Do you remember going to school while feeling sick? Wasn't that miserable?
Unfortunately, my student woke up coughing this morning. My wife reviewed the school's guidelines. Without a doctor's note, every student is required to show up. Gone are the days when my parents could simply call up and tell them I wasn't coming.
So to school she went.
My wife muttered something about letting the nurse send her home.
Runny Nose
See, in the school system, the only way to learn is by having your rear in your seat during class. "Every student needs to come to every class every day," the Superintendent told us at orientation. "If you're not in class, how are you going to learn?"
It was a rhetorical question then. The absurdity of the assumption clicked into focus as I watched my high schooler shuffle into the building. It is true, for her to learn anything in class she must be in class. But there are a great many more ways for her to learn that do not involved meeting attendance requirements. 'In fact,' I told myself as I adjusted the mirrors back to my specifications, 'she's learning how to drive... with me, outside of a classroom.'
And that's not even the best example.
Some of her teachers are failing to make sense to her. So she finds different instructors to sit down with and learn. Thankfully she has some excellent teachers who are willing to fill in the gaps left by some of their coworkers.
How are you going to learn if you're not in class? By reading, studying, and asking for instruction. Lectures are hardly the only way to master knowledge.
With homeschooling, it's possible to stay in bed while sick. Your child can still pick up books and read, or listen while you read. Learning doesn't have to stop because your student is ill. The classroom mindset forces your student to fit the system. Homeschooling is a system that is built to fit your student.
And that is better.
~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Guardian
P.S. Fed up with your current schooling method? Thinking of checking out Sonlight? Request a Catalog and learn more about a flexible, literature-rich approach to learning.
