No. 541, March 20, 2006

What can Radical Unschooling teach us?

Homeschooling is the fastest growing form of schooling in the USA today with more than 2 million homeschooled children. Homeschooling parents develop new educational methods. One of the most provocative ones is what is called Radical Unschooling.

According to The Unschooling Handbook unschooling can be defined as "learning what one wants, when one wants, in the way one wants, where one wants, for one’s own reasons". Radical Unschooling is simply unschooling applied 100%.

Radical Unschooling could easily be dismissed as an odd alternative phenomena if it wasn’t for a disturbing factor – it works. Pupils taught at home by their parents with Radical Unschooling pass standardised tests even better than pupils going to school. They also study at universities. As other homeschooled pupils they are often more mature, more socially competent and have at least as good self-confidence.

Unschooling means that the pupil decides what to learn and the parent gives support by taking the role of a coach or a mentor. It is very similar to the dialogue style of education formulated by the highly acknowledged educator Paulo Freire.

There seems to be two ingredients which make unschooling and other alternative teaching methods work: Common values and the state of flow. In a school without strong common values, there will be a competition about getting attention. This often disturbs the classroom situation. Without flow, learning will be inefficient.

A well-known Swedish researcher on stress, Peter Währborg, claims that 30 children in one classroom worked well in small villages in the olden days where everyone knew one another. An example today is the highly acclaimed alternative education method in Regio Emilia in Italy which produces the best results in its own unique social surrounding. The famous British Summerhill School works based on being a boarding school, having a full-scale pupil democracy and a strong founder A. S. Neill. Taking part in the lessons at Summerhill is voluntary.

In modern society family is often the only remaining social institution fully consistent in values. This may be a reason why radical unschooling works well at home.

Some alternative education methods and especially homeschooling are highly conducive to flow. Research shows that teenagers in flow are often happier, more optimistic, have greater self-esteem, study more, have more active free-time activities and spend more time with friends regardless of their parent’s income, education or status.

In the business world mentoring is another example of common values – good personal chemistry – and flow through a fully individualised educational situation.

The odd but effective phenomena Radical Unschooling can teach us quite a lot.

Creative regards! Jonas Himmelstrand

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