Unschooling or "Radical" Unschooling, what is the difference?

[canadianhippie]

I was wikipedia'ing and browsing through attachment parenting page and moved on to the unschooling page, but it states about radical unschooling and just unschooling but I didnt find the description to helpful, can you help me understand it a little better? thank you

[moominmamma]

Radical unschooling extends everything about unschooling beyond the educational realm. So bedtimes, meals, household chores, etc. are not by parental decree.

Miranda

[mammal_mama]

Originally Posted by moominmamma

Radical unschooling extends everything about unschooling beyond the educational realm. So bedtimes, meals, household chores, etc. are not by parental decree.

Miranda

And yet for me, nothing in life is "beyond the educational realm" as we are always learning.

[UnschoolingMama]

Difference Between Radical Unschooling & Unschooling

Unschooling to me, is learning without text books, learning from the world,
Radical Unschooling to me is taking it a step further. Radical Unschooling to me, is more about trust and the relationship between me and my kids. If I am enforcing a bedtime then how will my kids ever learn to trust their bodies? I work with my kids.

[Piglet68]

I describe it as taking unschooling principles and applying them to parenting.

[2xy]

I see unschooling as allowing the learner to learn what, when, where, and how he sees fit. Unschooling does not exclude textbooks. Textbooks are used if the learner chooses to use them.

Radical unschooling is taking that mentality into non-academic life.

[canadianhippie]

hmm, ive never thought of it like that, i went to the unschoolers emporium link, i think i might try and pick up some books on the topic

[rumi]

interesting ... i thought unschooling itself was a way of following the examples of learning in life (e.g. how to walk, talk) and trusting that we can learn academics that way.

[WCM]

Originally Posted by rumi

interesting ... i thought unschooling itself was a way of following the examples of learning in life (e.g. how to walk, talk) and trusting that we can learn academics that way.

that's what it means to me.

[mammal_mama]

Originally Posted by rumi

interesting ... i thought unschooling itself was a way of following the examples of learning in life (e.g. how to walk, talk) and trusting that we can learn academics that way.

Yes, that's how I see it, too -- which is why it seems strange to divide academics from the rest of life. It seems more "unschooly" to see life as one big seamless whole.

[zoebird]

i think that it is hard to define. in general, both fall into the same family of being a child-lead or relationship-based process of education, stemming from the fact that the family likely holds this process throughout their family lives.

that is to say that really, those who live in a child lead, or relationship-based process, for family life, also extend it to education.

some people lead a child-lead, relationship-based family life, and choose to educate their children with a variety of schooling methods. some people choose a child-lead, relationship-based family life, and choose to follow that with education, and also choose to have certain 'family rules' to make the family 'function' properly. and some people choose to just go with the child-lead, relationship based process in every way they can possibly fathom.

i don't htink any of these methods are 'wrong' in any way. they are just different.

in our family, we are child-lead and relationship based, but we are also following many elements of anthroposophy in the home. we use rhythm predominately, as well as those theories regarding how a child develops (or more appropriately, incarnates), and this asserts a great deal about bed times and meal times and so on. it focuses on family meals and celebrations as well. i believe that it makes our family life easier, though i don't see them as hard and fast "rules."

at two, my son has certain sleep needs that i'm aware of, but there are times when he is "off rhythm"--usually with a development--and so our rhythm adapts to him. i still strive to keep the bed time somewhere between 8 and 9, and we had it moved back to between 7:30 and 8:30 until we went on a weekend vacation and he was on a plane during his normal bed time. he got so psyched by the adventure of hte air plane and the new environment of the hostel that he was up until 10 just bouncing off the walls, btu slept until about 9 am anyway. lol!

anyway, i'm just saying that while it may not be defined in a 'radical unschooling way,' i think it comes from the same impulses of child sovereignty, but is also infused with a lot of other philosophies and life experiences and such that his father and i bring into the relationship with him.

now, i'm rambling. LOL

[NellieKatz]

My husband is a videographer for the local paper and did a video & we collaborated with the writer on her story to go with it....it's called Homeschooling, Revamped....a closer look at unschooling

http://www.telegram.com/section/massmoms

It doesn't address "radical" unschooling but does talk about the child-led aspect of unschooling. And it includes Peter Gray, whose blog posts on child-led learning have been often talked about here.

I've heard we did a good job! :-)

[moominmamma]

Originally Posted by mammal_mama

Yes, that's how I see it, too -- which is why it seems strange to divide academics from the rest of life. It seems more "unschooly" to see life as one big seamless whole.

Some families manage to separate learning out as child-led quite successfully while still maintaining parental authority over things like bedtimes, dental care, child care arrangements, candy consumption, bathing and screen time. My own family tends towards the radical unschooling end of the spectrum, but I know several unschooling families who are totally into autonomous learning yet still have parent-driven rules about, for example, not eating non-organic foods, being in bed by 9pm and not watching commercial TV.

Miranda