I studied to be an elementary school teacher in university and in that time (thanks to some "rogue" professors, my own personal reading, and experience working in the schools) I realized that compulsory, public education is, was, and has always been a scam.

A few books that opened my eyes were:

*Summerhill* - A.S. Neill
*How Children Learn* - John Holt
*How Children Fail* - John Holt
*Dumbing Us Down* - John Taylor Gatto
*Awareness* - Anthony DeMello

My son attends a Montessori kindergarten/preschool 3 times a week which he loves, so I have nothing against schools that understand how things work and are student-centered, really.

I also don't wish to tell other parents how they ought to approach the matter. I've just seen how broken it is (the compulsory system) from the inside. Not to mention the fact that forcing people to surrender their children to the state under threat of violence/sanction is unethical.

My son is able to hang out with children and adults of all different ages, and be a part of the community in day to day life in ways that other children simply cannot, because they are couped up in age segregated indoctrination centers.

I am aware that some homeschooling parents are horrible, so don't get me wrong. That is on them, though, and not the idea/philosophy of unschooling itself, in my view. 

I really appreciate your questions and commentary!