Alternative Learning Systems & Experimental Education
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Entertain A Revolutionary Thought - attending school to learn
Public schools perform much worse at edifying students than private or home schools. They are the wrong environment to facilitate learning. The excuse is public schools help students learn social skills - like how to follow orders.
Primary and secondary education are used to prepare students for college. The education industry markets college degrees as the only route to get a good job or a promotion. Follow and don't think so you can get a nice job, with benefits, in a bureaucracy. Statistics supporting this sales claim for a college degree are from decades ago when the bureaucratic industrial age was still healthy.
That promised job, promotion, or income boost is likely to be lost to corporate outsourcing, downsizing, and eventual bureaucracy capsizing as the new netcohort society develops. In essence the entire government approved educational experience is developing industrial-worker and lower management candidates for jobs that won't exist.
If you are required to attend school; shouldn't the emphasis be on learning to logically reason, adapting to a changing world, and acting with wisdom?
Consider alternative learning for yourself and those you love
Wisdom and understanding are enthusiastic pursuits rather than a historic record. What you know is becoming more important than where you learned it.
"You wasted $150,000 on an education you coulda got for a buck fifty in late charges at the public library." - Good Will Hunting
The world we perceive has been shaped by schools we attended.
Perhaps government approved schools have not failed; but have instead delivered exactly the product desired - compliant citizens.
Western Society's educational bureaucracy has become moribund, and hence archaic. Ignoring the fact that desire of learners is more important then organization and administration, they stifle creativity and reward conformity.
The educational establishment has continually extended its power by including younger children and older adults. The health of state authorized institutions is dependent on the successful indoctrination of the people it claims to serve.
Start each day with a loyalty oath, continue the day with rewritten histories, finish with homework as a reminder that your future profession requires a vocation oriented college degree.
Emphasis on science and math that few will fully comprehend will make the mass of students feel inadequate and needing of supervision. Don't fund or ignore all the other disciplines that are involved in being human - subjects where many students would find their passion and abilities. Break subject matter into discrete and short duration chunks that never allow the intense joy of discovery that comes from continued, in depth study.
Don't encourage physical activity in children except in supervised group activities. Call them sick and give them drugs if they will not conform. Train them to be good citizens - yielding meekly and quickly to the demands of any authority.
This formula fit well with the industrial age.
A populace thus trained is unprepared for the enormous change that technology is bringing to all of our lives.
"The mice which helplessly find themselves between the cat's teeth acquire no merit from their enforced sacrifice." - Mahatma Gandhi
As the world quickly changes, those empowered by a joy of learning will be able to adapt and avoid the poverty of dislocated lives. Those still in school are at greatest risk as their education under duress is failing them even before it is complete.
We that are finished with indentured education will be wise to unschool ourselves and break the coerced social contract with a bankrupt system.
"Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom." - Albert Einstein
Seek freedom
"Away with the whims of governmental administrators, their socialized projects, their centralization, their tariffs, their government schools, their state religions, their free credit, their bank monopolies, their regulations, their restrictions, their equalization by taxation, and their pious moralizations! And now that the legislators and do-gooders have so futilely inflicted so many systems upon society, may they finally end where they should have begun: May they reject all systems, and try liberty; for liberty is an acknowledgment of faith in God and His works." - economist Claude Frédéric Bastiat 1801-1850
Day Of The Longtail
The world is changing. We need to change quicker than the world to position ourselves for success.
Everyone benefits when a middle man is cut out - except the middleman. The technology age has allowed consumers of products, knowledge, and ideas to go direct to the source and remove intermediaries. Trust based on experience and research allow the bypassing of gatekeepers. For the Netcohort, reputation is an important part of developing relationships and making decisions on the web.
Once buyer and seller are together exceptional things happen. Creators can see what their clients really want, so specificity improves. End users can select directly from many choices so competition improves their options.
Quality can go up, price down, service increase. Removing middle layers of distribution improves price structures, quality, and choice. Now apply disintermediation to education -- direct contact by reputation between pupil and teacher. Exclude by choice the corporate, government, & union education trifecta. Parallels between this video's Twilight Zone style media journey, and education's path, are quite interesting.
You are now entering the educational disintermediation zone.
Both you and your children will benefit.
"A child educated only at school is an uneducated child." - George Santayana
Educational systems developed to assist nation states in controlling their populations have outlived even that purpose. Their monopoly on children's minds has been broken by interconnected computers, TV, and video games. People are realizing there is a difference between society and government.
We have gained access to enjoyable learning tools. The question is -- have we been so taught to hate learning that we cannot rediscover its joys?
You do need to love learning. The age we are entering will be one of constant adaptation. cultivating that love of discovery you knew as a child is not optional - it is becoming far more important than any certificate or degree representing obsolete knowledge.
