Maybe Orwell Was Right…
One of the most famous lines in Orwell’s Animal Farm–or at least the one I recall the most–is:
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
I think Orwell may have foreseen the current state of thinking between some who oppose homeschooling. Ok, maybe I’m stretching a bit, but follow along.
When the animals first took over, the animals were initially treated fairly and pretty equally. Much like how homeschooling had been treated for quite some time, both historically and fairly recently. Sure, there was a little strain, but overall things were smooth.
But then certain animals–and I’m sure Orwell didn’t mean anything in the possible symbolism–decided that they were smarter, or had more insight, or simply were part of the “in” crowd. Kinda like much of the NEA, if you will. They believe they should control our children and what they learn, while all the time not looking at their own miserable failings compared both to foreign schools and to homeschoolers in the US.
And yet, like in Animal Farm, they may yet succeed unless we speak up…
One of the most famous lines in Orwell’s Animal Farm–or at least the one I recall the most–is:“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” I think Orwell may have foreseen the current state of thinking between some who oppose homeschooling. Ok, maybe I’m stretching a bit, but follow along. When…
Nice allusion. But I'd like your opinion: How can we "speak up"? I think that's where most people get stuck when we see something wrong. We want to make it right, but what do we do about it? What would be positive actions we could take? ~Luke
Thanks Luke–although I didn't develop it as fully as I wanted yet. That aside, I think that we as homeschoolers have a few things we could do:1. We need to come together more. What I've discovered is that homeschooling is a lot like the recent Ron Paul campaign: it is not at all a one-sided political entity. Homeschooling embraces left, right, and center, and there is a HUGE strength in that.2. We need to continue to defend our right to homeschool, both within the current structure we are individually in, but also in pushing the boundaries a bit.3. I think it would be amazing to hear more about studies about homeschooling in comparison to public. We need to continue to show the contrast, because I fully believe the gap will only keep growing.4. We need to homeschool in QUALITY, but also realize that our way may not be the best OR might not work for another family. That too is a strength, because unlike public school classes, we can tailor our teaching.