Strange Times And Mistaken Assumptions

Why this blog?

We live in strange times. The Covid pandemic has thrown all of society into uncharted territory particularly around education. Many folks who, mercifully, haven't been completely spun by this turn of events are those who have been independently educating for a while and have long since figured out the fine art and economics of working from home and/or adjusting to one income. Of course there are many IEs who have also lost their jobs, and it's not been easy to carry on. However, it is my belief that, on the whole, we IEs are doing mostly OK. Friends and colleagues who don't independently educate will often see us holding steady and immediately start asking how in the world we are doing all this. This is one reason I have decided to write down my thoughts. If we IEs can help, we want to! We are a pretty generous and inclusive bunch, but in order for us to be as helpful as possible, folks will need to know about three misconceptions that are probably occurring in real time.

First, IEs shudder to think an entire world of people might easily, understandably, and very erroneously equate the economically, socially, and emotionally traumatic immediate removal of school students from school buildings to the home as "homeschooling." (Side note: I hate the term homeschooling. More on that later. For now, work with me...) The difficult practice of doing "school-at-home" where children are tethered to computers for six hours a day and parents are weeping and gnashing their teeth as they try to (mostly) recreate an institutional school experience in a place that is decidedly non-institutional (while trying to work from home themselves), is not lost on me. Nor is this extremely stressful experience remotely similar to what culturally is generally referred to as "homeschooling" (again, which I refer to as "independent education" and those who do this as "IEs").

Second, IEs are also concerned that folks who, because of Covid-19, are forced into using virtual learning as an environment rather than the tool it actually is will not fully appreciate that we don't do "virtual learning" all day. Honestly now, who in their right mind wants to put themselves, much more a young person, in front of a glorified Zoom meeting for six hours a day? Hard pass! From time to time, we of course use tech as a tool to assist us on our learning journeys. It is 2020, after all. But all day long? No way. We can only imagine how frustrating it is when being on a computer seems the only option.

Third, we IEs find ourselves saddened that people thrust into doing "school-at-home" will assume the social isolation required by Covid-19 management is how independently educated kids normally spend their entire schooling existence. Nothing, and I do mean nothing, is further from the truth. We, too, are frustrated and heartsick with missing out on all the fun social events with friends and group classes that we participate in several times a week. This loneliness and social isolation is new for us, too. This is not how things are done in our beloved independent setting.

I have had countless friends and colleagues in the conventional system ask me how to do "this" (referring to home-based learning). I want to help; yet, I have to admit I'm not sure how because what I do is so different from doing 'school-at-home.'

One thing to work toward is a deepening awareness, understanding, and acceptance of the existence of an entirely different paradigm of education. The conventional education paradigm and the alternative education paradigm are entirely--and necessarily--different in nature and structure. Hence, each system needs (or does not need) different things. In my next blog post, I'll start to break down the differences in each educational space philosophically and structurally. When one gains a better understanding of these differences and is able to apprehend the legitimacy of independent education as a system on its own merit (yea, even without religious and political designs)--that there is indeed more than one credible way to approach the education of human beings--we will arrive at a place where I'll be more able to be of encouragement and help.

Next up: why "homeschooling" is not the same as "doing school-at-home."