What that opinion says to me, is that some children have the right to choose, the right to live in a way that nurtures freedom, and some? Some don't. I believe that freedom, on both an individual and community level, is a fundamental right for every person and community. So deciding that some children deserve to be given as much freedom as possible, yet some don't, just really doesn't sit right with me.
Which leads me to the fact that as far as I'm concerned, unschooling is the best choice for everyone, and should be the default. By saying that, what I mean is that everyone should be given the freedom to choose from the start. With that freedom of choice, it's quite fine if some kids or teens decide to go to a school, or to structure their days in a rigid manner, or not. The key is choice.
Because I don't just see unschooling as one option among many, but as something that should be the default, sometimes I worry that people see my opinions as being somehow exclusionary or judgmental to anyone who doesn't unschool. Yet I realize that not everyone is going to agree with me, and that I'm not going to "convince" everyone. I don't expect all my friends, my Facebook friends, all the people I follow on Twitter, or all the readers of this blog to share this opinion. All I ever attempt to do is share my opinions and experiences in an honest and authentic way: to share my truth as best I can. And that's what I'm doing when I say that I believe that everyone deserves freedom, not just a select few individuals deemed worthy or capable of dealing with it! I believe we all have the innate ability to make our own decisions, and to live consensually, these abilities just need to be nurtured and allowed to grow properly.
Update: I expanded on some opinions expressed in this post here, which may help clarify a few things that were brought up in the comments on this post..
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