Schools and Rules are Tools for Fools-- Part II of IV

This is part of a four-part post about art and schoolwork. To see the introductory post, click here.

I mentioned that as a homeschooler, I am able to take classes this year that I almost certainly would not have the opportunity to participate in were I in public school. The first of these classes I would like to discuss is not really a class at all, but a discussion group for literature.

This discussion group is held at one of my friend's houses. Every Thursday, seven of us gather to have a really great, nearly entirely student led discussion about whatever work of literature we are currently reading together, drink tea, chat after the discussion, drink tea, talk about fandoms and writing, and drink tea. Did I mention the tea? We like tea.

I feel incredibly blessed to be surrounded by such a great group of like-minded peers like this. We all are very interested in writing and reading. Many of us are actors as well. Our shared excitement for a good story and fascinating characters that can be related to is definitely perceivable in our discussions. (In fact, a few of us went to the children's section in a book store the other day, and we found ourselves discussing the characterization of Lucille from the Junie B. Jones series). Although we are definitely interested in all elements of a good story-- plot, pacing, setting, description, etc. --I think it is safe to say that it is the characters in a book hold the most interest for many of us. And we're all fans of Doctor Who, to cap it off. Really, I just love this whole group to pieces, if you couldn't tell already.

We have a wonderful adult facilitator who picks out books, provides discussion topics if we need them, and gently steers the conversation back on track when we deviate to topics such as gay rights, Doctor Who, human nature, Doctor Who, feminism, or Doctor Who. Other than that, the discussion is completely student led.

I believe that the thing that makes all this possible is that this 'class' is mandatory for none of us; we all really want to be there. In a public school, the discussion of literature in this fashion would probably be mandatory, which, depending on the group of students, could take a lot of the joy and purpose out of it. If just one person doesn't want to be in a class like this, they sort of put a damper on the whole group. It's not that large-scale education facilities really have a lot of choice in this matter; their job is to educate and broaden the horizons of as many people as possible, and I appreciate that the difficulty of this task increases with each additional student who walks in through their doors. But my point is, because of the small size of my group and the honest desire of each of us to ascertain more knowledge about the fascinating psychology of the crazy, terrible, wonderful, mad species known as human beings though the study of literature,  we are able to have some really fascinating, scintillating discussions.

So far, we have studied The Dead (James Joyce) and The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald). We are currently reading A Passage to India (E.M. Forster), which is a fascinating social commentary on the colonized India of the twentieth century. I'll spare you all my rants about each of these fascinating books. I admit that I probably would not have made my way through most of these stories without the relative structure of the group to answer to, as A Passage to India in particular can be a bit of a slog at first (it's worth it once you get to the middle, by the way). That's another thing the group is useful for. It really motivates me to finish a work I might not even have picked up otherwise, because if one of us doesn't do the reading, the discussion pretty much becomes pointless.

I'll end with one of my favorite quotes. "When I learn something new--and it happens everyday-- I feel a little more at home in this universe, a little more comfortable in the nest." --Bill Moyers. I'll admit that I have no earthly idea who Bill Moyers is or was or why he said that, but I think he's on to something. Stories are, and always have been, a way for us to explore our own humanity through the eyes of another: an author or a fictional character. Sometimes the view of an outsider is needed in order to let us see what should be obvious about our own lives, and that's something that stories (and art in general) gives to us.
 

Schools and Rules are Tools for Fools: Part I of IV

This is part of a four-part series of posts about schoolwork and learning in general. No, don't worry. This is not going to be a soapbox where I whine about doing work. In fact, I would like to discuss three of my favorite aspects of school this year. However, I am going to start with an introduction that may come off as a bit soap-boxy. Please bear with me; I promise it's relevant. :)

"Rules and schools are tools for fools-- I don't give two mules for rules." This extremely creative, original, and oh-so cleverly contrived poem is a quote from one of my favorite, endearingly obstinate book characters: Constance from the Mysterious Benedict Society series (an excellent read, by the way. Why is it that children's books tend to be so much better than books aimed at teenagers?).

