Posted by manualblock [ 69.112.43.172 ] on March 04, 2006 at 14:12:02:
In Reply to: Re: ManualBlock - Continued from below - Home Schooling posted by Mr Vinyl on March 04, 2006 at 12:23:37:
I did not mean to imply that I don't believe in home schooling; I meant I don't believe in super beings that control our destiny. But I don't begrudge anyone else having those beliefs. My own son is a practicing Catholic.
My interst in education is something I developed as a kid because I was a rebellious student with no respect for authority whatsoever. They took some interest in me however because I did some things well and I recieved some positive and productive re-inforcement from teachers that liked me. That always intriqued me as to why they were so eager to try and involve themselves in my situation.
Regarding Home schooling and why I have questions; I don't have a bias either way; it is the actual process of educating children that interests me. In the public schools we have a variety of personalities; capabilities and emotional types all impressed on our children at a very vulnerable time in their lives. Is this good?
I don't claim to know but there are several issues that impact that scenario. Of course one advantage to the conventional community system is the adaptation response required by the kids. That is a learned response and something they will eventually draw upon in their dealings throughout life. The favoritsm; disapointments; peer group conflict resolution. Those are all behaviours needed to function in the world.
If you look at how the current educational system evolved it becomes apparent that the organisational model is one in which the administration and staff are served most efficiently. The system is not designed for the kids and to further their skills but in fact it is designed to enable the staff to control the student population in the most efficient manner possible. Our schools were flooded with masses of immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; many of whom had no english. The only process that would accomodate that huge influx of difficult studies was to devise a system whereby one teacher could control many students.
So we have 34 kids lined up in a row; silent facing front to the imposing authority figure who can from his vantage point keep order and invoke discipline. Is this the best way kids learn? Nope. And unfortuneatly this model is the least expensive and uses the least resources of any other mass education formatt available. So we are stuck with it.
Home schooling is a fine way to educate children because you as a parent can be the best arbitor of your kids personal needs and style of learning. But here is my concern.
Everyone has their own biases/focus points/weaknesses/attention span etc etc. In the public schools these personal idiosyncracies are mitigated by the vast number of different individuals who engage your kids. If you have a bad teacher in one class you will have a good one in another. If you as a parent are weak in one area; well then they will be inheritors of that weakness.
You have an even more egregrious task. Your children require very sophisticated educational techniques in order to make the best use of their talents. That to me is quite a row to hoe; so to speak. I am impressed you have even taken on this task and therein lies my interest. How children learn is a very important subject and the Autistic Child has a set of circumstances that in the research as I am sure you are more familiar than I has divulged huge amounts of very pertinant data regarding structural learning modes and the actual neurological basis of learning.
People don't get how they learn. I attended a lecture by a woman of high functioning Autism Diagnoses who has been able to help in explaining to people how they process information differently than others do. It was extremely enlightening since she has built a very successful business utilising the sensory processing capabilities that they have that we don't.
Listen; I hope this doesn't sound pompous or arrogant to you. I don't believe in sentimentalising these things. In your position you have enough issues to deal with without having to validate weak attempts at expressing sympathy; I know that is not what you want. You have a valuable insight that most do not.
I admire your efforts and I have a little understanding of what you go through. I will discuss this as long as it doesn't insult you in any way. Tell me if I am telling too much of myself here and hogging the issue.
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