As a child, I wanted to be a teacher, and as an adult I read extensively on education, did volunteer work in schools, and seriously considered going to teachers' college. But as I learned more, I had to conclude that institutional schooling is inherently flawed, even with the best teachers. Every child has different needs and abilities, and imposing a generic curriculum on all of them is not the best way to help them learn—instead, it creates boredom and frustration, and so actually discourages learning. I am currently unschooling my 6 year old son.

Opinion

Does Institutional Schooling Help Disabled Children, or Create Them? By imposing conformity on children, institutional schools pathologize differences.

Links

Parents for Legal and Nonsectarian Schools: if you are thinking about Waldorf education for your child, you must read this site! (Unless you don't mind racism and pseudoscience dressed up in flaky "spritual" Anthroposophical garb.)

Ontario Federation of Teaching Parents: a superb online resource for homeschooling families in Ontario.

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