02/2005

HOME EDUCATION MAGAZINE FEBRUARY'S HIGHLIGHTED HOMESCHOOL ACTIVIST:

Litsong Lu and the Resource Center of Self-Directed Learning

-- 本文摘自HEM SUPPORT GROUP NEWS - February 2005,HOME EDUCATION MAGAZINE

This Month I am delighted to interview Litsong Lu. Litsong resides in Taiwan and weaves a network for all spirits at the Resource Center of Self-Directed Learning http://rcsdl.ngo.org.tw/

I began the interview by asking: Is home education legal in Taiwan ? If so, can you describe the basic requirements?

Litsong: Yes. It is legal now. It's only five-years ago that the law has opened up for "alternative education" including the choice of Homeschooling. The change of the law is a new beginning-the children have the right and the obligation to be educated, yet the parents have the right to choose the kind of education that suits the family. In our country, each local government makes its own regulation. Before the law opened up, our education required each child 9 years of compulsory schooling (average age 7-16) including 6 years of elementary school and 3 years of junior high school. It takes a few years for the local government to catch up with the change or respond appropriately to the requesting families. This year (2004), among 18 counties and two major cities (Taipei and Kao-shung, directly under the central government), there are homeschoolers registered in 15 of them, 5 counties with no homeschoolers registered, and among the total number of 436 homeschoolers, Taipei city counted over 150 homeschoolers registered, compared to last year about 85, the number doubled. All the numbers above exclude those who hold foreign passport (in my family's case, my son was born in the states) and those under age 7 but already started self-directed learning.

As mentioned above, the regulation is formed by each local government so it does vary. Yet often there is the application form and deadline each year for parents to submit their "study plan". There are guidelines for parents to follow in writing their proposal, and there can be "evaluation" to follow up by the board of education or related committee. However, such "well-intended supervision" doesn't override the families' wish to homeschool if they insist. Negotiation and communication can be arranged but the school or the board of education hold no real power to force the homeschoolers into school system if they so insist. Quite often it is a process of negotiation and communication for the "authorities" to have the peace of their mind-in their trained specialties to ensure the "education" been delivered to the future citizens and the parents to compromise so as not to be bothered too much.

Most of the basic requirement parallel with what the schools are required to do ( our education department forms the committee and decide what need to be covered through out the school years for all school to use as the guideline for the curriculums). In some area, homeschoolers are requested to participate certain hours/days in school, or to participate in the exam.

Mary: What do you do in Taiwan to help new homeschoolers?

Litsong: I have shared my experience in consultation with whoever interested in alternative learning since 1995. We got started in RI/USA with extensive reading in GWS and HEM. I bought all the GWS as my encyclopedia of growing without schooling, all John Holt's books, and through the years I established a good collection of 'live-and-learn" kind of stuff. Lots of stories based on people we met in real life or read in articles are most helpful for those new and confused.

I "opened" my Resource Center of Self-Directed Learning in 1999 in order to take part in a international conference (Global Environment Youth Conference in Lund , Sweden --GEYC 2000). It's a chance too good to pass, free distant learning program networking with delegations from over 90 countries, 500 teenagers all over the world. I was invited to form and lead the Taiwan delegation. On the application form, they ask for "school or institution". So I made my own flag and raised it on that day.

Before that, we already have a group of friends sharing our resources, joy, pain and support in homeschooling. A year after I started the resource center (RCSDL), we started a magazine to share our stories and put out related resources. The magazine casts my vision to honor our quest of living fully and sharing our stories as self-directed learners. I have benefit so much from reading GWS, HEM when I first started this journey, I would like to offer such service to the society I live in, and be the change I wish to see in this world.

The magazine started from 16 pages, 200 copies to now 80 pages 500 copies. Since I was so inspired by reading GWS and HEM, I wish my magazine will be worth reading even 20 yrs later. I don't make the magazine to sell or preach. It's rather a journal I believed that will be passed to whomever has such a calling in the heart. And it has. From time to time, people come to us telling how this little magazine has helped them through some hard times, people still request for the old issues. I have been amazed how the magazine has traveled afar ---I have received requests or feedbacks from Japan, Germany, Malaysia, Hong Kong, USA, and of course, Taiwan. It's very interesting how things got spread. Because the distinct quality and style of the magazine, we attract like-minded supporters regardless of their age, many come to share their stories and personal inner evolution. Our readers include all ages and some are not parents but taking interest in reclaiming themselves from many y! ears of schooling.

