SelfDesign: Nuturing Genius Through Natural Learning (ISBN 1591810442)

Poorly Designed:
This book was full of New Age fluff that was totally irrelevant to the task of how to help educate your child. It would have been better if there had been an appendix that contained the (little) good practical advice that the book had to offer. As it was written, it was nearly impossible to mine the useful from the useless. I'm afraid the author was on some kind of grandiose power-trip. He seemed to care more about befriending his students (even at the expense of alienating their parents) than actually educating them or forming working coalitions with them and their families. He cites two examples in the first half of the book (all I could stomach) wherein he lies or condones lying to the parents of a student and a friend of his daughter's. This review is coming from an unschooling mom, so you know that it is not the ideas that I dislike so much as the tactics and the ego here.

Education of the future (hopefully):
This is a visionary and thought provoking book! I am so glad that I stumbled across it while conducting my research into holistic education at home. Brent Cameron builds on what John Holt started. He stresses the importance of the learner being in control of their educational experience, and the freedom to choose their own projects as well as mentors. He made me appreciate that being a part of a "synergistic learning community" is really important, and I think that all homeschooling parents should make an effort to create one for their children (and themselves). Now, if we all lived in Vancouver, it would be easy- we could just send out kids to Wondertree! This book contains an enlightening blend of theory, real life examples and practical advice for interested parents and educators (mentors). Readers are also invited to participate in online discussions and courses available on the SelfDesign website. Thank you Mr. Cameron for sharing your knowledge with us!

An amazing contribution to learning & parenting:
Off the top I'll state this: I've been involved with this organization and with Brent Cameron since 1991, around the time I walked out of my conventional teaching job after 4 years of frustration that finally reached a boiling point for me. At that time, though I was working to the best of my abilities to nurture learning among my high school-level students, the relentless constraints of schooling - ranging from a mind-numbing, largely irrelevant curriculum to a bias in favour of mathematical-linguistic intelligence to a brutally anti-compassionate, anti-human system of behavioural control - made it very clear to me that I couldn't continue to work in this environment and pretend that this was a valid, credible endeavor. It wasn't. It was grinding, for me and especially for my students, who reflected back to me each minute that this was a bogus, toturous experiment, mainly at their expense. So I quit, determined to find something that would connect me with youth in a more meaningful way. I might add that I had worked as a scientist (geologist) and professional journalist before entering education and so had a few other ways to compare this vocational-choice for me. As chance would have it, I met Brent Cameron at a seminar he had organized as a way to introduce Vancouver to the work of award-winning, maverick educator John Taylor Gatto, who had recently authored 'Dumbing Us Down: the hidden curriculum of American compulsory schooling'. That evening, listening to John talk from 7 pm until after midnight, confirmed so many of my suspicions about the education system, but it wasn't until I read Brent's masters thesis later that same year (1991?) - in which he discussed many of the core ideas in his book - that I found myself slapping my hand on the table shouting 'Yes! This is true! This is the kind of vital education program I wish to be involved in." Fast Forward. Brent and I co-founded 'Virtual High' - a remarkable program for teen-agers in Vancouver BC Canada - in 1993. Based on the principles he developed in his first 'Wondertree' Program, VH was an engaging, grass-roots, successful program for many, many youth who were wholly unsatisfied with their experiences in conventional schooling. But, alas, we had to shut it down in 2008, after being 'un-supported' by the BC Ministry of Education, which was gravely disappointing to myself and Brent and many, many youth and their families. FF again. In 2002 Brent and I and others launched SelfDesign Learning Community, a unique online and certified school (in BC Canada), that today provides learning services to 750+ learners in BC. We've just launched SelfDesign Global to make our program and model available to learners and families beyond BC, and we're anticipating that we are going to be wildly successful! SelfDesign - the program - is aligned with the tenets of Multiple Intelligences, Holistic learning, Positive Psychology, Cognitive Therapy, Neurolinguistics (NLP), Neurobiological ('Brain-based') learning, Constructivist learning and Perennial Philosophy. If you feel aligned with the insights of John Holt, Humberto Maturana, Dr. Martin Seligman, Dr. Mel Levine, Jean Leidloff, Dr. Carla Hannaford, Gregory Bateson and Anthony Robbins, then you will find yourself very aligned with SelfDesign. SelfDesign - the book - written by Brent and partner Barbara (River) Meyer, synthesizes the story behind the program in a way that parents, educators, education, business and political leaders, and children and young people will all find very compelling. As a parent and educator, and one who has expended a tremendous amount of my life energy supporting these ideas, I recommend it most highly. - Michael Maser; Gibsons BC

Inspiring and Amazing:
I put this book on my wish list last December and my husband got it for me. Once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down! In fact, my husband told me to stop reading it at bedtime because I would get so excited, that I couldn't sleep. I have read tons of books on educational reform and alternative education in my search for a solid and enlightened educational model for my 2 daughters. I was tired of reading books that just pointed at problems and those that talk about how bad the school system is. Not helpful. Then I read SelfDesign. This book is positive and thought-provoking. It offers a way of guiding your children's learning and growth that is WAY BEYOND the school system. It is focused on solutions - not problems. And for those of us parents who are trying to raise our children consciously and make enlightened choices, SelfDesign is both awakening and affirming. I highly recommend this book to all parents and anyone who is interested in empowering children and families. You will learn how to create an amazing, joy-filled learning environment for you and your children.