The first time I ever thought about this was in an Art History class, when the professor told us that all education amounts to is knowing how to find out what you need to know. It is the only definition of education I have ever heard that made sense! The professor, Dr. Robert Engass, had a Ph. D. in Art History, but he knew that was not the reason he was an educated man.

The more you read, the more you find out about things. Reading, in itself, is a way to improve your education. It has nothing to do with school and everything to do with learning what you need to know. Travel is another way to learn about new things. Some people learn from watching videos or TV; others learn by watching and asking questions. Getting an education involves a lot more than sitting quietly at a desk, listening to someone telling you what to think! In fact, sitting quietly at a desk, listening, is often indoctrination rather than education.

Learning to use a library and the internet, to do research, is a good way to begin your education. Watching people work and asking them questions is another important way to learn. Going to school does not "give you" an education. You must do that for yourself. Education is not a spectator sport. It is self directed, as learning can only be done by the student. The teacher cannot insure that the student remembers a thing.

Before we had "child labor laws", many children became apprentices and learned a trade. Their education was "on the job" and relevant to how they could earn a living. Obviously, there were some problems with this. No one wants to see a small child working in a coal mine or on a fishing boat. However, there is no reason that a teenager who is interested in learning mining or fishing should not have the opportunity to do so!

We have come to a place where manufacturing has left our nation, almost completely. One reason for this is public school children are not permitted to learn how to do anything. Yes, we have vocational schools, but they are not "real". They do not, in most cases, provide a training ground in the real world. More and more states are trying to get all high school graduates to go to college where, again, they will not learn anything "real". College is NOT vocational school and was never intended as such. We have taken the word "education" and re-worked it to mean something far, far remote from its actual meaning!

How many college graduates are working in their fields? and how many more are working at McDonalds, where you don't even need a high school diploma to do a good job? It amazes me that someone who has spent most of their life in school expects to start at the top, earning as much money as those with years of experience. Yet many college students think that piece of paper will guarantee them a job!

Even worse are those who expect "the government" to guarantee jobs. Our schools and colleges forget to teach the students that jobs are created by wealth, not governments! The students have no idea how free enterprise works because their teachers don't, either. Modern public school teachers work for the government. They are paid from taxpayer dollars. But unless the taxpayer has a job making enough money to pay their salary, those teachers would not be employed as teachers. How many of them would end up at McDonalds, because they did not know what else they could do to make a living?

An education person is one who not only knows where to find the information one needs to know, but also is able to use that information productively. If there are no jobs, an educated person can make a living by discovering a need in his/her community and filling that need.

Now, what does all this have to do with homeschooling? Plenty! One of the real benefits of homeschooling is that the student learns from the beginning that his/her education is his/her responsibility and not the responsibility of the parent/teacher. Homeschooled children are usually self-starters who are very flexible. They learn to do research, to look for information on their own, and to make good use of whatever resources are available. As a result, they are able to educate themselves far beyond the level of the typical public schooled child.