Deschooling is a process of letting go of the singular beliefs we have attached with learning and kids. Beliefs that learning has to be done in a certain way, within certain times, within a certain kind of environment. Deschooling means possibilities. It’s a time to deconstruct the expectations, concerns, worries, beliefs around school, learning, and education.

In This Episode

In this episode I talk about what deschooling is and why it is important. I also share ways that we can embrace deschooling more in our homeschooling life.

I take the time to to explore the meaning of the words learning, education and school. Better understanding these words and how we use them (or misuse them) can influence our daily learning life. 

This past year has brought a huge change in learning, schooling and education. I think many of us knew a shift was already happening but COVID certainly sped things up. The homeschooling community exploded in numbers and the shift to online learning has been extraordinary. Now more than ever, parents are beginning to better understand the choices they have when it comes to learning, education and schooling. 

Why We Try To Replicate School At Home

That being said, a large amount of homeschooling this year looks a lot like trying to make the home into the classroom or school. That has brought frustration on the part of some parents. Why? The home is not the school classroom and as much as we try to replicate school at home, we cannot. Many parents deciding to try homeschooling for the first time have done so in a time of massive change. Trying to control change as much as possible is a natural human process. Our survival mechanism kicks in during times of stress and our pre-programmed routines take over. 

So when we start out on the homeschool journey and face life change, we try to do what is safe. That means safe replicating what we know, which in this case is the pattern and structure of education in school.

Deschooling can help us to take a step back and slow down, giving us time to better understand our children, ourselves and how the learning process works. Then instead of trying to copy and put in place what may not work in our home, we can have a fresh slate to create and reinvent a space that better supports each individual’s learning process.

References and Resources

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/education-philosophy/

Britannica on Education~ https://www.britannica.com/topic/education

What is Learning? Queens University, Canada~ https://www.queensu.ca/teachingandlearning/modules/students/04_what_is_learning.html

School Free by Wendy Priesnitz

How Children Learn, John Holt

If you would like to hear more about deschooling, listen to my episode with Unschooling mom, author and business owner, Pam Laricchia~ http://imhomeschooling.com/hihtk-005-exploring-unschooling/

Or to my interview with Jo Watt, former teacher turned Unschooling mom and blogger ~ http://imhomeschooling.com/deschool-the-adult-mind/

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