We want to homeschool, but we don’t know yet which curriculum/method we’ll use. My husband and I both had issues with our schooling as children. I entered elementary school during the height of the Ritalin craze. There were also problems with teasing, bad teachers, etc, for both of us. Jordan went to a private Christian school and can attest to the detrimental effects of politics when a school is desperate for money and certain wealthy families supply a great deal of it. Their children can get away with most anything. I also strongly disagree with many “Christian” school practices, such as kicking out girls who get pregnant. We don’t live in a big city, so there really aren’t a lot of choices around here anyway.

I’d like to give my children extra time to focus on art and music and express themselves creatively, and I’d also like to give them the opportunity to learn about their specific areas of interest (when they get older, possible career paths) in a way the public schools here don’t offer. One “career day” out of the whole year does not count. I know these things can be done in addition to regular schooling, but since I am home and want to do it, I’d rather them have it as their regular education. We may change our minds on this, not having tried it yet, but we’ll see how it goes!
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I’m a mixture of several educational philosophies, but they all combine into a simple: be happy.
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At this point I think I will be perfectly happy to enroll my girls in the public school system once they are old enough. We may continue with the Montessori program longer than preschool but that hasn’t been determined yet.
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Let me say first that I think the most important teacher are a childs’ parents. Children learn from observation and living. What you teach at home, how you interact with your children, and other people, how you organize yourself, how you speak – that is what children learn most in life.

That being said, school-wise, both of our children are in Montessori currently. We’ve (mostly) decided to have them continue through the elementary curriculum there (age grouping 6 – 14yrs). DD is in the primary program (age grouping 3 – 6yrs) and DS is in the toddler program (age grouping 18mo – 3yrs). The main reason we chose Montessori over public or private (there are several friends schools & religious private schools here) is that the child-led philosophy of Montessori education dovetails so well with our attachment parenting philosophy.

In addition, I find great value in an entire school HAS an educational philosophy; that doesn’t just leave the teachers out there on their own to teach to a list of state requirements based on whatever education & experience & resources they personally have. in Montessori the teachers have years of research & writing to look to when they craft their classes. I also appreciate the lack of rote memorization, manditory testing, & homework – none of these ideas foster real learning. Their way of teaching & learning mimics a more homeschool-approach that I think I’d take were we not schooling outside the home.

Of course, educational theory & philosophy doesn’t always mean good teaching/good learning. But so far, we’ve found their school in action is even better than in the books.

I absolutely agree when you say this: “If there is no universal path to fulfillment in life, and no certain way to achieve it, then I must accept that I cannot control the outcome for my children.” Absolutely true, and we have to remember that we can only guide our children, and help them in the best way possible to prepare for life. We can’t do it for them.

But giving them the best opportunities, and staying involved in what they are learning – not just book learning, but what the teachers & administrators & student body are actually SAYING (i.e. does the school allow commercialism like corporate-sponsored book fairs or allowing kids to wear logos & cartoon images to school) is so important to ensure what they’re learning is what you’d actually like them to learn.

Oh yes, and fun. Learning should be fun. Kids should WANT to learn. If kids aren’t having fun, then what’s the point?

The education decision is just another part of the complicated journey – but I’m really loving school again!

PS: I gave your blog a vote.
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Our kids were at our local public school until this year. We thought it was fine, just fine.

This year a new alternative school opened in our city and it is AMAZING! There are the bumps one would expect with the opening of a new school but I love their philosophy. It’s a little bit of Montessori, a little bit of Waldorf, a little Reggio Emilia and a little bit of others too. I wrote a bit about it here: http://familynature.wordpress.com/2009/10/31/arent-all-children-whole-children-2/
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yay! kindy!

