… and rediscover education.

WHEW! what a title for a relatively slim volume. But don’t let’s it’s size fool you, this book by Clark Aldrich is packed with fact-based commentary on “traditional school” and “education methods” and why it ain’t working. According to the bio-blurb, Clark Aldrich is a “global education thought leader, labeled a guru by Fortune magazine. He works with corporate, military, government and academic organizations at both the board level and as a hands-on implementer.” Now, I’m not sure what a “global education thought leader” might be, but his credentials and acceptance by governments, media, and corporate personalities show me that he probably knows of what he speaks.

Aldrich’s mission is to try to fix an education system that is broken; this book has some information that just might work!

Unschooling Rules is a fascinating read for anyone involved in educating our youth. Here are the 55 “rules” that Aldrich recommends be implemented in our schools/education systems (whether public, private or home) in order to truly educate our youth:

1. learn to be, to do, to know
2. focus on the 3Rs
3. learn something because you need it OR because you love it
4. 25 critical skills remain untaught: ethics, leadership, communicaiton, adapting, etc
5. schools prep students for jobs, not for educating the students
6. avoid the split between vo-tech/college prep, just educate
7. unschooling is the way we all learn, most of the time
8. a student in a classroom, learns how to be in a classroom, not how to be
9. sitting in a classroom is not a natural, comfortable place to be
10. books about animals, plants, art are no substitute for being with animals, plants, art
11. small, self-contained models of living things will work almost as well as being there
12. on-the-job-training, doing the work is more beneficial than just reading about doing
13. work must always be meaningful
14. include time for reflection, musing over what worked, what didn’t and why
15. healthy food options is a reflection of the overall environment; don’t skimp on lunch!
16. research and use all technologies that will work for different students with different needs
17. read-alouds, podcasts, audio-books will help the learning process while the student is doing
18. use a good spreadsheet software for planning, creation, and execution of most math problems
19. a well-stocked library, with good, true books and other media is worth it’s weight
20. read living books, not textbooks (he terms this “read what normal people read”)
21. use of any media (books, computer games, etc) should be balanced with real life experiences
22. formally learn only what will be used, reinforced in the next 14 days
23. allow students to build solutions, rather than handing them premade solutions
24. teachers need to lead by example
25. expose the truths by experience not just teaching
26. to teach: explore, play, add increased activity/rigor
27. ideal class size is 5 not 50
28. traditional school day = 3 hrs of formal instruction which can be covered in 2
29. homework doesn’t add anything to education, other than work for the teacher
30. if you teach it, you should do it (read a novel if you ask the student to read a novel)
31. avoid the Stockholm syndrome
32. traditional schools are erroneously designed for some winners, some losers and most in the middle
33. customize lessons/learning experiences to each student
34. there is no one answer for how to educate each student
35. be/do the mission statement
36. at least 15 models that are better than traditional school (incl summer camps, internships, family trips, etc)
37. feed passions and expect excellence
38. children don’t learn linerally but may be all over the place
39. five subjects each day, every day … really?
40. maturity occurs at different ages, but will occur
41. socialize your children — multi-generational, multi-racial, etc
42. same age children all together just doesn’t work
43. as parents, don’t just drop-off … stay involved
44. increase exposure to non-authority adults
45. tests don’t work
46. future is portfolios, not transcripts
47. keep a focused journal to help develop situational awareness
48. try different assessment-tools, not testing
49. don’t assume traditional college/university if for all
50. outdoors beats indoors
51. walk, talk, walk, investigate, walk
52. underschedule to take advantage of living
53. parents care more about their child/children than a system ever will
54. children should be raised, educated by people who truly love them
55. “only sustainable answer to the global education challenge is a diversity of approaches”

I’ve only given broad brushstrokes of Aldrich’s work — if it’s interested you a bit, please do check out this book. Now, I don’t necessarily agree with all these “rules” or his analyses … but many of them make perfect sense to me. I’ve seen the bad and ugly of education (both from the student-side and the teacher-side) … I’ve seen the great benefits in my own home and others’ of alternative education ideas and practices.