and now lets look at the other side of the fence... I was talking with a friend of mine this weekend and this topic came up over coffee... her toddler was happily sipping away on her sippy cup and playing away on her ipad in the todder proof case she purchased at the local kid store. My friend said that there was a growing movement among her friends to keep their kids out of schools, not because the schools weren't any good but because there was nothing the schools could teach them that they couldn't learn at "co-ops" note.. not daycare, not homeschool.. but co-ops. when I asked about this she said that the local school district her now toddler would be attending for preschool in the fall for K-3 was starting a program where the children were to attend these classes in little playgroup like clouds in various places and times for art, music, physical education, language development, and a parent or caregiver was supposed to attend with them, during their time there the parent/caregiver was educated on how to further help the child at home. And these co-ops were also being done online and would last through k-5.
She said she was sure it wasn't for everyone, but brick and morter schools weren't for everyone any more either and she used herself as an example. Since she graduated high school she had not "sat" in a classroom, every course she had taken through her masters degree had been through online education. She learned better that way. We both agreed that both were needed in the future as not all students learned the same way, but it would be nice to be able to allow parents and students to choose what fit them better instead of making everyone the same.