THE MIT DREAM OF A HOMESCHOOLER
Malvika Joshi, a 17-year-old from Mumbai, has been admitted to Massachusetts Institute of Technology for a degree programme despite being homeschooled. Malvika’s mother, Supriya, is among the founders of the Swashikshan (self-teaching) movement. In an interview, Surpirya says she dislikes the schooling system where students are forced to study only certain subjects.
Malvika Joshi, a 17-year-old from Mumbai has been admitted to the famed Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for a degree programme in science despite being homeschooled. Though she enjoyed school, her parents thought she was not really learning anything in class. Malvika’s mother, Supriya, is among the founders of Swashikshan (Selfteaching) movement which has at least 1,000 homeschooling parents as members. She spoke to HT about homeschooling. Excerpts: When did the idea of homeschooling first occur to you? I was working with a nongovernmental organisation (NGO) which helped cancer patients, where I was responsible for teaching and designing a learning programme for cancer-affected children. While many kids dreaded the school routine, the canceraffected ones, who were undergoing chemotherapy sessions in the morning, couldn’t wait for their classes in the evening. Though many of them died, they enjoyed their learning experience. It convinced me that happiness is the most important thing in life. What convinced you to select homeschooling for your daughters? Malvika was enjoying academics as well as cocurricular activities, but not learning. I dislike the entire schooling system, where students are forced to get up early and study only certain subjects. How did you prepare them for the change from school to homeschooling? Whenever my daughters complained about things from school, I would ask them why they didn’t just leave school. They would think that I was threatening
them. Isn’t there a worry that children who are homeschooled will miss out on certain aspects of school teaching? My daughters, on the contrary, could learn anything, be it marketing or filmmaking. They could take up any sports and develop their social skills. Do you think homeschooling can be an option for children with average intelligence? All parents can opt for homeschooling regardless of their economic background and intellect of their children. I think the other parents are risking the future of their children by sending them to schools where they don’t learn anything.