The Only True Education Is Self-Education

I don’t know, but I’ll find out!

These are powerful words. They capture the entire essence of what self-education truly is.

I have watched my children through the years, and they have truly amazed me at times. The world is an amazing and curious place. To kids, it is full of unknowns. Every day, they come across these unknowns. I love to watch them as they decide what to do about this predicament.

They Must Have Curiosity

My children were in the back yard, and they heard a fascinating noise; one that they had never heard before. Initially, they ran inside, afraid. I knew what the sound was so I told them that there was no danger and to go investigate. Hesitantly, they ventured back out.

They listened each time they heard the sound and bravely walked toward where it was coming from. There on the edge of the sidewalk was a cicada. When they became aware that they had found the source of the noise, they ran inside again; only this time, instead of fear, their eyes were filled with wonder; wonder that this little bug could make all that racket.

Later, they found some outer shells of cicadas, or exoskeletons, in the yard and knew immediately what they were. They compared the ones that they found to each other and to live cicadas that were in the yard.

Of course, they wanted to know all about these bugs now, and we looked them up on the internet and listened to some more or their sounds and saw different shells. This became a memorable moment for them all.

The Difference Between Education and Telling Them the Facts

Now, I could have just told them what the sound was. I even knew a lot of facts about cicadas that I could have told them. They might have even been curious or intrigued by these facts but allowing them to educate themselves made this moment theirs, not mine. It belonged to them. They owned it, and it will always be their memory.

As teachers, we often think that it is our job to educate. At that moment, I could have easily educated my children; but would that have been truly educating them, or just telling them the facts. What’s the difference between education and telling the facts?

Defining True Education

I think that true education comes from a desire to know more and then following that desire in order to fulfill your curiosity. With this definition in mind, you can see how giving a child facts is not truly educating them. You can also see that no one can give you desire to know more and no one but you can follow that desire. People can inspire you, but they cannot educate you. Only you can do that for yourself.

They Must Find the Answers Themselves

What usually comes to mind when you think of the term self-education? Honestly, when I think of the term in the homeschool world, I think of self-taught curriculum or a computer-based program where the child does most of the work by themselves. I have used these self-taught curriculums, and after learning about self-education, I realize that although they can be a tool to use for self-education, they should not be the representation of self-education today.

My children will eventually find the facts. You may be thinking ‘why didn’t I just give them the facts when they ask?’ This would be self-education, right? They asked. Therefore, they are fulfilling their own desire for knowledge. If we give children the answers to their questions rather than teaching them how to find the answers for themselves, they become dependent on us rather than themselves.

I always prefer to give my child the resources to find the answers to their questions rather than just telling them. I also try to get them to ask the questions instead of asking for them. This way, they begin to develop the habit of searching for answers instead of relying on others to tell them.

They Must Ask Questions

They begin to ask themselves questions like, “Why should I learn?” and “How can I learn?”

These are essential questions to true education. These questions are largely ignored in the public school environment. I don’t remember even thinking them until I started homeschooling my own children.

As children begin to teach themselves how to learn, they begin to encounter a sense of empowerment for their own education. “I don’t know but I CAN find out,” becomes their motto. Some of the greatest mind in history knew this all too well.

All I have learned, I learned from books.

— Abraham Lincoln

Thank goodness I was never sent to school; it would have rubbed off some of the originality.

— Beatrix Potter

The secret of education lies in respecting the pupil…and he only holds the key to his own secret.

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

To give a child a love of learning is one of the greatest gifts that you as a homeschool parent can give them. To do so, though, you must help them to discover the secrets to true education.

• They must first have a curiosity for things.
• They must ask questions.
• They must know how to search for the answers themselves.
• They must be given the resources to find the answers.

As a parent, so often we want to interfere with this natural process. It is always faster to just tell them, but don’t be fooled into thinking that this is the equivalent to learning. Though the process may be slower, the rewards last a lifelong. Be there to celebrate with them as they discover this secret power hidden away inside of them. It is not only a gift that you give your children but yourself as well.

There is nothing like watching true education taking place. It is magical.