deschoolers
Formal learning skeptics
Deschoolers are people who advocate for or practice deschooling—the belief that formal schooling is unnecessary or harmful and that children learn better through self-directed experience.
The term is associated with Ivan Illich's 1971 book *Deschooling Society*, which argued that institutionalized education stifles creativity and perpetuates inequality.
Deschoolers often overlap with unschoolers and homeschoolers but emphasize dismantling the concept of school itself rather than simply relocating it.
The deschoolers in our group let their kids pursue whatever interests them.
Self-directed home education
- self-directedManaging oneself without supervision
- self-educationIndependent pursuit of knowledge
- autodidactismLearning independently, without instructors
- self-taughtEducated without instructors
self-motivated · learner-centered · self-paced · self-regulation · self-discovery · free-range · self-determination
Self-directed home education
- project-basedOrganized around distinct undertakings
- experientialDerived from direct involvement
- mentorshipGuidance from experienced person
- apprenticeshipLearning trade through employment
play-based · self-study · strewing · eclectic · co-ops
Eliminating toxins from body
- deprogrammingReversing coercive belief implantation
- adjustmentAlteration to improve fit
- deconditioningLoss of conditioned response
- recoveryRegaining what was lost
relearning · healing · unlearning · reconnecting · trust-building · patience · gradual · reorientation
Releasing long-term patients systemwide
- liberationRelease from constraint
- anti-authoritarianOpposing absolute governmental control
- decentralizationDistributing power from center
- grassrootsCommon people as political base
unschooling
Self-directed home education
- self-directedManaging oneself without supervision
- self-educationIndependent pursuit of knowledge
- autodidactismLearning independently, without instructors
self-taught · self-motivated · learner-centered · self-paced · self-regulation · self-discovery · free-range · self-determination
unschooling
Self-directed home education
- project-basedOrganized around distinct undertakings
- experientialDerived from direct involvement
- mentorshipGuidance from experienced person
apprenticeship · play-based · self-study · strewing · eclectic · co-ops
detoxing
Eliminating toxins from body
- deprogrammingReversing coercive belief implantation
- adjustmentAlteration to improve fit
- deconditioningLoss of conditioned response
recovery · relearning · healing · unlearning · reconnecting · trust-building · patience · gradual · reorientation
deinstitutionalization
Releasing long-term patients systemwide
- liberationRelease from constraint
- anti-authoritarianOpposing absolute governmental control
- decentralizationDistributing power from center
deschoolersschool administrators
Those who manage educational institutions
deschooling, school, schools, schooled, schooling, schooler, schoolers, preschool, preschooler