wrong -

The Audacious Learner

I have a paper in the the new issue of The Journal of Unschooling and Alternative Learning.

Here's how it starts:
I keep a blog about self directed, authentic learning and recently, I read an article called “Blogging with Audacity” written by Skellie, a woman who'd studied what makes a successful blogger. As I read, I noticed that her ideas about blogging audaciously parallel the very attitudes I would prescribe to approaching learning.

I describe 'the audacious learner,' as exhibiting desirable behaviour to learning new things: that is, being daring and taking risks. All breakthroughs, new ideas, original thoughts are acts of bravery. Getting to something fresh means first stepping into the unknown.

What does it mean to take risks when it comes to learning and acquiring new skills? To start, there has to be interest. Without interest, learning is a very unpleasant affair. You can nurture it, but you can't teach interest. This belongs to the individual; it has to come from the learner.

When you are enamoured by what you are interested in, keen to find out everything there is to know about it and then some, there is no question of allowing fear to stand in the way; this is a hallmark to being an audacious learner.
To read more visit http://www.nipissingu.ca/jual/NewIssue/v4282.asp

Guest Post Laura Grace Weldon: Free Range Learning

Laura Grace Weldon lives on Bit of Earth Farm with her family. She’s the author of Free Range Learning: How Homeschooling Changes Everything. Find out more at www.lauragraceweldon.com

Sarcasm & Self-Sufficiency on the Farm

“Come here Slug Weasel,” she commands. Obediently her younger brother does as she bids, helping her carry 50 pound bags of chicken feed to the barn. They chat pleasantly on the way.

By pleasantly I mean he doesn’t just point out that her flip-flop clad feet are dirty. He says that they are festering toxic bacteria unknown to science and should be classified as biological weapons.

She doesn’t just notice he’s squinting; she pretends to worry about his sudden exposure to sunlight and insists that swiveling in a computer chair probably doesn’t afford him the musculature to carry more than the weight of his own hair. They laugh and talk all the way to the barn. I smile in adoration.

I was raised to be quiet and deferential to others. (Fist shake at outdated values.) Perhaps as a direct result, I wanted to insure that my own children felt free to be themselves.

Homeschooling gave us that freedom. Natural learning is an antidote to cultural factors relentlessly trying to pressure us into sameness.

There’s not much sameness going on here. My four offspring can fix old tractors, diagnose a chicken in respiratory distress, compose a bagpipe tune, design custom air cooling systems for computers, discuss the chytrid fungus currently decimating amphibian populations, randomly quote from old Futurama episodes, weld sculptures, roast fantastically spicy potatoes. They don’t, however, pay much attention to what they wear.

We’re not done with the headlong pursuit of our interests although we’re nearly done with the rigmarole of submitting materials each spring and fall to the state now that the youngest is 17. But we’re left with wonderful memories of early learning, the kind that carried its own momentum---shifting easily between relaxation and adventure.

We read for hours together sprawled on couches, managing to get out of pajamas and into clothes by noon if we had places to go. We launched ambitious ideas like building a trebuchet to propel pumpkins across the pond and entering a national science contest that landed us a visit with an astronaut.

Other equally ambitious ideas, like making a hovercraft, were more notable for their humorous failures. We gave homemade gifts from woodworking, sewing and pottery projects. Other gifts, like a handmade theremin, were not as well received.

We called exploding experiments “science,” invited everyone we knew for large-scale projects like batiking, jaunted all over for concerts and plays, hosted an international guest for six summers, and whenever possible learned directly from people who thrived on work they loved.

It’s not all in the realm of memory. We’re still here on our small family farm together. My grown and nearly grown kids seek each other out for hour long discussions as well as month long backpacking trips.

Conversation around the dinner table is a gallery of fervent opinions, esoteric interests and very dry wit. I’m still smiling in adoration. Well, I’m also smiling because someone else carries all that chicken feed.

hard hitting open lines

"

When I think back
On all the crap I learned in high school
It's a wonder
I can think at all

And though my lack of education
Hasn't hurt me none
I can read the writing on the wall

"

Well- roundedness is overrated.

Why are people so hung up on 'well-roundedness?' They worry, "But if your kid only studies what they want they won't be well rounded."

Which is ironic really since so many people I know who have gone to school are NOT well rounded. To many, Africa is a country, Brazil is a jungle. Three levels of government in Canada? Eh? What three? Climate change? Just some activists stirring the pot. Public schooling? Always been around.

'Well-roundedness' is overrated. Why would anyone want to hang with a well round person? I mean, I'm not saying that every conversation I have with a person should fire my brain into frenzy of excitement and take me to new heights of awesomeness-but seriously when we dialogue with people knowledgeable about a subject and who are excited about it-isn't that a lot more rewarding than talking to a person who knows a smattering of this, and a titch about that little about everything but nothing in depth? Borrrring.

When you dig deep to understand what well roundedness actually means- "having experience and interest in many subjects"- it is obvious that well roundedness is a myth for the average person who cares more about his or her latest soap or hockey game.

There are people who know a little about everything, people who know a lot about everything, and people who know a lot about one or two things.

As far as I can tell, the so called 'well-rounded people'- the ones who know a bit about everything, are actually the least interesting to speak and interact with.
 The ever inspiring Henry David Thoreau wrote in Walden,

I learned this, at least, by my experiment:that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. He will put some things behind, will pass an invisible boundary; new, universal, and more liberal laws will begin to establish themselves around and within him; or the old laws be expanded, and interpreted in his favor in a more liberal sense and he will live with the license of a higher order of beings.
........It is a ridiculous demand which England and America make, that you shall speak so that they can understand you. Neither men nor toadstools grow so. As if that were important, and there were not enough to understand you without them. As if Nature could support but one order of understandings, could not sustain birds as well as quadrupeds, flying as well as creeping things... as if there were safety in stupidity alone...

Why level downward to our dullest perception always, and praise that as common sense? The commonest sense is the sense of men asleep, which they express by snoring....

Do not seek so anxiously to be developed, to subject yourself to many influences to be played on; it is all dissipation.

Your thoughts?

Sal Kahn on Khan Academy

Sal Khan at Gel 2010 (founder, the Khan Academy) from Gel Conference on Vimeo.

For those interested in how this great resource came to be...