If you feel like government-run schools are not the best for your kids, you’re not alone. I dropped out of school at 15 and have never taken any formal education since. Instead, I devoted lots of time to reading, writing, and learning from mentors who helped me make the right choices.
Many freedom-minded parents have realized that traditional education might not be the best way to educate their children. Not only are kids learning things they will probably never use in real life, but they’re also subject to ideologized programs (wokeism, basically).
That’s why many opt for homeschooling, as they can enjoy more flexibility, educate their kids on their own terms and protect them from indoctrination. My kids, though, follow a slightly different system called ‘unschooling’ (what I like to call ‘interest-based learning’).
In this article, we will dive deeper into the differences between homeschooling and unschooling and also touch on how I personally build the environment to help my kids thrive, learn languages and talk to influential people.
First off, it’s important to discuss what homeschooling really is. As its name suggests, the kids are schooled at home rather than in a classroom with other students. Homeschooling means that parents are the kids’ teachers, often creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable and strengthens bonds. Now, what are the pros and cons of homeschooling? Let’s check them out:
Self-Paced Learning: Unlike traditional schooling, students can learn at their own pace and adjust how much they want to study with a higher degree of flexibility. For example, some schools may require your kids to spend six hours a day sitting on a chair, but with homeschooling, they might learn faster and get to spend more free time doing other things they’re interested in.
Strong Parental Control: When you send your child to school, you are obliged to trust the teachers and other school staff to take care of them, but this may not always be the case. What if your kids are taught ideas you just don’t agree with? Some of the most outrageous examples can be found in the U.S., where classrooms are plagued with wokeism and critical race theory.
Safe and Personalized Learning Environment: Homeschooling allows you to create a secure environment for your kids, free from bullying, peer pressure and other negative influences. You have the power to make them feel supported and confident. Additionally, you can tailor the educational experience to your kids’ needs, interests and learning styles.
Necessary Effort and Time: Requires significant time and effort from parents: Homeschooling demands a considerable commitment from parents, who often take on the dual roles of educator and caregiver. Preparing lessons, teaching, and managing day-to-day activities can be time-consuming and exhausting, especially for parents with multiple children or those balancing work and household responsibilities.
Potential for Limited Social Interaction: Unlike traditional school settings, homeschooling can limit your child's opportunities for regular social interaction with other students. However, many homeschooling families simply enroll their kids in extracurricular activities and community groups to make sure they engage with others.
Stress and Emotional Burnout: Managing homeschooling alongside other responsibilities, such as work, household duties, and caring for younger children, can be overwhelming. The pressure to provide a quality education while meeting the family's needs can lead to burnout.
Homeschooling can certainly be a suitable option for multiple families. It allows parents to create an environment where their kids can make the most of their study time. However, homeschooling regulations vary from country to country, requiring, sometimes, reporting to the local authorities what you plan to teach your kids and taking in-person exams.
This is why my approach to education is radically different, as homeschooling is not exactly what I would want for my family. I am not interested in having a school inspector check how I teach my kids. Schools offer a top-down approach I don’t necessarily agree with, so I would rather raise my kids in an environment where they can thrive and learn with real-world experiences. That’s exactly what unschooling offers.
You might not be familiar with unschooling, so let me briefly explain what this is all about. Learning is a continual process, and there’s always something new kids can learn. Contrary to traditional education, unschooling teaches children to keep their eyes open and strive to learn and improve every day. This may look unstructured, but in my opinion, this is the best way to teach kids how to navigate life’s challenges.
To further explain what unschooling looks like, I’ll share with you how we educate our 7-year-old daughter. Firstly, we don’t follow a cookie-cutter curriculum; we focus on creating a rich environment full of opportunities to explore and grow. For example, during one of my trips to Turkey, we had lunch with my immigration attorney, and my daughter grabbed this opportunity to ask her what a lawyer does, how long it takes to become one, etc.
Our approach focuses on interest-based learning, encouraging her to pursue her passions and curiosities. Real-world experiences provide the best education, so we make learning a component of everyday life. Languages are also an essential part of her education. My daughter currently speaks three languages at a native level: English (my native language), Chinese (my wife’s native language), and Spanish (Panama’s official language). This will surely open many doors for her down the road.
Up until recently, she also took piano lessons in Russian, but since she didn’t like it as much, we switched to Arabic, the official language of the UAE (where she was born). While most schools teach in a traditional classroom setting, she picks up languages through conversation, immersion and practical use.
