Current Read: The School Revolution by Ron Paul

There came a point in my life where the reflections of my experience in the public school system left me feeling cheated. Coming to the realization that I spent about 14 years of my life being fed revisionist history, the same math courses over and over again, and an overall uncreative curriculum set me on a path of self-education which I embark on every single day.

The realization that I had spent most my life in a poorly managed, government run education system only came when I began the so-called "awakening" process that, I'm sure, most of the Steemians here have gone through. The awakening process to me is when you begin to question everything you have been told and seek the truth. As this process kicked off so did the travels down the libertarian rabbit hole. Like so many others, I stumbled upon Ron Paul when traveling down this hole of freedom minded thinking as he was running for president in his 2012 bid.

I picked up Ron Paul's book The School Revolution: A New Answer for Our Broken Education System because as I get closer in life to making the decision to have children, I feel absolutely obligated to start the "awakening" process for my children as soon as possible. Of course, it won't actually be an "awakening process," per se, considering you must be a sleep and indoctrinated to wake up. It will be more like trail blazing a path for self-education that is themed with the freedom philosophy.

There are some amazing take aways from this book (so far, I'm about halfway through) and a bunch of really good points in regards to public education and how the freedom philosophy should be applied to education.

The main point of the book is to persuade parents to take control of their child's education by homeschooling and putting forth their values in that education. One of the most important values, according to Ron Paul, would be living as a free human.

In the book, Doctor Paul points out that the mostly centralized public school system is controlled beaurocratically from the top down. It is heavily funded by all levels of government and therefore sways to the whims of government. This takes parents out of the picture when it comes to control over their children's education. Parents have the inherent right to be the utmost responsible people for the education of their young one, but this responsibility is delegated to the state when you place your child in a public school.

Because parents are so easily swayed to put their kids on the yellow bus and into the government run schools, they are often so lackadaisical that they never even take a glance at the curriculum that their child is "learning" from. By not knowing the curriculum, there is absolutely no knowing that the child is receiving the education or moral direction which the parents deem best. This is perhaps one of the most striking points I've taken away so far from the book. Realizing my parents had delegated all responsibility to the state and took no look at what I was being taught really showed how overall irresponsible it is to blindly through your child into a public school. I don't blame my parents, they were publicly educated as well.

One of the best ideas Doctor Paul puts forth in his book is that, when intertwining the freedom philosophy with your child's education, it is important that they master the philosophy so they can then spread it as they grow older. Doctor Paul places an importance on teaching children the skill of public speaking. This is to no doubt pave the path for a truth speaker who can educate all those who spent their lives in the government run schools.

There is also an important emphasis on molding your child to become an activist. Not only in political activism but allowing the self-studies of your child lead them to their calling. The ability to have a separation between one's calling and their job is important to leaving behind a legacy, says Doctor Paul.

While many parents believe that homeschooling will be out of their own educational abilities, the point in the book is made that the internet has opened up an entirely new avenue to education. The internet has also brought down the cost of Homeschooling. Dr. Paul predicts that public education will soon go the way of the United States Postal service, a service which most Americans no longer rely on because the private sector provides a better service.

I highly recommend you go out and buy this book. It was less than $15 on Amazon.

I will do a wrap-up post on the book once I'm finished!

Thanks for reading! Leave a comment below and let's have a chat.

• Joe