Understanding the Philosophy of Unschooling

Unschooling is an educational method that replaces formal teaching with individualized learning through curiosity-driven experiences. It’s estimated that as many as 13 per cent of home-schooled children learn through unschooling.

Unschooling is the idea that children can direct their own learning, at their own pace, without the rigid structures of formal education. Instead of following curricula, students are given a supportive setting that fosters their natural curiosity about the world.

It’s believed that this curiosity can develop into formal learning, even without formal schooling- hence the term “unschooling.”

The idea behind unschooling was first coined by American educator John Holt in 1977, with the released of his magazine, Growing Without Schooling (GWS). This publication focused on how children can effectively learn outside of a school setting through homeschooling and unschooling.

Holt produced many other professional works on non-traditional education, and his voice is widely revered in the home-schooling community.

How does it function?

The way in which a child learns is largely determined by their personality type and learning style. In a traditional classroom, personality and learning type are not always considered when the instructor is teaching. For example, a visual learner may be at a disadvantage if the teacher uses an auditory teaching style.

Unschooling promotes individualized learning by allowing the learner to make their own choices regarding what and how they learn. The role of the parent is to provide the learner with an environment that fosters their natural curiosity. This may involve providing activities and support that help develop this curiosity into learning new things.

Generally, parents who choose to unschool take a more hands-off approach. For example, unschooling doesn’t rely on workbooks or textbooks. Instead, learners may choose to use any of the following methods to find new information:

There are no tests or grades to measure competency. There are no deadlines or goals set by the teacher. Any personal goals are decided on by the learner and are worked on at their own pace. With unschooling, the learner continues to learn naturally through interactions in their everyday life.

Homeschooling vs Unschooling

To put it in a nutshell, Unschooling is dictated by the child's interests and is less structured than is homeschooling. Homeschoolers are guided by state and national standards- parents plan lessons, assign homework, and grade assignments. Unschooling is whatever the student wants it to be!

Is unschooling or homeschooling legal?

Homeschooling is legal in all 50 states in USA. However, each state has different laws regarding what type of structure is required when homeschooling your child. If these requirements are not met, you may be reported to the state for educational neglect.

Most states require parents to teach specific state-mandated subjects, use written curricula, and keep detailed records. While unschooling is not necessarily illegal, the relaxed approach may make it difficult to meet legal mandates.

Home Schooling is not widespread in India, but it has been gaining importance in recent years in metropolitan areas, especially Bangalore, Pune, and Mumbai. At present, homeschooling is not regulated by any of the government authorities. As a result, homeschoolers do not have to be registered with any of the present government agencies or authorities. Homeschoolers usually follow the CBSEC curriculum or curriculum of their respective states. Children who are homeschooled can appear for board examination conducted by NIOS (National Institute of Open Schooling) after the age of 14 years or IGCSE International General Certificate of Secondary Education) examination, which is an internationally recognized qualification for secondary students.

With the advent of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, there has been rising confusion among homeschooling parents.

According to Vinod Raina, who was closely associated with formulating the law, it emphasizes infrastructure, teacher qualification, and government recognition, and all schools are require complying to all these three conditions. Since the RTE Act does not include homeschooling in one of the definitions of ‘school’, this implies that homeschooling would not be recognized by the government.

Homeschoolers had a feeling that RTE Act infringed on their freedom to choose the mode of education. As a result, homeschoolers demanded amendment of the act in order to accommodate homeschooling as one of the approved modes of education. In response to the agitation of the homeschooling parents, the HRD minister, Mr. Kapil Sibbal, clarified the ministry’s position on homeschooling, in an interview with ‘The Times of India’ in late 2010, “The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 wants every child to be in school, but if somebody decides not to send his/her children to school, we are not going to interfere. The compulsion is on the state, not on the parents. Parents are free not to send their children to school but teach them at home. We cannot be micromanaging.”

What are the benefits of unschooling?

There are many reasons why you might choose to unschool your child. The benefits of unschooling include:

• providing a safer learning environment
• improving learning outcomes with more effective teaching methods
• teaching your child in a manner that is more in-line with your family’s values
• providing a customized, tailored approach to your child

There are other unschooling advantages. For example, research shows up to 40 percent of children experience test anxiety. Academic stress can lead to depression, sleep disturbances, and substance use. With no grading or testing in unschooling, your child is less likely to experience these negative effects.

A study from 2013 interviewed 232 families on the benefits and challenges they experienced with unschooling. Researchers found that many parents believed their children to be more passionate and eager about learning.

Improving family closeness was cited as another benefit. Another benefit of unschooling was said to be a flexible schedule, which promoted a family-centred lifestyle.

