Educational philosophy and mission statements

[kathymuggle]

I have an idea for a revolving thread.

Once a week, we discuss educational philosophy pertaining to certain subject areas (math, history, etc).

For this week, I think starting with a general mission statement/underlying principals would be a good idea.

So, without further ado....

What is your mission statment? (whether it be pre-existing or made up on the spot)

Here is mine:

Education that gives children the skills and tools to thrive as adults. Education that is empowering and has at its core the love of learning. Education that questions, uses logic, and makes connections.

[moominmamma]

I like slogans better than mission statements because they can be pithy and enigmatic. How about...

"To each his own."

Just made that up.

Okay, based on that, here's my second try.

"Just makin' it up as we go along."

Or how about

"Whatever works."

Or

"<shrug>"



Miranda

[kathymuggle]

:

I like those too!

I suppose (oh, cr@p, I am going off topic allready!) some people need mission statements for the state, some people like them for themselves, and some people really do not feel the need for one - perhaps out of fear of feeling bound to it? Or that is is simply unnecessary as we live it? Hmmm...

Kathy

[frogguruami]

The Mission Statement of the Winding Paths Academy

I will strive to provide the following things for my children throughout our journey:

* to facilitate an education where the ability to locate, understand and utilize needed information is a more important skill then the ability to regurgitate a bunch of facts and figures.
* to facilitate an education that allows for the development of the skills and knowledge needed to be the adults they desire to be.
* to facilitate the exploration and 'grok'ing of the wider world.
* to not be bound to any specific method or educational ideal; instead, facilitating the achievement of these things in the manor in which is best for the individual child.
* and most of all, to allow the freedom to develop and grow and be the person they are meant to be.

A few notes:

First, I used the word 'facilitate' deliberately. I have never seen myself as a teacher. Instead, I see myself as a facilitator to learning. It might be a minor distinction to some, but it is important to me. To me the word facilitator allows me the joy of joining them on their journey instead of "overseeing" it.

Second, 'grok' is a Heinlein reference. If you haven't read the book then what the heck is the matter with you!!! Go pick it up.

[elizawill]

i have a personal mission statement for myself that i wrote a few years a go. i don't have one for our education though. i would say my biggest objective is that my children develop a real love for learning & as adults continue to nurture that love. does that count?

[cfiddlinmama]

Pretty much what everyone here has said. I especially like: "to facilitate an education where the ability to locate, understand and utilize needed information is a more important skill then the ability to regurgitate a bunch of facts and figures."

Mostly I want my kids to know how to learn and to love to learn. For me, my goal is to not succumb to the pressure of external forces about what my kids "should" be doing. I love being able to cater my kids' education to their needs not some arbitrary schedule developed by the government.

[Momma Aimee]

we are currently working on our -- alas it is so new i have nothing to add.

But I am bumping for more ideas to steal

[LauraN]

I came up with a slogan for our homeschool for the simple reason that there was a spot for it on the record keeping software that I use.

It is "Nourishing body and mind."

[TortelliniMama]

How about, "What were we thinking?"

On good days, it's a look back at the days when we planned to send our kids to public school, and expresses our amazement at how much joy and how many wonderful experiences we almost missed out on.

On bad days, well, it either refers to our bewilderment about our choice to homeschool or perhaps to have children in the first place. Heck, maybe it refers to dh and me starting to date each other. Just depends on what level of bad day it is...

[lara1828]

Hmmm, I only have a 4.5 yo and a 2.5 yo (whom I don't consider to need "schooling"), so my mission statement is "Learn to read, do vision therapy every day."

what is groking?

Lara

[LeftField]

I want to steal Miranda's: "Just making it up as we go along." That perfectly describes us. I also chuckled at "What were we thinking?" by TortelliniMama.

Hmm. If I had to try to put something into words, something along the lines of a set of goals, it might look something like:

1. To support and encourage my children's natural enthusiasm
2. To take them to interesting places and expose them to interesting things.
3. To read to them, even when they can read to themselves (as long as they want me to)
4. To stay out of my children's way when they are teaching themselves things or simply enjoying an experience. No hovering allowed!
5. Similar to #4, to avoid consciously making something "an educational experience", because whenever I do that, everyone has much less fun and there's an annoying sense of pressure that prevents them from learning what they would otherwise.
6. To respect, support and encourage my children's natural abilities to : a. teach themselves and b. seek help when they really want it.
7. To do whatever I can to encourage my children's natural creativity. In this line of thought, I strive to provide resources but stay out of their way.

