Home schooling vs. Conventional Schooling

[Skunks]

I was sort of half-unschooled. Up until last summer, I spent maybe a sum total of four years as a full-time student, with a handful of credit and noncredit courses at the local community college. I now have my GED, having avoided highschool entirely, and am a freshman at <a href="http://www.uoregon.edu/">UO</a>. Everybody who I've mentioned this to around here has said something to the effect of, "yeah, highschool's a waste of time." One guy at the bus stop compared it in unfavorable terms to a blowjob; I'm not sure what he was getting at, but none the less he didn't seem terribly enamored with the state of public schools in Oregon.

I think there are a lot of misconceptions with "home schooling", because it conjures up the idea of a school where there's one pupil, two part-time teachers, and a lot of books and set curriculum. For me, it was never really like that. Until we got the internet, I just entertained myself with books and stuff. Afterwards, it was programming, porn, and games. I can't say it'll work for everyone, or even that it worked for me, or would have worked without the various odd circumstances of my life (my dad being an actor/writer who never really had a job until I was 15, rich grandparents, etc). I can tell you, though, that nobody who actively attend(s/ed) them and talks to me about such things thinks public school is about learning. An interesting take on why school doesn't work is described in a book by A.S. Neill, "<a href="http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/">Summerhill</a>".

To answer the question, though: It's like anything else in life. At some point you should ask yourself what it is that you're trying to accomplish. If you want a daycare for your kids up through their 18th birthday, yeah, public school might be the way to go. If you want them to learn, it might be worth looking into the alternatives.