Parenting These Days – Homeschool or Expand What Your Kid Learns as Academia Changes
I posted about retraining and focused on apprenticeship forms in that.
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But in this day of systemic renovations due to the pandemic, the change is beginning younger as parents consider their kids’ being safe and educated.
Not only are they considering homeschooling for the younger ones. but also whether long term academia is safe or even a good investment for their older ones.
With systems crashing all over the place, what does a parent look at, besides their child’s dream and whether they have the smarts and strength to get there?
Some people suggest sending your kid to trade school. And yes, that is a decent income. Fairly secure too. But factories crash, businesses turn over/relocate, and worst of all, people get injured and become ill.
So maybe the best choice is to provide something that is more transitional? Like leadership skills, and technology skills like IT. So they are less ‘specialized’ in their training. That makes them more versatile if some disaster comes along. Make their education somewhere between a ‘thinker’ and a ‘doer’, so they can transfer those skills between fields as well as between worker and mgmt.
That take excellence in a trade base to further directions like teaching, mgmt,
facilitating or recruiting for others, advocating for the occupation – like being a union rep. Which leaves them having more transferable skills. Which is more job security.
Or another option is to make sure your child who has good language skills actually learns the most common languages in the world. Which these days are: Mandarin Chinese, English, Hindustani, Spanish and Arabic. Then they can take their skills to many countries.
If your child has any science skills, make sure they learn Latin. I know from first hand experience how relevant that is to many fields.
Even if a kid isn’t that great at actual science and math, teaching them logic makes a difference.
And having them learn decent research skills works for any field. Starting with: what is a good source? What is authority?
Them knowing such things as: how to do surveys, statistics, graphs, pie charts, and formatting research papers are skills that translate as well.
Basic business and accounting skills go across many fields as well. Money handling, budgets, daily journal logs. taxation. Critical if they want to run their own business or be independent in a trade system.
And don’t forget about things that make them good people to have in your corner in a struggle. Things like negotiation, patience, stress mgmt.
They could also learn inspection skills which would relate if they wanted to be in trades, even be a home owner some day. Or if they want to work in a professional kitchen, even have good food hygiene in their own.
These kind of things help them go from worker who is stuck in a dead end job, who is prone to whatever the world throws at them, or someone who can grow no matter what the world or their health throws at them.
And for girls/women, it helps make them more independent.
The TL:DR is the more flexible you are in your education, the more opportunities you have. Whatever the world does.
Because going the academic route isn’t the surety it was when we were young. It costs a fortune and these days putting your kid into a lecture hall for 2-4 years of 2-300 students is just a stupid risk. For something that may not even get them a job.
So maybe we need to make a between stage. Have integrative courses that will follow their child no matter what. Even if they are a challenge in a structured learning situation, they can succeed at life. Even if their school isn’t flexible in their programs, you can supplement their learning at home. Or home school.
These days, that maybe the safer option. Fewer viral outbreaks, less bullying, no guns unless you have them, and you decide what religions they study, if any. Without limiting your child. Most local school boards will help you succeed.
mspeachierocks 