"In a time of drastic change it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned usually find themselves equipped to live in a world that no longer exists." - Eric Hoffer
The decline of archaic educational systems is accelerating. Private schooling alone is not the solution either. Private schools have been far more effective than public, but they are less effective than self instruction by motivated learners.
"The risks and rewards of natural enterprise are greater, and of far more value to society, than illusions of security that enslave human cogs in a social machine." - Allan Wallace
We have entered a new era where creativity, flexibility, and desire for achievement will determine success. We need flexible learning systems that allow students to develop these attributes.
"Since we can't know what knowledge will be most needed in the future, it is senseless to try to teach it in advance. Instead, we should try to turn out people who love learning so much and learn so well that they will be able to learn whatever needs to be learned." - John Holt
It is reasonable to enjoy learning like a preschool child -- 24/7/365. Once we rediscover the joys of learning we will never stop seeking that knowledge most valuable to us. People want to succeed at what they love and for whom they love.
We need to provide learning tools and get out of their way.
teaching and change - how it effects you
"It is the mind that makes the body rich."
"He that can not reason is a fool, He that will not is a bigot, He that dare not - is a slave." - Andrew Carnegie
It's time to do what is best for you and those you love.
homeschool, adult unschool, experimental college, student directed learning, or dozens of other good choices
These educational models are but a sample of many choices, if you want to excel at learning.
Some learn outside of normal structured education simply to avoid being forced into a box. Others want to avoid course structures catering to the least motivated student. Many also want to emphasize learning rather than forced cultural assimilation.
"Academies that are founded at public expense are instituted not so much to cultivate men's natural abilities as to restrain them." - Spinoza (1632-1677)
Perhaps you too are looking to release your individual creativity rather than being taught bureaucratic survival skills. You can create and share learning at a peer to peer educational center - The Netcohort Institute.
You may even want to consider creating a college degree substitute.
There are hundreds of varied and good reasons to opt out of educational formats created during and for the bureaucratic age.
"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced". - Vincent Van Gogh
Not Just For Kids
We all need to overcome some of what we have been taught, in order to become everything we might be.
Math and science are good;
but so are dance and music and laughing and history and dreaming and art and ...
becoming whole.
from the online novel Complicit Simplicity
Which future?
Antecedent and future, short story and related novel, free online reading.
Then create your own story and art in the Complicity Universe.
& Again Tomorrow
Starting yesterday,
hyperflows of connectivity are changing society by changing us.
We are becoming less influenced by coercion and indoctrination, yet more related by our abilities to rapidly analyze.
Back to the basics is a longer trip than we thought.
Create Your Own Lens On Alternative Education
Thank you for reading. Don't let me get in the last word.
"Your world view is too extreme - if you refuse to thoughtfully consider other's views." - Allan Wallace
State you ideas here, click that make a lens button at the top of this page or on the alternative learning group page. You can make a lens like this one, for free, that can also make you, or a charity, a little money.
Visit the alternative learning systems group. You can add your lens and help create a resource to help anyone wanting to escape dysfunctional public systems.
If you support public education, make a lens and start your own group. I'll put a reference link to your group in pleasant terms and you can put one on the same terms back to me.
We can then let people decide for themselves.
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Angelgirl1976
Feb 16, 2012 @ 7:57 pm | delete
- Another fantastic and insightful lens, thank you.
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dellgirl
Dec 6, 2011 @ 6:39 pm | delete
- I love your lens it’s very inspiring, thanks for sharing. I’m just stopping in to say hi and to wish you a wonderful day.
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sarahrk
Dec 1, 2011 @ 2:46 pm | delete
- I did well in formal school.
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agent009
Nov 27, 2011 @ 6:31 pm | delete
- Allowing kids more play time and free reign to explore what interests them I've heard if something a lot of educators are advocating. Going to public school is primarily a function of having kids learn to socialize and learn norms.
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RobinDM
Nov 25, 2011 @ 2:05 pm | delete
- Quite fascinating! Thank you so much!
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waldenthree.net
Nov 19, 2011 @ 10:21 am | delete
- Inspiring topic and appreciating your skills. I cast my vote for "Like' on this one. Thanks.
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faykam69
Nov 16, 2011 @ 6:02 am | delete
- you have a nice blog gr8 effort
:)
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mismatch
Oct 14, 2011 @ 2:07 am | delete
- things are inter related -- attending formal school is important too -- but surely the real learning is taking place outside it -- as a result of getting the wider perspectives for the initial information and formation that happens in the school. I am a visual artist and teacher -- the most of my adult life after finishing formal education has been filled with learning -- as a teacher -- and with the struggle to forget -- as an artist. By the end it depends on the individual too -- some people never learn, no matter what.
