Deschooling Society
Ivan Illich's 1971 critique of institutional schooling and proposal for learning webs.
At a glance
Key ideas
Three purposes of education, Reference service to educational objects, Skills exchange …
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- Illich argues that universal education through schooling is not feasible, even with new kinds of schools.
- He calls instead for educational webs that let anyone turn each moment of living into learning, sharing and caring.
- He proposes four learning networks, supported by computers, to match learners with resources, skills and each other.
- He held that deinstitutionalising education could help deinstitutionalise society.
Why it matters
- Its 1971 call for computer-supported learning webs was its most influential idea, and it is widely read by unschooling and homeschooling advocates.
Key facts
- Author
- Ivan Illich1
- Published
- 19711
- Followed by
- After Deschooling, What? (1973)1
- Readers
- Highly regarded by John Holt and other unschooling advocates; widely read in homeschooling since the 1980s2
Key ideas
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Three purposes of education1
Access to resources at any age, a way to share what you know, and a way to bring an issue to the public.
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Reference service to educational objects1
An open directory of learning resources and their availability.
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Skills exchange1
A database of people willing to share or swap their skills.
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Peer-matching1
A network to find others with the same learning aims.
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Directory of professional educators1
Professionals and freelancers listed with their qualifications and terms.
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Not a free market in schooling1
Unlike libertarians he opposed schools as such, and called free-market reformers "the most dangerous category".
Connections
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