Children, school and remote learning

There are 7 replies in this Thread which has previously been viewed 1,935 times. The latest Post () was by Rice.

1st Official Post
    • Official Post

    I am finding great consolation in reading the New York Times, and I look forward to it before going to bed or on Sunday morning when I am on my own on the terrace with Serafina-the-cat. The app allows registered users to customize the content to their liking, and I like a lot reading about society and culture.


    My latest read are these two articles: Is Your Child an Orchid, a Tulip or a Dandelion? on sensitive children and another one I can't find anymore about children thriving with homeschooling because they finally off bullying and peer pressure.


    Have you ever tried homeschooling? Do you think it's as effective as regular schooling?

    Couldn’t do it. The closest I ever came was being tasked with teaching piano lessons to my little sister, when we were kids: a disaster for both of us.


    In grad school I learned through teaching freshman chem labs, that I was not cut out for teaching in any form, and I suspect some parents now in charge of their children’s education are finding the same.


    Many people are wary of home schooling because for decades, the majority of home schooling parents have been religious conservatives who choose to keep their children out of schools to shield them from contact with teachers and children who don’t share their beliefs.


    This may be why such a distinction is being made between “home schooling” (by parents) and “distance learning” (by trained teachers under the aegis of the school).

    • Official Post

    I think homeschooling is not allowed in Italy, unless expressly justified. I came across the term when reading expats blogs in the 2000s - mostly US expats in Italy willing to homeschool.

    Distance learning is a different beast, but I don't know how much autonomous can be little children in learning by distance. I can see college kids doing it, but maybe for the younger ones it blends with homeschooling. I guess not all parents are equipped to homeschool.

    GlasgowJohn Junior has been home schooling since the whole pandemia started.


    It certainly is no substitute for the real thing .


    GJ Junior's school has created a different timetable from his original one and what annoys most of the parents is that neither the teachers nor the parents are educated to fulfill the roles they have to do in the new normality.


    Our son is quite independent but he is quite shy and will not actively take part in a class taken by Zoom or by Google Meet , unless his mum or me are there prodding him .


    The big failure of the home schooling is getting timid children to became aggressive participators in the class.


    I also feel that kids miss the social part of break time playing with their friends ( and also getting away from their parents for a bit of the day)


    Once school finishes and homework is done , our boy gets on to PS 4 and interacts with all his mates and learns more about life than he did at "school"


    What will happen in the future?


    God only knws....

    • Official Post

    I was able to find the article I was reading last night. The comments are as interesting as the article.