For the love of learning....

Over the past few years I have spent a good deal of time considering what the formal education of my children will look like - public vs. private vs. homeschool vs. whatever.....  In the course of these ruminations, I have considered more than the institution of learning, but more specifically the "what" of their education.  Here are just some of the directions I would like to steer my children towards vs. other things...but of course, it is all still simply a brain sketch that is evolving all the time.

• (generally) how to locate and glean information well vs. rote memorization
• character vs. IQ
• the well being of others/society vs. striving for personal gain/material wealth
• developing personal faith vs. lack of any spiritual direction
• understanding and developing personal talents/strengths/interests
• historical awareness/competency plus technological advancement
• (generally) experience plus knowledge vs. one devoid of the other

Comments

[Linda]

I'm starting to think that most of these things you mention do not come from what they learn at school at all, but from what kids learn at home. We're going through the same thought process and I'm finding that so much of the good stuff comes from home. What school, any school does, is give them the context to share, socialize, learn how we all coexist in the world, take turns, explore cause and effect of things outside of their normal world. Fostering a love for learning starts with mom and dad. What you do with your girls when you take them for walks and let them explore is so perfect for children. Kids need this and often at home many children aren't given the opportunity to be children. School, at a young age anyway, teaches basic socialization skills. My kids TOTALLY need this. For me school is only a fraction of where the learning occurs. The rest comes from what we as parents teach them at home. Yikes, what does that say about me when my daughter throws herself on the ground and screams??

[tricia]

I agree and disagree. I DEFINITELY think the onus is on parents to guide their children in learning - so I really agree with all that you said. But I think it definitely intertwines with formal education - if we send our kids out of our home for half of the day (I'm talking grade school up here), then that's a huge chunk of time when we are delegating their tutalige to others-and whether or not it is included in the curriculum, they are learning more than socialization and book learning - they are forming worldviews and attitudes largely contributed to by that setting, etc... That is significant. It's worth thinking about anyway.

[Linda]

And I agree with you on that point. It is worth thinking about. This is a discussion I would love to have with you next time we see you at the playground....

[lisandrea]

Tricia, I have to tell you that I think the best way to direct those goals for your children is to be ever-present in their education. As a mom who is choosing homeschooling, I feel like I can observe and guide these exact same goals with the children--measuring and tracking their progress immediately, so that we can always see where they might struggle, how & why. In this area, in particular, the appreciation of history & culture is so easy to instill!!

There are memorization programs in homeschooling as well, but the contextual processing is amazing in homeschooling! As Logan is interested in a topic, we just dive in completely. There is no redirecting away from his interests because it isn't on task with the rest of the class goals...

Anyway, I could blog on this topic! Oh, wait! I already do! More power to you--I am eager to get together for a little kaffeeklatsch on the topic!

I have a partial masters in Education...you used to teach High School. We do not enter this realm of educating our children innocently, nor with naiveté!