I’m not really the ideological type so didn’t look for a school with a particular philosophy or anything. We knew 2 things were important to us: as we don’t have a car, the school had to be close, preferably walking distance; and we wanted a school with a good vibe. I totally stalked kid’s current school and her school is part of why we bought a house in this area. It’s public and 5 mins walk from our house. It’s small. When I stalked it I noticed there were always a lot of parents in the playground – good, I thought. I talked to the parents there and they were positive. There was some goss about the kindy teacher not being so hot, but overall, for us, the school community won us over hands down (and the K teacher turned out to be fine – a good reason not to listen to smack talk). It’s a very sociable community and closeknit. kid’s class has only 14 kids in it. it also has a fine arts programme, which we thought we be good cos we have a very energetic, physical kid. We ended up turning down a French immersion spot and no regrets. Through the school we’ve made lots of connections with people who live close to us which is great for playdates and the like. This would have been harder if she’d gone to school out of catchment.

But most of all, it’s FIVE MINUTES WALK FROM OUR HOUSE.

Oh, and down with the Fraser Institute.

We will be signing up the girl for JK soon and have been weighing our options. I think I have a post coming about it. If I ever get organized.
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Amber,I can say from experience, with two generations of children in School District 43, that your children will get a very fine public school education. B.C.(and Canada in general) has very high standards and teachers who are well-paid and encouraged to constantly renew and learn. (Full disclosure: I’m a retired educator in both elementary and adult ed.) Yes, some teachers will be better than others and, yes,not all will understand your child’s needs as you do. Therefore, to the degree that you are involved with your child’s school, you will have lots of opportunities to advocate for your child’s special requirements.(And check out the teachers!)

Avoid being defensive if a teacher suggests there are difficulties. Follow up with whatever is suggested and use your best judgment.There is lots of help available, with provision for children at both ends of the learning spectrum. It’s important to remember that all of us are good at something and not so good at other things. We are, after all, wonderfully human. And, if you aren’t satisfied, or are worried that things aren’t being addressed quickly enough or to your satisfaction, get private testing. It’s great to have options and most teachers are receptive to other professional opinions.

My daughter is an excellent Montessori teacher with her own school and I can attest to the value of the philosophy, but you will find that a good school and good teachers (much like Unitarians with religion , combine the best of all educational philosophies. In fact, I rather like eclectic systems myself, as all ideologies run the risk of righteousness or inflexibility.(Over time my daughter has learned to combine Montessori with the best of play-based theories.)

You will find that every school in the District has a Mission Statement which is prominently displayed.That will be the philosophy of the school.The Principal is key here is seeing that pupils, teachers and parents have some kind of “emotional buy-in”. Ideally, you would hear about this in school assemblies, newsletters, etc. Hopefully your child will come home with phrases like, “We are kind to each other”. “We take turns talking.” Generic, yes, but essential in character building and raising a thoughtful and empathic child. If these concepts are used in everyday classroom teaching and learning then the philosophy is being put into action. If not,then be the parent who takes a risk and asks questions.Be prepared to participate in helping to build and create the kind of school you want for your child.

Good luck to both you and Hannah as you begin this wonderful adventure. She is a happy, bright, creative little girl who will probably light up her class. I’m looking forward to hearing about her (and your) further exploits!

P.S. There is something wonderful about a neighbourhood school. Your children get to know everyone within blocks of your home and you will get to know your neighbouring parents. Hurray for community!

Marcy, I agree. BC has an excellent public school system overall. Totally agree with your last point too.

I was pretty much on board with everything you said, at your stage (and still am — there’s no ‘but’). I did stress a little over whether to send them to public or Catholic, which seems really stupid now, since I don’t really consider myself Catholic any more, but at the time it seemed reasonable. I love our neighbourhood school — I volunteer in the library once a week and in both kids’ classrooms, and the school has a great feel. I like the way the teachers talk to their students, and the way the principal talks to the teachers. In a way I do wish I had the wherewithal (if that means time, energy, intelligence and did I mention energy) to homeschool my kids, or to supplement their education more. But they’re both smart, happy, like piano lessons and drawing, and have a lot of friends of lots of attractively different hues. I do agree with Marcy about good teachers combining more than one philosophy — I’ve seen a wide range of Montessori schools, and was offered a job in one when I hadn’t yet graduated university, and I’ve had friends who teach in private schools that would never send their kids there. There’s no perfect recipe — and like you said, you’ll never know if you could have made a ‘better’ choice, so it’s best to go with your gut and make the best of it. Hannah is going to have such a blast.
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I do have an educational philosophy, since that’s my profession! I have to say that I’ve developed it over the last 10 years of training as a teacher, both formally and informally. My training is specific to science, and so is my experience, so my philosophy is mostly based on that. But it’s also based on what I learned from growing up on the farm, and from my parents.

