What Makes People Think They Are Qualified To Teach Their Own Kids?

[Withywindle]

198. After reading this thread, I am so glad I wasn't homeschooled.

My parents are very smart, very well-read progressive people....but I would never have learned how to stand up for myself in an argument if I hadn't gone to an Appalachian public school full of fundies.

And coming from literally the only atheist family in my whole town (pop. 260 as of 2010, per Wikipedia) I started arguing YOUNG, like 2nd grade. With my peers *and* my teachers, who were all "dinosaur bones are tricks of the devil" at the time.


The important thing was that I knew my parents would usually back me up on factual/indoctrination issues against my teachers--but not necessarily on issues related to discipline or homework.

I learned the difference early on between when one is being penalized for one's beliefs vs. when one is being penalized due to slacking.

I'm very glad my parents weren't the ONLY disciplinarians/source of conflict that I had to face, and that I was taught at a young age to recognize the difference between legitimate vs. illegitimate uses of authority.

I had to face different kinds of adults with conflicting power agendas early on, and had my parents' help in sorting out WHICH "because I say so" was fair, and WHICH "because I say so" was fascist.

If the only adult authority figures I'd ever known were my parents, if I'd never been exposed to power-tripping grade-school martinet figures, I don't think I would have understood until too late in my development why QUESTION AUTHORITY as a concept is so vitally important.

And yes, I got in trouble a lot for not "respecting" adults just because they were adults. But my parents taught me that respect is something that must be earned and age has nothing to do with it. Gods bless them for that, it is 100% true.