Exploring Deschooling and Teacher Transformation in Self-Directed Education Spaces

• In Event: Place and Praxis in the Radical Imaginary of Self-Directed Education

Abstract

Purpose
This qualitative study aims to analyze the phenomenon of deschooling by investigating the experiences of traditionally trained teachers as they transitioned from the conventional public education system to Self-Directed Education (SDE) spaces, with a particular focus on the role of schools as institutions.
Theoretical Framework
Taking a critical lens, this research draws upon Ivan Illich’s work Deschooling Society (1971) to create a theoretical framework to explore the phenomenon of deschooling, emphasizing aspects of institutionalization within the traditional education environment. By utilizing a phenomenological approach, the meaning of deschooling is deconstructed and reconstructed, considering its modern implications and usage.
Methods
Through conducting semi-structured interviews, this empirical study gathers qualitative data from teachers with similar backgrounds, who are now part of SDE learning communities. The study followed a phenomenological approach, focusing on the deschooling phenomenon, and analyzed data through the descriptions and meanings offered by participants (Moustakas, 1994). Former public-school teachers’ lived experiences were examined to understand the similarities and transformations that occurred during their transition (Creswell, 2013), focusing heavily on the challenges associated with institutionalization.
Data Sources
The unique narratives and insights from former members of the traditional education system, who have undergone a transformative process into SDE, constitute the primary evidence for this study. Critiques and implications of Deschooling Society are also used to guide the analysis of these interviews.
Findings
The study unveils interviewees’ profound experiences and perspectives as they deschooled, moving from traditional education environments to embracing SDE principles. It highlights struggles with institutionalization, reasons for leaving traditional education, and acts of resistance leading to personal transformation. These experiences underscore how traditional education spaces, with implicit hierarchies and inequalities, can abuse power and strip agency from teachers and students. These former teachers sought alternative learner-centric spaces that foster collaboration, diversity, and democracy, and created sustainable learning experiences where teachers and students grow together (Ikeda, 2021), rather than following a traditional knowledge transfer model. This research also compares past experiences within traditional education spaces to current involvement in SDE, presenting two distinct learning environments.
Scholarly Significance
The research holds significant scholarly value as it provides empirical insights into the deschooling process from the perspective of traditionally trained teachers who have embraced SDE. This is the first known attempt at empirically deconstructing this process and analyzing it through Illich’s framework. By examining the challenges and transformative journey of the participants, the study contributes to the understanding of deschooling experiences within SDE communities. Furthermore, it offers valuable critique and identifies potential areas of concern within traditional educational spaces. The research findings have implications for both SDE communities and the broader educational environment, in understanding the transformative potential of alternative educational models that prioritize student autonomy and agency. These alternatives offer a lens into new educational possibilities that both openly critique educational injustices and show how individual change agents, teachers turned mentors, ask us to reflect on and take radical actions to transform educational practice.

Author

• Cammie Justus-Smith, Virginia Commonwealth University