The great experiment in home schooling home educating autodidaction is coming to and end. Qualitatively, I think it has been a success. We more or less fell into the “unschooling” approach the year went on and it has paid dividends in the form of greater personal responsibility and renewed curiosity that is at the root of all real learning.
The greatest contrast to unschooling, perhaps, is the helicopter parenting method, in which children adhere to a very strict curricular and extra-curricular regimen. This sort of learning can take place in public or private school, or even occasionally in homeschooling households. Such families usually have at least the outline of a college plan in mind for their children, and their academic, athletic, and artistic pursuits will align with this overarching trajectory. Many parents encourage this “track” in hopes that their children will be successful in their future adult lives. However, these “guaranteed” methods for career success have fallen into disarray as of late. With crippling student loans and shaky job prospects confronting college graduates at every turn, many are reconsidering their demanding trajectories, wondering whether the work is truly worth it.
From: Unschooling, the Future of Education?
The next few months will pose some interesting decisions. The audition seemed to go well, but getting into SCPA from out of state is always going to be hard. There is a spot waiting at SHDHS if he wants it. And there there is always continuing on the path he is on. I don’t think there is a bad choice in the bunch.
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