For an entire spring semester, I did most of my schoolwork in a tent in the backyard. My early elementary curriculum consisted of a math workbook and a two-foot stack of library books next to the sofa. I went to camp for an entire week in October.

How? I was homeschooled.

As unconventional as my schooling was, there’s an entire group of people within the homeschooling population that may be on to something. Approximately 10 percent of homeschoolers are taught by the “unschooling” method (“Unschoolers learn what they want, when they want”, CNN, Aug. 3). 

Unschoolers are allowed to study whatever they want, whenever they want, in the way they want to learn it.

More interested in Super Smash Brothers than geography? That’s OK. Want to spend the morning learning to cook and the afternoon reading in a hammock outside? Those who preach unschooling say go ahead. Unschoolers base their teaching method on one premise: living is learning. Traditional teaching methods just get in the way.

Crazy as it may sound, I think they may be onto something, and I think we might do well as college students to follow their lead.

Now before all of you go burn your overpriced textbooks and sing kum-bay-yah around the campfire, let me explain.

I am not saying that you shouldn’t study, and I’m not saying grades are not important. If you see me around campus, chances are good I will be carrying a huge backpack or be hunched over a textbook.

Going to class, reading your textbooks and studying are really important, but if the biggest takeaway you get from your time at the University is the intricate workings of the carbon cycle and your way around the library, you’ve missed out on most of the true learning opportunities.

I know for a fact I have learned more from starting and chairing a student organization on campus than I ever would have learned in a management class.

The way I view the world has been shaped more by talking to foreign exchange students over dinner than any theory outlined in my introductory philosophy class.

I’ve learned a ton while watching people play Mario Kart, and got to know one of my best friends when she drove me to the ER freshman year after I injured myself jumping off a moon bounce.

To sum it up, unschoolers — though slightly extreme in their methods — are right. They understand the best way to learn about the world is to live in it. Don’t view classes as the education you have to endure so that you can get on with your life. Instead, view them as one of many avenues to pursue your education.

Schedule in time to hit the books but recognize that life is a great teacher too. Grab coffee with friends, try some ethnic food at an extracurricular event, or sign up for a student organization. Living equals learning, so get out and live.

Hopefully, I’ll see you around. And not just in the library.

— Alex Hebdon is a junior from Alpharetta majoring in international affairs