The right -----and the wrong role----for teachers. By Marion Brady
By Marion BradyBill Gates spent$45 million trying to find out what makes a school teacher effective. I’ve studied his Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) project, and think it ignores a matter of fundamental importance.Consider: What makes an effective lawyer, carpenter, baseball player, surgeon?The answer is that it depends—depends on what they’re being asked to do. An effective divorce lawyer isn’t necessarily an effective criminal defense lawyer. A good framing carpenter isn’t necessarily a…See More
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Thanks for all you do on Fireside! Hey, I reposted your sharing of Marion Brady's article in a forum: "Marion Brady's "The education reform train is off track" --in Washington Post"
I hope we can get a discussion going about it, and hope that Marion joins in!
Thanks for asking. Unschooling may have a bit different definition to each person. I think the one common thread for most unschoolers is that we believe if you get in touch with the world around you, and become an observer of your would, learning happens holistically and is driven by desire. This starts at birth. Do we teach our babies to walk and eat, no they discover it!! If a child is given freedom to explore and be in touch with what Rudolf Steiner calls " free will" learning will be a natural desire and instinct and will lead one toward their passion. Learning will be holistic and joyful. From my own experience, it can be almost magical.
If you look at Rudolf Steiner's work and the writings of John Holt they do a wonderful job of leading the way to unschooling. It is really a lifestyle where families learn together seizing curiosity and savoring it.
Sometimes the attempt to " educate someone" can strip them of this quest for discovery and passion. If that happens Ivan Illich does a wonderful job of leading us back to discovery.
Because an unschooler does not rely upon text books to " teach " in individual subjects but rather find the relevance by using a seamless approach of application in real world experience and observation, many see us as doing " nothing " when in fact we are engaged in DOING.
Please share with us a bit about un-schooling.... love the term!
be well...mike
Welcome!
Learner-centered education? How radical. ;-)
Let's get talking about ideas--your experience will add a lot to the mix here.