In RCSDL, we don't preach for homeschooling because we view it as a personal choice. We do encourage people to find what they really want for their lives. If people ask for "homeschool" information, we tell them where to look for the resources; if they know what they are looking for, it's quite easy to send them to the right link. For those who read our magazine and find our spirit touching their deeper quest, we can arrange matching pairs among our circle of friends, and sometime, arrange an open house or gatherings for people to get a feeling of "being with us-a cluster of self-directed learners with various talents and pursuits". People who came to our gatherings often refer their experience to be very exciting yet relaxed, a lot of fun, refreshing and the interaction being liberal yet cozy and comfortable. We (RCSDL) take our inner growth with open honesty and support each person's current choice as we know life is forever evolving and there is no need to make judgments.! We treat children with great respect and cherish what they have to share with us. As we say, homeschool or not is each family's choice, but along the line of living truthfully, we hold no boarder to exclude anyone, so we have lots of friends and readers who are school students, parents or teachers or principles.

Mary: What are the challenges facing homeschooling in Taiwan ?

Litsong: It depends on the person you ask. As my answer to a FAQ, "What's the requirement/ criteria for homeschooling", in my experience, is the willingness of see the truth and make changes along the way. For most of the parents, the hardest part is "self-confrontation"-be prepared to re-examine almost all your assumptions, face your hidden fear over and again until you find the way to heal it with love. My belief is, when we adults try our best to live our life fully and truthfully, we have offered our children our best gift for them, their own growing shall be in their hands. "Let them be what they grow". Another one of the hardest things is to let love be love, no if no but, just love-open and free as our blessings.

Parents have to learn to love themselves and find the strength to handle the situations. If they have done their own work and search for selves, challenging from outside (the system or the peers) can be dealt with appropriately without causing more stress then necessary.

Some common challenges include the pressures from all directions, mostly only because homeschoolers are "out of sync". Such pressure can be painted with all colors but the core is "why are you different?" assuming that people shall all be the same - pieces on the assembling line. Once one learn about self-respect and have the inner strength -dare to live authentically, such questions or pushing-over can be viewed with clarity and handled easily (a sense of humor helps). For those tender at heart, frequent encounters of such persisting and invasive question can be taken as annoying harassments or attacks. When we give consultation, most of the challenges go back to the root to one's value and belives, it rarely is about "homeschooling or not", except, when you homeschool, you may have more time to take your truth more sincerely.

Mary: How does the general public view homeschooling in Taiwan ?

Litsong:"the general public"? Who? What? How ?and Why??? Well, I know what you mean, I just don't care. Ok, my personal observation is: Most people are curious with their own imagination when they see a school-aged child not in school during school hours.

Some of them (over the 5 years of media exposure) take it easily as a fact (tell them it's legal and they let you go; or remind them that's the way it has been before school was introduced); some of them may worry for you (interesting to see they project all their fear onto something they have no experience of), under some pretty crazy circumstances they consider you endanger the child's future (they accuse you of being selfish, naive or stupid). More now we come across people who know about it and regard such effort as worthwhile and a privileged choices (for those more capable or better children with well educated parents). Whatever people think, unless they do have true exposure in such life style, they are just projecting from their assumption, since most of them are too busy to ponder on such issue, we don't need to take their opinion too seriously either.

Back in 1996 when we first moved back from the states, homeschooling is still illegal and underground, the atmosphere was more offensive/harsh for people who wish to live free and stay free beyond age 7, now, 8 years later, maybe the law have opened up, the changes in the society (more liberal, democratic and diverse), or, maybe we have grown stronger and have better clarity in what we wish for ourselves, we enjoy our lifestyle and share our great journey with many who know about the power of love and respect of the diversity of individual development, we thrive on our daily practice of trust, freedom and love, the rest (such as learning) come naturally.

Taiwan , in general, is a young country of democracy, by law the human right is protected. When people make a conscious choice as how to live t heir live without harming others, they do have a fair chance---this doesn't guarantee an easy ride, but, isn't life by definition to be forever changing? All the twist and turn along the way, we take them as part of the journey and chances for inner training. While answering your questions, I took the chance to review the road we have traveled: from being out-lawed and a loner, to be loved, supported by hundreds of those free at heart, and respected by even those whose feet are deep in education system, I felt a great joy and deep appreciation to our society at large--in pursuing freedom of speech, (after 50 years of martial law) we were led to the transformation into a free country and along came our right by law -growing, with or without schooling.

I hope each of you enjoyed Litsong's account as much as I did. Litsong, your heart for freedom and your love of life is an inspiration. Thank you for taking the time to share with us.