So here goes… trying to simplify as much as possible. I do my best to incorporate experiential learning into my classes, where students are “learning by doing”. I’m also a constructivist, which means that I like to have kids figure things out for themselves instead of me just telling them the material. It’s hard not to point out that a kid is overfertilizing a plant in our greenhouse, but I let them make those mistakes because I think there’s a value in them. I also try to do place-based learning, where students learn through their own environments, so we talk about native plants and animals, as well as local endangered species and their role in the ecosystem instead of the tried and true pandas and whales.

I think reading, writing and critical thinking are some of the most important skills we can instill in children. I like to have children make their own decisions, and these skills enable them to do so. My students are always welcome to argue with me about climate change or evolution, but they had better know their stuff so their argument is worth listening to and debating with.

I see these as major initiatives in my local public schools, and that’s why I’ll enroll my kids in public school when they’re old enough. But I also realize that a lot of the responsibility for their education is mine, and I’m more than willing to teach them at home as well.
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Educational philosophy? Yikes, not really. We have some strong ideas on the value of an education … like at this point, my daughter doesn’t even realize that you can actually quit school. She believes that after high school, she’ll get to choose a university and that school isn’t over until after university. You won’t tell her that she can quit school at 16, will ya?

We’re pretty set on homeschooling, at least initially. Our city has an amazing homeschooling community with lots of group “classes,” activities, etc. (which takes care of hubby’s concern with the social aspect).
I didn’t have a horrible experience in public school, but I don’t think I ever reached my full potential/learned everything I wanted to learn – I’d love for Kieran to be able to explore subjects at his leisure, enjoy learning w/o the massive homework that US schools assign now, etc.
I wonder how different the public school philosophies are b/wn US & Canada.

I think (I hope!) that parental support has a lot to do with any kind of schooling system. Other than that and the fact that I love the idea of homeschooling, I’m pretty much with you. I had a good public school experience, and while my daughter certainly is not like me in the social ways, I hope with my support she will do well. And if not, I have no qualms with pulling her out.
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I went to all public schools from K-12 and loved it. We’re planning to enroll Q-ster in our neighborhood public school (next month, ack!), and hope that we’ll meet other young families in our new area. Our immediate streets have older children, and it would be nice to playmates close by. If all goes well, we’ll be part of the elementary community for nine years (between the two boys), and from what I’ve seen so far, it’s a good school. I’m still nervous, of course.
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True, there’s no universal path to fulfillment in life, but parents teach their children what fulfillment in life means. About public schools, I’m all for them: good/excellent education must be available to all children equally, this is what we should invest in.
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Educate the whole child — that’s my philosophy in a nutshell. My daughter is transitioning to elementary school as well next year, and we are also in the midst of registration this week. I wish I could be as level-headed as you are about this! I’m afraid that while I whole heartedly agree with just about all the things you’ve written that I can’t own it quite like you do.

I have an educational philosophy that may be at odds with my personal preferences. Sigh.

We would like to unschool. But we work from home and could really, really use the hours free in our day that public school would afford. This sounds selfish and lazy, considering our purported dedication to unschooling. See, it would help if we didn’t have a philosophy, because then we could get away with sending our kids to public school with no worries.

We’ll see! I guess we have time yet, though you’ve reminded me that it will sneak up on us…

I voted for you! Congrats!
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I’m with you – I think public school is fine and I just hope that my kids grow up knowing how to be happy. I did just fine in public school and had a wonderfully involved mom who made sure we learned at home as well as at school. She also made a huge effort to make learning fun. Now, I have more degrees than I know what to do with and best job so I think she was on to something. I sincerely think that kids will do well if their parents are supportive and involved and that many of these parenting philosophies are vehicles for this type of involvement. Whatever works.