Unschooling…

Unschooling is making a comeback. The question is why?

Background. Named by educator and school reformer John Holt, Unschooling has been an alternative form of education since the 1970s.  At that time – whether public, private, or part of the homeschooling movement, most schools in the U.S. were structured environments with structured curriculums         and a focus on teacher-directed, rote learning to passive and accepting students. Holt believed students should have a more active role in their education.

Unschooling is rooted in the concept of learning from student experience. By itself, this is not new. Many educators of the past like Froebel, Vygotsky, Dewey, and Montessori, Sizer, Meier, and Littky have championed hands-on learning based on a child’s natural curiosity and experience. More recently, schools such as Big Picture Learning, Coalition of Essential Schools and the more radical Waldorf and Summerhill also offer child-centered learning environments and child-directed learning experiences.

Characteristics. Unschooling takes experiential learning to an extreme. Children are encouraged to pursue anything or any topic of interest on any given day for however long that interest persists.  Parents who unschool are charged to expose their child to a variety of potential learning subjects and to gently guide them toward developing and pursuing their interests without being insistent.

No two days are the same, unless the child wants to follow a routine. The belief is that children will learn by doing, and as their interest develops, they will want to learn and do more.

If this sounds familiar, think about the Whole Language era that emerged during the same period.  Supporters believed that children learn to read as ‘naturally’ as they learn to speak and that using context clues to understand the general meaning of a passage is more important than being able to phonetically decipher and read actual words. Reading by osmosis! Whole Language was debunked  and discredited long ago.  

Bottom line. The fact remains, unschooling has absolutely no structure, and no plan for how a child will be able to move up the ladder of knowledge acquisition.  Even Unschooling’s strongest proponents are a little fuzzy about how students will learn to read, write, or understand basic math without some planned curriculum, no matter how much they may be engrossed in a favorite subject or topic. Not to mention the other learning gaps that will naturally occur from a child’s lack of interest in those areas.

(This is why for decades, Unschooling was a fringe movement often for older students for whom a traditional school model of any kind was not productive.)

In sharp contrast, the schools and educators noted above all believe in learning that is child-centered.  The difference is that they also believe in the importance of guidance from teacher/facilitators. For academic and social development, they also believe in flexible structure, implicit in which are student responsibility, accountability and respect for the learning community, its members, and oneself.    

So, why the current resurrection of Unschooling?  Parents will have their own reasons, and I do not pretend to speak for any of them. However, I think they are scared. What follows are my speculations of some of the causes of their fear:

1.     Many schools today (private, religious, traditional public schools) still rely on rote learning for basic subjects like English and Math to satisfy parents’ growth expectations and to earn funding - whether from donors or government grants. Parents may question whether development of students’ independent thinking takes a back seat to a school’s financial needs.  

2.     Parents may also fear subjecting their children to political extremists of both the right and      the left. For example, banning popular children’s books on the one hand; rewriting or editing them on the other. 

3     Learning loss during COVID.  In the U.S., learning loss has been going on for some time.  Virtual leaning during COVID simply exposed and exacerbated it. The myriad reasons that contribute to learning loss and what we need to do to correct it is the subject of a future blog.  

4.     Reduced or eliminated services (from free lunch to special needs) and the always present fear of gun violence contribute to parents’ angst as well.

5.     Student stress.

Parents love their children.  They want them to learn and grow.  They also want them to be happy, safe, and unafraid. Maybe parents simply want their children to feel free, independent, filled with joy, and in charge of their own small and wonderful world for this innocent and brief period in their lives.  

But to learn and grow, socially as well as academically, kids (like us) need boundaries. They need a flexible but consistent structure to support them as they learn the basic skills of reading, writing, and math through activities that are engaging and fun. They should learn how to work with and appreciate the company and ideas of others.  From there, they can build, using their curiosity and imagination to develop confidence, independent thinking, and personal interests.     

Child-centered learning is widespread and becoming more so.  The number of charter schools – independent as well as chains - have doubled in the past decade.  Some are more child-centered than others. Check your neighborhood.  Homeschooling has tripled during the same period, including a surge after COVID. Some homeschooling is conducted in learning pods with parent support teams.  

The best of these learning environments find a balance between flexible academic structure, student collaboration, and personal freedom to pursue their interests – all encouraged by teacher/facilitators.

Parents do have some good choices.  And if they choose to school their children at home, they have  options other than Unschooling.

Answer to Unpacking Education, No. 38, Question of the Day:

The correct answer is a) Bill Gates. Last February, while a guest on The Tonight Show, Gates told host Jimmy Fallon that within the decade, AI will replace most doctors and teachers although he did acknowledge there may be times when the human touch is needed. Further he stated that humans will be “unnecessary for most things,” but he held out hope for career opportunities in the arts and other creative venues.  I say arrogance. What say you?

FYI, here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=642746418109233 (start at 6:51)