Hi master of none,
Thanks for engaging!
Perhaps "learning on one's own" doesn't capture what I had in mind – I certainly think that socialization is important, and an important part of learning. I've learned a huge amount from my peers. I was contrasting learning on one's own with school specifically. If one can find a friend who shares one's interests, one can learn outside of school together.
I find it plausible that curriculum designers wouldn't agree with my hodge podge characterization, but they have a conflict of interest, so I don't give this much weight.
I agree that my characterization of why most intelligent people don't go into teaching was overly simplistic. I've taught high school before, so the relevant issues are familiar to me.
Part of what we're working to do at Cognito Mentoring is to help students hone in on the most important subjects for them to learn.
I'm very interested to hear about your success with advocacy. What changes were made, and how did they help?
I can see why my post came across as favoring development of intellect over other things, but I don't endorse such a focus. I don't necessarily think that people shouldn't go to school, as there can be social benefits – I just think that people should take responsibility for their learning and not depend on school for intellectual nourishment. It seems important for children who homeschool to be involved in extracurricular activities that are social.
