Elyce at Home

I have been homeschooling my children for the last 8 years. We have studied history from ancient times to the present, biology, physics, chemistry, earth science, grammar, math, and many other subjects. We have been studying all of this in the name of education, an education that is supposed to get them ready for the “real world.”

Many times my children have asked why they need to know this or that, especially my son. Sometimes I have an answer, many times I do not.

But I really started thinking about what they need to know for the “real world.” What skills do I use every day?  My husband goes off to work every day as an engineer. What skills does he use?

The more I thought about it, the more I began to realize that my son had a point. Most of what is taught in our system of education is never used.

We like to watch the TV show “Are You Smarter Than a 5^th Grader,” where contestants answer 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th grade questions with the help of a small class of 5^th graders. The questions run the gamut from math to grammar to cultural studies. The prize for answering all 11 questions correctly is $1 million.

Over the 2 years that the show has been on, only one contestant has answered all 11 questions correctly and won the million dollars. How can that be? Didn’t we all go through elementary school at some point?

First, I am not sure what curriculum they are using in elementary schools these days, but most of the questions were not from things taught in my elementary school…high school, maybe.

But more importantly, the reason that most people do not know the answers to these questions is because they don’t need to know them. They are facts and trivia that have nothing to do with the “real world.” If it was relevant then people would remember it. 

Now, I am not saying all education is useless. I would probably not be writing this at all if it were not for my education, for which I am very grateful. It is great to learn how to effectively read and write or learn how to use percentages to calculate interest paid on a car loan or look at history with the intent of not repeating it. But most education doesn’t take it that far. Most of the time, it stops at the facts and trivia stage. But that is a whole other topic.

Back to the original question…

What do my children really need to know for life on their own? What skills will they need to use every day?

Think about it.

I’ll let you know what I came up with tomorrow.

Filed under: Uncategorized on January 6th, 2009