After graduating from college, I have been asked a number of times if or when I'll take up a Master's degree. My mother, after learning that my cousin is taking up Master's in UPOU, has always tried to convince me. It's partly because my scholarship also applies to a Masteral. Sayang nga, but I really don't want to do it.
Though the charm of a new title is there, I just was never really interested.
That's not to say I think less of those who continue schooling. On the contrary, I admire them! For there really are people who benefit the most from formal instruction. But I'm not like them.
You see, I'm the type of person who obsesses about many different things. I'm not lukewarm. I either get very passionate about a subject or I don't care about it at all. Despite spending the majority of my life in schools, schooling just falls into the second category.
Perhaps it's the reason why I never maintained grades. Ever. My grades fluctuated as quickly as my interests changed. But it was only recently that I understood why. I now understand that I never liked schooling because I was never able to pursue the interests I was passionate about.
To be completely honest, unlike some of my old classmates, I don't remember what I was taught in school. I only remember a few tidbits that captured my attention, and usually, they are something my teachers read or learned outside of the textbook.
Again, it's either I'm fully interested about something or not interested at all. School didn't really give me the venue or time or encouragement to pursue the former.
Pursuing the Titanic
Image from Wikipedia
Recently, I was able to share with a close friend about my on-again, off-again relationship with the Titanic. While I love the 1997 film, it's the actual ship and the 1912 tragedy that I mean. Somehow, I managed to surprise her with what little knowledge I had.
I remember getting fascinated with it when I first saw the movie in high school (it was actually shown when I was way way younger but I wasn't allowed inside the cinema - blame Rose - so I only got to see it when it was shown on TV). I fell in love with Jack, of course, but more than that, I was fascinated about the ship, its captain, and its builder. Sometimes I think about the real survivors. But I never did get to know about them because, well, school got in the way.
(And please don't tell me I had the weekends to do it. In my school, Saturdays were for projects and practices while Sundays were for attending the required Catholic groups.)
Come college, I had access to more resources about the Titanic, but who was I kidding? Nobody got time for that in college. I still believe one needs formal instruction for college, so go for it. So it was good bye Titanic...for a while.
It was only recently when I was truly able to immerse myself in reading a lot about my favorite ship. I "studied" the ship, its crew, the events surrounding the tragedy, the survivors. Through these, I was even able to analyze why Jack had to die in the film. I just drank up all the information I got for I had the time to do it!
I truly enjoyed reading a lot about the Titanic, and by just doing this, I was able to study history, politics, biographies, physics, health science, literary analysis, and even drama and filmmaking! If you don't think that counts as "real education," I'm not sure what does.
But if I were enrolled in a school today and were taking up another degree, I might not have the time to immerse myself in the Titanic. Only figuratively of course. I'd have been busy with things that don't interest me as much.
Had I Been Homeschooled...
With the example I shared above, I could only imagine how much more I would have learned had I been homeschooled. Knowing myself, I would've spent months learning about the Titanic! Apart from it, I have many other interests, and I would have had time to study all of them in depth! Heck, I would've learned how to play the guitar and the piano, too!
I believe I would've been a brighter and happier kid had I been homeschooled and allowed to explore.
I can only imagine how much a child would learn if only he was in charge of the learning, not an adult who is a virtual stranger. Because in reality, for hundreds of generations, that's how mankind has been learning.
We're Homeschooling Next Year!
Will he obsess over planes or will he love ships like how his mother fell in love with the Titanic? Will he be a tinkerer or more of a speaker? Will he be business-minded like his father? I'd hate to see all these lovely interests thwarted just because it's time to memorize dates and names.
For a good read on homeschooling, I encourage you to read this writeup about homeschooling misconceptions. This fueled me to write this post at 12am.
What about you? Do you sometimes wish you were homeschooled, too?
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