S2E30: You Just Got 'Unschooled'
In this episode, we’re chatting with Kerry McDonald, author of Unschooled: Raising Curious, Well-Educated Children Outside the Conventional Classroom, about different models of education around the world, the developmental bell curve of when children read, how Unschooling benefits teenagers and how the school system can harm children.
👉 Guest Details
Kerry McDonald is an education policy writer, self-directed learning expert and author of Unschooled: Raising Curious, Well-Educated Children Outside the Conventional Classroom. She is a board member at the Alliance of Self-Directed Education and mother of four never-been-schooled children.
👉 Kerry Shares
What she has been up to
Research coming out about how the pandemic affected opinions on homeschooling
The difference between education and schooling
The qualities we value in the ‘imagination age’ and how school stifles creativity
How the industrial education system can make children’s lives worse
That unschooling is treating children with basic human respect
How the 19th century industrial model education system lacks the ability to build the skills required for the most in demand jobs
That knowing yourself and what you want are largely neglected in conventional structured schooling
About empowering parents
The developmental bell curve for reading age in children
Examples of different unschooling programs and self-directed learning models in the states
Why bullying is nearly non-existent in these alternative models of education
👉 Opt In
👉 Resources & References
Foundation for Economic Education
BOOKS
Learning is Natural, School is Optional, Ken Danford
The Teenage Liberation Handbook: How to Quit School and Get a Real Life, Grace Llewellyn
Fab: The Coming Revolution on Your Desktop, Neil Gershenfeld
Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World, Adam Grant
Outliers M,alcolm Gladwell
Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand Audiobook Read by Scott Brick
ALTERNATIVE UNSCHOOLING PROGRAMS
North Star, founded by Ken Danford
NFP’s
Alliance of Self-Directed Education
Wildlings Forest School Contact Details
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