Is this Ok? I like threads like these. I would be in favor of a revolving thread. Discussion is good. And I like seeing what others do; it helps me learn.

[Milakais]

I like how David Albert summed it up:

"Have fun. Learn stuff. Grow."


And frogguruami, I love that you use the word "grok" to describe your hopes for your children's educations and exploration of the world. Perfect word, IMO, and I agree entirely.

[jake&zaxmom]

I don't have mine written out and nicely worded yet but some of the points that I want to include are

*to homeschool in such a way that, when they reach adulthood and look back on the experience, it will be with happy memories and satisfaction in the quality of their education. (To feel that they were well equipped to do whatever they choose to do with their lives.)

*to help them (ultimately) find meaningful work that they are passionate about.

*to have life skills that will benefit them and their families.

plus a lot of the points that have already been made in previous posts.

Watching this thread for more ideas!

[kathymuggle]

Originally Posted by LeftField

I want to steal Miranda's: "Just making it up as we go along." That perfectly describes us. I also chuckled at "What were we thinking?" by TortelliniMama.

Hmm. If I had to try to put something into words, something along the lines of a set of goals, it might look something like:

1. To support and encourage my children's natural enthusiasm
2. To take them to interesting places and expose them to interesting things.
3. To read to them, even when they can read to themselves (as long as they want me to)
4. To stay out of my children's way when they are teaching themselves things or simply enjoying an experience. No hovering allowed!
5. Similar to #4, to avoid consciously making something "an educational experience", because whenever I do that, everyone has much less fun and there's an annoying sense of pressure that prevents them from learning what they would otherwise.
6. To respect, support and encourage my children's natural abilities to : a. teach themselves and b. seek help when they really want it.
7. To do whatever I can to encourage my children's natural creativity. In this line of thought, I strive to provide resources but stay out of their way.

Is this Ok? I like threads like these. I would be in favor of a revolving thread. Discussion is good. And I like seeing what others do; it helps me learn.

Thanks for 4 and 5! I needed the reminder.

Kathy

[konamama]

subbing

[MyLittleWonders]

We tend to adopt Ms. Frizzle's educational mission statement:

Take chances, make mistakes, get messy.

[kathymuggle]

Originally Posted by LeftField

Is this Ok? I like threads like these. I would be in favor of a revolving thread. Discussion is good. And I like seeing what others do; it helps me learn.

Leftfield...There is a thread called "lets talk History" 1 page back.

I wish I new how to link it, but alas, that escapes me.

I probably should have called it "educational philosophy and History though!"

[Momma Aimee]

here is our ROUGH DRAFT -- just started putting in on paper last night

Not quiet sure what form i want to put it in yet, and I have more to add to it too...but thought I'd toss it out there, and bump this thread too

_________Homeschooling Statement
Mission and purpose

We the parents have the moral and legal obligation to craft, mold, and guide our children into adulthood as ethical, moral and productive people. Trustworthy, successful, and competent. We can, and should, use all resources avaaibel to us, such as the state school system, but the end result is our responsibility, our moral obligation and not a burden we can, or choose to, hand off to the overloaded failing state run schools.


Socialization:
Young children are impressionable, we the parents are morally obligated to ensure that the modles the children are impressed upon by are worthy.
Children should not be expected to exercise sound judgment regarding actions and associations independently until they are of an age to be able to make such moral decisions.



Goals of Education:
to facilitate an education where the ability to locate, understand and utilize needed information is a more important skill then the ability to regurgitate a bunch of facts and figures.


Other:
No fear of bullies on the playground or being disgraced in front of our social group (class) when you struggle with a subject
No opportunity to fly under the radar and get by with out truly accomplishing a task or learning information or skill

[morning glory]

I am brand new at this but my basic philosophy is no one can teach anyone anything...you can just put it out there and try to make it interesting enough that they will want to learn it. That goes for kids, grown ups and dogs...probably not so much for cats.

[MamaChel]

I'm going to be very general here, I suppose I could come up with something "fancier" but I'm very lazy. (Which is why I homeschool, LOL)

Mission "nurture a lifelong love of learning"

Or as my family says--"teach your kids to never, ever stop loving the learning process" (It's a 'joke' in my family that I will be in school forever b/c I love learning that much---ok not really a joke, I plan to get a PhD and then teach college so.....)