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Staceysk
Sep 9, 2011 @ 2:18 pm | delete
- Interesting view. I believe education starts at home, is helped along by schools and ends at home. I think school can teach discipline in work as well as social skills, especially for an only child. I don't think that school teaches everything a child needs to know and that the gap needs to be filled by parents and extended family.
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ajgodinho Aug 12, 2011 @ 2:45 pm | delete
- This is definitely a thought-provoking lens on a topic that is of great importance, especially that it involves the younger generation. Given the current state of affairs of a depressed economy, broken homes and the fast-paced life, home-schooling can take its toll on parent(s). I have great respect for parents who homeschool their kids because it demands a lot of sacrifice. Ultimately, whatever the case may be, it's important for parents to be involved and invested in their kids lives. Blessed!
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YourFirstTime
Jun 26, 2011 @ 3:22 pm | delete
- You've given me a lot to think about.
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nuestraherencia
May 22, 2011 @ 1:02 am | delete
- Thank you again sharing your knowledge & views. Outstanding lens!
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BetterThanBrett May 18, 2011 @ 9:41 pm | delete
- Thanks for the provocative and challenging thoughts, and great collection of resources. I've got some fun homework now to learn more from your lens!
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jaye5500
May 7, 2011 @ 8:19 pm | delete
- This lens was not only exceptional but it focused on main issues that have argued by many people for years! Great job!!!
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lasertek
May 5, 2011 @ 9:44 am | delete
- love to know more about alternative learning. great job on your lens!
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lmstraining
Apr 5, 2011 @ 5:58 am | delete
- We are also considering alternative learning and online training for my family. We want to make the best out of them.
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onlinemba
Mar 22, 2011 @ 2:32 am | delete
- thanks for sharing this unique system of Learning
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miaponzo
Feb 23, 2011 @ 4:06 am | delete
- Love this topic and love alternative learning.. I want to introduce it in Kuwait!
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MamaRuth Feb 10, 2011 @ 3:57 pm | delete
- A very interesting lens. I agree with some of the ideas you have presented here and certainly think that concerned parents are always the ones who should make the decisions for what is best for their child's education. However, the reality is that many, many children are growing up in homes where parents do not have the skills or resources to seek out a better education for their child. It is our responsibility as a society to provide the best possible public education for every child that we can. Yes, there are many failing schools, but there are also many, many success stories around the country. We need to be looking at those and replicating what they are doing. That would help the problems we are facing in this country.
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onlinecertification
Feb 5, 2011 @ 1:45 am | delete
- this was a very insightful lens i learned a lots from it and will definitely bring this information in use to help my child become better educated and best human being.
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sidther
Jan 26, 2011 @ 8:14 am | delete
- I love this lens! We have had to enroll my child in a public school and we are using it solely for the social experience... they are working 3 years behind him and he is quickly "shushed" if he questions any thing they teach because it "might be too advanced and confusing to others"- but if they are not exposed to anything other than "state requirements" how can they grow?
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Rafick Jan 25, 2011 @ 9:28 am | delete
- Interesting lens about alternative education. Very appropriate for an alternative world.
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JeremiahStanghini Jan 17, 2011 @ 9:24 pm | delete
- I wonder if you've heard of "The School" in Russia by Vladimir Shchetinin... He was first popularized by The Ringing Cedars Series (because Anastasia referred to the school).
With Love and Gratitude,
Jeremiah
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tonyward
Jan 9, 2011 @ 12:51 am | delete
- I still find your contributions inspirational even if, sometimes, I don't agree with them. You may also find my website interesting at: www.tonywardedu.com. I'd love to engage in a conversation.
Tony
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JanTUB
Sep 13, 2010 @ 7:38 am | delete
- Thank you, thank you!
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We are more than short term data recorders, we are human.
We can excel at all manner of pursuits.
Just because your school treated you as ignorant and slow does not mean you are.
Awaken The Sleeper!
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return to top of page. "We are surrounded by easily perceived barriers that limit our achievement. Most such walls were erected using substantial appearing mists of ignorance. We need to discover and acknowledge these boundaries, and then run through them." - Allan R. Wallace
Esperanto attempted to bridge gaps words can not. Microfinance bridges a gap in life's possibilities at that same level, the learning stage
100% of direct income from my lenses goes to micro-finance solutions for world poverty provided by the Grameen Foundation. The Grameen Foundation is creating a rising tide of positive influence upon our world. Help decrease poverty, by enabling the poor to support themselves.
Will YOUR life be based on what you want to use it to accomplish, or by random urges of what you want to do?
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