In his book De-schooling Society (1971), the Austrian philosopher Ivan Illich contested the notion that learning is only possible through instruction: “School is the advertising agency which makes you believe that you need the society as it is," he wrote.

Around the same time, American educator John Holt who was somewhat of an outlier himself, losing teaching jobs for his undisciplined classrooms and lenient grading coined the term “unschooling".

His books How Children Fail (1964) and How Children Learn (1967), based on his observations and experiments as a teacher and father, are considered essential handbooks for homeschooling and unschooling parents. Holt himself summarized his findings in two words: “Trust Children". “Nothing could be simpler or more difficult," he wrote.

Pune-based Urmila and John Samson decided against sending their children to school in the early 1990s, well before the internet made it possible to find other parents who thought similarly, or even to learn that there was such a thing as an “unschooling movement". Their eldest daughter, Sahya, 26, has completed a four-year diploma in eurythmy, which she teaches in Pune, from the Peredur Centre in the UK. Their son Rayn, 21, is preparing for his A-levels with a private tutor and plans to apply for an undergraduate degree in the US. Their youngest, Niom, 16, has just graduated from Swaraj University, a two-year self-designed learning (SDL) programme on the outskirts of Udaipur.

Unschooling parents must prepare for unsettling phases of disobedience, laziness and imbalance. In Urmila’s case, the most challenging example of this was a spell of five years during which her son Rayn did little apart from playing video games. “I felt like I had completely messed up my children," she says. “I tried the things that normal parents try, but nothing worked. Finally, I moved from focusing on the outer problem to focusing inward."

A day before his 14th birthday, Rayn walked up to her and made an announcement—he was quitting gaming. In what he describes as an overnight transformation, Rayn felt motivated to shift his attention to football, with as much dedication. “I deleted my PlayStation account, which is basically like throwing out your trophy cabinet. My teenage years then involved setting alarms, eating properly and pursuing a highly disciplined physical activity. Not much else," he says.

This points to an interesting link between freedom and self-motivation, which studies have found to be more present in unschooled children.

There have been some concerns raised about unschooling. One possible disadvantage is missing out on crucial information because of the lack of an educational framework. Another negative is the potential for a lack of socializing if children do not have easy access to peers.

In a study, some parents found additional challenges with unschooling. The researchers found that many of these parents struggled with managing their beliefs about formal education.

These parents noted that the decision to unschool their child put them at risk for increased social criticism. The parents also noted issues with socializing, time and income management, and state laws regarding home school education.

Unschooling parents are typically questioned on three counts. The first query: how will their child attain basic literacy? The answer to this often comes as a surprise to the parents themselves. Many can’t pinpoint the exact moment their child learnt how to read or write, and the process is often described as “magical" and “unexpected". They learn from observation, pretend games, interactions with people, sometimes from necessity. But it does demand alertness to the child’s interests, and the financial ability to supplement these interests. And since for millions, a formal degree is still a necessary entry point into stable careers, unschooling remains a safer bet for the elite.

While there are no in-depth studies on how unschoolers feel about their education, in 2013, American psychologists Peter Gray and Gina Riley surveyed 75 grown unschoolers (of which 65 were from the US, and 10 from the UK, Canada and Germany). Three of the 75 reported that they were unhappy with their unschooling, citing reasons of social isolation or dysfunctional families. A majority said the biggest disadvantage of unschooling was the judgement and criticism of others—over the course of their childhood, unschoolers are met with surprise, envy, scrutiny and, in some cases, ridicule.

In terms of employment, 53% of the respondents were entrepreneurs, 48% of the participants were pursuing a career in the arts and 29% were pursuing STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) careers. Most found themselves in professions beyond the mainstream: there was an orientation and mobility specialist, a circus performer, a wildlife photographer, and an assistant to a film director.

Last month, Beyond Millennials: The Next Generation of Learners, a survey of 2,587 14- to 40-year-olds by the market research firm Harris Poll, found that nearly 60% of Gen Z respondents prefer YouTube for learning, while 47% prefer printed books. For the older cohort of millennials, the numbers were 60% for printed books and 55% for YouTube.

There are a handful of advantages and disadvantages to unschooling your child. However, there is a lack of formal research on unschooling outcomes, whether positive or negative.

Contrary to popular belief, unschooling is not a rejection of education but rather a fight against the restrictions of formal education. Unschooling is not an opportunity to forego necessary education. It’s considered a different method of educating a child that relies on a more hands-off approach.

There is nothing a definite right or wrong here. It all depends on individual’s perspective and how a parent wants their child to acquire knowledge.