Reschool Yourself

FAQ

What is “reschooling”?

Reschooling, as I define it, is evaluating and understanding your own education, then filling in any gaps that have disempowered you and building on existing strengths.

If you experience “Impostor’s Syndrome” — fearing that you’ll be found out for being a phony — or have tendencies that make you unhappy, you’re in need of reschooling. Maybe you feel ignorant every time someone refers to an event in U.S. history. Maybe you’re a worrier or workaholic, or have major regrets about things that you have or haven’t done, and these patterns developed while you were in school. (See Why Reschool? for more on how this often relates to our formal schooling.) Reschooling means empowering yourself to make a change wherever you see the need — whether you take a class, read a book, or even seek medical, psychological, or financial counseling. I firmly believe that it’s never too late to reschool yourself, whatever your age or circumstances.

What’s your timeline for the project?

I left my full-time job with Spark in June and launched right into Reschool Yourself. Over the summer, I began clearing mental and physical clutter, and catching up on what I’ve missed in the last few workaholic years. Here’s a rough schedule:

Fall 2008 - Revisiting the Past in the School Classroom

• August - Mid-September: Elementary School
• Mid-September - Mid-October: Middle School
• Mid-October - November: High School
• December: College

Spring 2009 - Creating the Future in the Global Classroom

• January through mid-June: Domestic & International Travel

What will you do at the schools?

In the lower grades, I began by volunteering as a classroom aide but realized that I wanted more experiential learning. As much as possible, I do what the kids do: practice handwriting, illustrate a story, or run around at recess. Since my purpose is to reconnect with the carefree joy of childhood, I try to participate as much as possible. I am, however, always taking notes on what my adult mind observes.

In the upper grades, I will probably observe and learn the material myself. I will probably do the homework and take the tests along with the students. However, I doubt that I’ll raise my hand and participate, lest I be pegged as “that creepy super-senior.” I’d like to interview the students and teachers informally about their perspectives on school and have conversations with my old teachers and classmates. A couple of my classmates have even returned to middle and high school to teach.

Are your teachers still at the schools you attended?

Elementary: none. However, there are several teachers and staff who were teaching at the time (they just weren’t my teachers), and they’ll be hosting me in their classes.

Middle school: a few.

High school: almost all.

I’ll be spending time in my old classrooms regardless of whether my teachers are still there. I also plan to reconnect with most of them one-on-one, since most still live locally.

What kinds of things do you plan to learn?

The list continues to evolve. The main areas I would like to master are:

Technology. To me, it’s like a best friend in middle school, dependable until the sudden and inevitable betrayal. I would like to invite technology to become my faithful life partner.

History & Politics. I’m the Ugly American, plain and simple. At least I have liberal values and the desire to learn more. Now that my brain has released the individual case histories of 150+ youth and their families, it will have some extra bandwidth to absorb the BBC News.

Finance. When I hear words like “amortization,” I feel an aneurysm coming on. To me, managing money means keeping every receipt ever printed for me….crumpled in a desk drawer, weighing on my conscience because I will never look at it again but believe that I should. On the bright side, I know exactly what I bought at Safeway on 1/3/04, which I expect will come in handy in an obscure court trial one day.

Other areas I want to explore include learning to:

· grow fruits & vegetables organically

· dance well, especially hip-hop & salsa

· use Adobe Photoshop and the rest of the Creative Suite

· remodel a house

· maintain a monthly budget

· change the oil and tires on a car

· meditate for more than 10 distracted minutes at a time

· take advantage of frequent flyer miles

What are your plans for the website?

They are many. Here are just a few:

* Writing, video, and photos capturing visiting my old schools and unearthing keepsakes

* Details about how I find and structure each learning opportunity

* Knowledge I gain from books, apprenticeships, classes, and travel

* Ways for people to post stories about their own reschooling experiences and exchange resources

How are you funding this project?

I plan to raise start-up funds through individual sponsors - readers like you! - and fund the rest of the budget through publishing and grants.

Where will your writing be published besides in the blog?

I’ll keep you posted. I’m exploring freelance writing for magazines and newspapers, and I’m putting together a book proposal as I go along. If you have suggestions for writing and publishing opportunities, please email me or leave a comment.

What final outcomes do you hope for?

I hope to:

* understand how my experiences in school shaped my identity

* change the beliefs that have limited me until now

* reconnect with the strong intuition and creativity I had as a child

* fill in gaps in my knowledge and feel confident in my level of education

* write a book reflecting on the experience as a whole and sharing knowledge gained

Among other things, I hope that the project helps me to be content, fully present, confident in my actions, and willing to risk making mistakes. I also hope that the experience helps other adults reschool themselves in their own ways.

Will you be filming your experiences?

I’m learning a bit about filmmaking as I go and am capturing key moments on digital video: touring my old schools, interviewing my former teachers and classmates as well as current students, and sorting through keepsakes. I do occasional video logs to update readers on the project. I’ve also always wanted to do an ultra-dramatic confessional, Blair Witch Project style, so I plan to achieve that little dream.

Have you read the book Eat, Pray, Love?

The book was part of my inspiration for creating Reschool Yourself. In fact, I was so energized to start writing again that I put down the book around page 50 and didn’t finish it until 10 minutes before attending an Elizabeth Gilbert speaking engagement. (I was sheepishly reading in the line for the women’s bathroom right before the talk began.) When Gilbert finished speaking, she’d charmed me and the 750 other women in the audience (as well as the 20 men) into wanting to be her best friend.

Have you seen the Adam Sandler movie Billy Madison, where he needs to repeat grades 1-12 to inherit his dad’s fortune?

I usually say that Reschool Yourself is “like Billy Madison, but for real.” I have seen the movie more times, and can rattle off more ridiculous quotes (“That’s quacktastic!”), than I care to admit. I plan to sing Billy’s song every day, skipping to school with a brown bag lunch packed by my mom:

Back to school, back to school, to prove to Dad that I’m not a fool.
I got my lunch packed up, my boots tied tight, I hope I don’t get in a fight.
Ohhhh, back to school, back to school, back to school…

Can I subscribe to your blog?

Yes, if you’d like a heads-up when I update the blog, you can subscribe through a blog reader like Google Reader, which will let you know when I post.

What if my question wasn’t frequent enough to be answered here?

Congratulate yourself on your originality and email me or leave a question on the forum. I’d be happy to answer what inquiring minds want to know.