Martial arts also play a significant role in her daily routine. She spends around two hours a day practicing karate (including private lessons), instilling focus and physical fitness. The sports component is essential to maintain and improve her health, but this comes with extra benefits like developing a strong mind, which we believe is key to her overall growth. Sports provide a sort of discipline necessary for entrepreneurship.
Our unschooling approach also pinpoints the importance of social interactions and learning from different people. This is what allowed me to build my entire company and gather knowledge from different fields. I might not be an attorney, accountant or real estate developer, but through listening to experts in these fields, I acquired information that allows me to help my clients move abroad or set up their Plan-B.
In unschooling, there’s no standard curriculum to follow. As simple as it sounds, basic arithmetic, reading and writing skills are the basics anyone needs to learn anything. I truly believe learning how to learn pays off better than rote memorization and studying things you’re not interested in (or find no use for). We concentrate on helping her develop the skills and mindset to figure things out and navigate life’s challenges confidently. To us, that’s more valuable than any traditional schooling students get these days.
Unschooling prepares children for entrepreneurship and real life by developing practical and independent skills that traditional education does not emphasize
Both methods allow parents to take control of their kids’ education, but there are fundamental differences you need to consider before choosing one or the other. In this section, we’ll break down how each system works in certain situations:
|
Homeschooling |
Unschooling |
|
|
Educational Structure |
|
|
|
Parent’s Role |
|
|
|
Flexibility and Freedom |
|
|
|
Assessment and Progress Tracking |
|
|
As you can imagine, unschooling is a unique educational with both benefits and challenges. I don’t deny it looks daunting if you’ve gone through formal education, college and whatnot. Things in regular schooling are more structured and meant to tell you what to do (pretty much, they teach everyone to be employees). But, if you are a business person or entrepreneur, chances are you have to see life differently. Unschooling will prompt your kids to think just like that.
Let’s further explore other aspects you need to consider before going down the unschooling route:
Your main responsibility is to create an environment that encourages curiosity and learning. While traditional education lays out the path, unschooling demands a mindset shift, which may entail a challenge for parents used to traditional, structured education. There’s hardly any room for rigid schedules.
It’s important to recognize that unschooling isn’t the best fit for every child. Some children thrive in environments with clear expectations, routines, and structured guidance. They may need the predictability a homeschool environment provides. For these children, the open-ended nature of unschooling can feel overwhelming or even stressful.
Traditional schooling rarely teaches children anything about business. More often than not, they study to be obedient employees. There’s nothing wrong with having a job and working for someone else, but you might want your kids to go beyond. Skills like independent thinking and accountability are essential in entrepreneurship and real-life situations.
Unschooling helps nurture other skills that traditional education does not emphasize enough, such as creativity and initiative. Instead of being spoon-fed, children can figure things out on the go, getting a feel of what life is really like. Also, they can learn hands-on rather than from textbooks only, giving them a solid foundation for success in business or other areas of life.
While traditional schooling ties kids to a specific location and schedule, unschooling provides lots of flexibility and allows education to happen anywhere and anytime. Learning can happen no matter the setting, whether you’re exploring a new country or not. Your child’s education is not disrupted by frequent relocations but enriched by the experiences that come with travel.
Another significant advantage of this lifestyle is the potential for a much lower cost of living and the ability to legally pay little to no taxes by strategically choosing where you live. For example, I live in Panama, where I pay zero taxes, the cost of living is much lower than in Canada and the U.S., and getting domestic help is easy and cheap. This is how I free up financial resources that I reinvest in my family’s education and lifestyle.
Additionally, you can pair unschooling with worldschooling. My friend, Joshua Sheats from Radical Personal Finance, uses this methodology with his five kids, as we discussed in a podcast episode. With worldschooling, the world is a classroom, and each new destination offers opportunities for growth and learning.
While homeschooling offers structure and parental control, making it suitable for families seeking a more traditional approach, unschooling focuses more on interest-based learning and real-world experiences, encouraging independence
Choosing the right educational path for your children is a deeply personal decision that depends on your family’s values, lifestyle, and goals. Homeschooling offers structure and parental control, making it a great option for families who want to maintain a more traditional approach while still having flexibility. On the other hand, unschooling is more focused on interest-based learning and real-world experiences, which encourages independence, creativity, and adaptability—valuable qualities in today’s world.
Ultimately, the best approach is the one that resonates most with your family’s needs and aspirations. Whether you choose homeschooling, unschooling, or a blend of both, the goal is to equip your children with the skills, knowledge, and mindset they need to thrive in an ever-changing world.
That’s why my dear friend Michael Strong and I came together to found the Expat International School, where we equip kids with the skills they need to succeed in the real world. If you want to know more, check out our page and book a consultation call.