I believe that by creating this poem, Constance is expressing doubt in a system that enforces mandatory learning of subjects and material that she feels will not be useful in the real world. She is not entirely correct in her particular case (I can't tell you why without spoiling a surprise in the plot), but she's not wrong, either. It's my opinion that the main problem with the education system in the United States is that it is way too uniformly molded: it is meant to work for every child, and thus leaves a great many children out. I have no problem whatsoever with inclusiveness as a concept, but there are significant problems in making this a reality. In enforcing a system so homogenous, individuality of learning strategies is lost, along with a lot of the whole point of education. Learning becomes something mandatory, enforced, and moderated by adults, rather than something to spark interest in life and a future career, which is what it should be.

I don't deny that it is important to be well-rounded. A really good computer programmer may find himself with no prospects if computer programming is the only thing he is able to do well and all his skills are unneeded for whatever reason during a particular time. However, at the same time, I don't really see why a youth with enormous talent in visual arts, graphic design, or music should have to take AP Calculus if they don't want to in order to have the required number of classes to get into college. It's not that AP Calculus isn't useful. It's just that a student who is definitely going to go into the arts probably won't use it a lot in the real world, and would make better use of their time in high school practicing more pertinent skills.

This is one of the reasons I enjoy homeschooling so much: my study schedule, though not as flexible as popular culture would have you believe, is nearly entirely self-directed. Yes, I still have to take classes I despise and don't personally see as relevant to my life. But I am held accountable for those things, and if they don't get done, I know I won't be able to study what I'm actually interested in later. Additionally, as a homeschooler, I am able to take classes I am truly interested at the times that I want to. For instance, AP U.S. History is a class normally only taken by 11th or 12th graders, and is not even an option for most freshmen in public school. However, in my freshman year, I was able to take it because I wanted to. (I ended up getting a 5 out of 5, by the way. Still happy about that :D).

Because of the flexibility of homeschooling, I was able to take three classes this year that I truly enjoy greatly and would almost certainly not been able to take were I in public school: AP art History, advanced music theory, and a literature discussion group. I'll devote a post in this series to each of them.

~Naddie Boyne

Adventures in Haberdashery

I have an important announcement to make: Despite popular belief, I am not dead.

Due to my long hiatus from Singing Dragons, I have no doubt that this became the popular belief nationwide. I'm sure that my myriads of adoring fans have been utterly bereft without me. Well folks, I'm back, and I didn't actually die. So you can come out of mourning now.

What have I been up to, you ask, during this unnecessarily long hiatus? Well, dear reader, among other things, I have been making hats. My obsession with steampunk has only continued to assume greater heights while I've been away from this blog, and I have created two hats.

The first (my second-ever attempt at hat making, after the creation of a so-so fez) is the fascinator below, made of cardboard, hot glue, faux-leather, and some embellishments that were lying around the house.

That one turned out pretty well, so I made a small top hat next. It took a lot of black fabric, ribbon, hot glue, and episodes of Doctor Who to get it finished, but I did it! I used flowers, lace, a tiny compass, and some gears as embellishments.

~Naddie Boyne

Random Photograph

I took this photo when I went to Ocean City with some friends last summer. It's just a random, cool shot that I wanted to post. It has no purpose, other than serving as a nice example of aesthetics. Now you have seen a random photo of a boat with no purpose. Congratulations!

~Naddie

Flower Arrangement

I like arranging flowers. I guess it's because I love to play with color combinations. I have been denying the fact that summer is over and it is now fall, and I will probably go right on denying it until May. But at least I can have some fun with the weather and the plants that it produces. Here's a little arrangement I did a week ago inspired by fall colors:

I used marigolds, nandina leaves and milkweed blooms. I tied on ribbons in coordinating colors and decorated the plate with some nice yellow bell peppers that happened to be lying around.

May the cold months leave as quickly as possible this year!

~Naddie

Philmont Photos

I went to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico this July, where I went on a 10-day backpacking trek in the backcountry. It was a very valuable experience, and I wanted to post some of the better photos that I took.

I love Philmont so much and I really, really can't wait to go back someday!

~Naddie

Modern Art (a parody)

I would like to enlighten your lives a little bit by sharing some top-notch modern art that I created. I feel within my soul that these are a vivid look into modern society and almost everything that plagues the minds of mortals today and throughout all of human history.

An Eternity Passes While We Wait for the World to Fix Itself

Emptyness of a Human Soul

The Mental Prison Created by a Cold, Impersonal Consumer Society

The Torment of a Dying Planet

Life altering and soul wrenching, is it not?

~Naddie