school to you = ?

Question

How do you think school has afected you now that you are older and have a career.
Explain the good, positive and the bad.
Also do you think you would have learned just as much or even more if you were home schooled?

Answer 1

The only thing positive that I can say about my school experiences is that they have strengthened my resolve that no child of mine will ever attend a public school and that I will homeschool if at all possible.

Everything I have learned academically has been learned either from my parents (reading, early math skills, and the ability to engage in logical argument) or from self study (everything else).

Most of what I learned at school was social and most of it was wrong.

My school experiences taught me that to be accepted by society you have to look and think like everyone else. They taught me that I am living in a world where you have to live in a constant mood of defensiveness and that you always work with people who are about your age, from the same part of town, and that most of those people will be living at my economic level and be of the same race and nationality. Finally I learned that if you believe in God than you are wrong and will be punished for practicing your religion and that this only applies to religions stemming from the judeo/Christian tradition.

I graduated high school in 1992. The real world has taught me that you work with people who have different ways of thinking, are of a variety of ages, are of variety of races, and come from a variety of socio-economic, and religious backgrounds.

Answer 2

I am 36 years old, and I have just recently pondered my own education. Moreover, I would have to say that my early elementary years were excellent, and I received that education from the public school system. I had caring, hard working teachers that excelled at their jobs, but they also had the advantage of the "old" school system of class rules which were obeyed (such as no talking without permission), corporal punishment, and active parental involvement. Further, our primary education focused strictly on the "three R's," and homwork was a daily routine and always completed.

However, I moved to a different state in my junior high years, and in my opinion, that is where my education pretty much stopped. That state and its educational system were the exact opposite of my elementary years. In that school, attendance was expected, but learning was an exception. Socializing and whining were the routine. I can remember the first time in class that we were assigned homework, and nearly every student there protested... loudly!!! Within a matter of minutes, the teacher rescinded her assignment and told us that we could do the work in class the rest of that week.

Therefore, to answer your question, I know that I would have learned more through homeschooling during my seventh through twelfth grade years. However, I would have only learned more than I did because I would have had more time to teach myself since I had to become a self-learner. Thus, I believe that your intelligence is most affected by you, not the school that you attend. In other words, the student has to apply him or herself in learning or the educational institution that they attend will really not matter.

Answer 3

School provided me with much needed time away from home and a decent education. However, it affected me negatively in trying to stay away from the limelight and attention. I got picked on for good grades and being done work quickly and knowing exact answers to things. It made me very self-conscious about being 'smart'. But I also wasn't appropriately challenged. Most things came so easily that I didn't know what to do with what posed the smallest amount of difficulty and easily gave up.

I'll add that I did not partake in school sports or teams or clubs. I really didn't relate well enough with others to even want to be a part of all that.

My school experience overall, though, was good. I enjoyed being at school and even became an elementary teacher. It didn't take long in teaching to see that things had changed substantially from the time I was in elementary school. Mostly on the social scene, but also academically. So much more being forced through the curriculum by the government and more testing to 'make sure' the kids were learning it all.

It has been since being out of school that I've done the really important social and emotional growth. I had such a hard time relating to people before that, didn't know how to crack jokes or poke fun at friends, things like that. I've grown in self-confidence and determination and don't balk anymore at challenges. It's not school that developed those qualities in me, though. It was my own self-awareness.

Had I been homeschooled, I undoubtedly would have finished school early and perhaps have been challenged more. However, my relationship with my mom during much of my school years was such that I would have undoubtedly run away before finishing school if she'd been my teacher... Not every family should homeschool!!

Answer 4

When I was a pupil in junior high (back in the late '70s/early '80s), school was a boring, dull and useless place. I think it had to do with the way things were taught. I have the impression that I didn't learn anything then. I don't have really good memories of school as a place where to learn things and work. I basically remember school as a place where I had fun during recess with my mates. I don't think I would have learned more or better if I was home-schooled. The funny thing is that, by a twist a fate, I became a teacher !

Answer 5

I spent most of my school days trying to fit in somewhere, gossiping with friends and figuring out how to get out of a class I hated. I was eventually "put" into a class for kids who would rather work than go to school. I went to class four hours a day and held a full time job. In this class I learned life lessons about money, taxes, and payroll. Funny thing is this was the best learning experience I received all through high school.

Answer 6

I went to public school, first out in the country then in the suburbs
I value the education I got
The academic side did prepare me for college
The social side prepared me for life, I learned about people, how to sell them stuff, how to avoid certain types, how to deal with bullies.
Being involved in sports taught me how to accept defeat and how to bounce back, what to take seriously and when to realize a game is just a game. HOw to be a leader, how to be a follower, when quit, when do PUSH through (how to challenge myself, leave ALL out on the field)
The schools in the suburbs where a year ahead of my old school so I had poor grades for a while, I graduated in the middle of the pack
I had fun picking out which electives. I took swimming every chance I had (I wound up as a certified life gaurd!!) and took many vocational classes (drafting, shop) that later on helped me learn mechanical engineering for my degree. I took advanced placement classes for college credit - I only passed half of those! no regret there, I was very prepared to take them over at college
I do regret I never took an art class, painting, drawing, are not just techincal but spritual and I am still learning to open up along those lines

what a fun question to anwer!!

Answer 7

I asked my older daughter, after she had spent 4 yrs in the service, if she felt she lacked anything because of homeschooling. She started laughing and told me that she was way ahead of her peers because of homeschooling. They did not know many of the things that she knew, some of which were academic and some of which were just about life and home. For example, she knew how to wash clothes and dishes and care for a home. She is an excellent cook, and she taught herself web page design. Her computer skills won her a medal from joint services with the miltary and the NSA. She had no problem keeping up with her peers on any level.

We used curriculum in homeschooling and moved from one grade level to the next, homeschooling year round. We also practiced academic skills in real life, for example: Cooking and baking by reading recipes, using reading and math skills in practical application. We also had shopping assignments involving reading labels and figuring out the best prices per unit of things on the shopping list, etc.

This combination of academic and life skills does not take place in a school classroom, where a teacher has many students and generally doesn't have time for even the basic curriculum. Homeschool families can be creative and make life a learning experience that goes hand-in-hand. We enjoyed our time together and my daughter is thrilled that she was given a top-rate education at home.

Oh, another thought for homeschooling parents: I did not allow my children computer time unless they spent 30 minutes that day on Mavis Beacon Typing. I told them that if they wanted to use the computer, they would learn the keyboard and use it properly. Yes, they complained! Now, as adults, they thanked me for making them learn to type. They are both excellent typists and it has helped them immensely, with my younger daughter knocking out college papers easily, because she is very computer literate, can do word processing, and types fast and accurately. I started them typing in early grade school level. They learned quickly and it has paid off!

My older daughter was talking about how well she typed and how it helped her in the Army. I asked her who taught her those wonderful typing skills. She responded, "Mavis Beacon" with a big grin on her face. hehehe

Best Wishes,
Sue

Answer 8

Interesting question. Because I challenged a number of courses, I ended up with lots of study periods. Which are pretty dull. So I did courses by correspondence, working in study hall, and in effect did some homeschooling while I was in school. Truth to tell, I think the courses I did by myself were better because I had to do all the work myself, and to understand it before I moved on to the next step.

Answer 9

school was so much FUNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!! I MISS SCHOOL :-(
i had maximum fun at school......no complaints at all xcept exams
those are the best days.........