“A buccaneer-scholar is anyone whose love of learning is not muzzled or shackled by any institution or authority; whose mind is driven to wander and find its own place in the world.” -p.9, hardcover edition

James Bach dropped out of high school at the age of sixteen to pursue his own education. His book is a first person account of his learning methods and experiences.  His excitement over learning is contagious, and he presents his ideas in a way that’s easy to understand and appreciate. The buccaneer analogy of learning is followed throughout the book, illustrating concepts in a very vivid way.

Secrets of a Buccaneer-Scholar is a great exploration of purposeful self-education that will set you on the right path to appreciate a self-directed approach to learning. It’s a book I recommend to anyone interested in learning.

The Misconception of Self-Motivation

Many reviews of Secrets of a Buccaneer-Scholar argue one point: James is an unusually self-motivated learner, which is why he’s been successful. They argue that others (especially the average high school dropout)  might not be self-motivated enough to learn.

My argument is that those reviewers are missing the point.

James’ enthusiasm for learning is just that: enthusiasm for learning. His motivation comes from curiosity and a nonjudgmental attitude towards his learning experience. His methodologies support a low-pressure learning environment that encourages intellectual exploration. By pursuing learning in the way he does, James makes it a natural, everyday experience.

By trying out and tweaking his process, I’m sure many people out there could find their own process for an engaging learning experience. The key isn’t to be skilled in motivation. The key is to find reasons to learn something, and then do so – passionately. Determination and success will come from there.

“I have no discipline. Oh, you can point to things I’ve done that look like hard work. I shrug. That’s not discipline, that’s passion.” p. 149, hardcover version

This Isn’t a Step-By-Step Manual

Another misconception of the book is the expectation of a step-by-step process. While many books on different educational methods will happily supply readers with a step-by-step guide, self-education cannot be summed up in the same way. James explores his own, personal methods. Exploring his ideas and coming up with your own are equally important. It’s important to distinguish his methods from your methods.

Amazon’s description of the book says, “Anyone looking for an instruction manual on how to get a high-quality education without having to show up for classes will find all they need here.” I find that a bit misleading. Secrets of a Buccaneer-Scholar isn’t an instruction manual: it’s a discussion of ideas and experiences based around self-education.

Think of the book as an invitation to explore self-education from an intellectual point of view. Just don’t expect to find a fail proof, step-by-step guide.

“I will share my experiences. But none of this is about me alone. It’s about an approach to intellectual life that is open to all of us. Join me in exploring it.” p. 7, hardcover edition

What It Gave Me

I read Secrets of a Buccaneer-Scholar when I started homeschooling for the second time (long story short, I returned to school for a short period before continuing homeschooling). My year of homeschooling had left a lasting impression on me. There were questions I still hadn’t answered. Mostly: What made it so difficult for me to apply myself to learn about something new and difficult, when I’ve always loved learning?

When I was still going to school, some of my teachers called me an underachiever. “Your tests show great potential,” they said, “but you need to apply yourself more.” This happened during my two year rebellion: I didn’t do homework, I didn’t study for tests, and I asked a lot of questions teachers really didn’t want to answer. (“Why do I have to wait to learn that when I want to learn it now?”)

I never stopped getting good grades, but the underachiever label stuck with me. Self-doubt grew over time. What if I’m really just an idiot and the grades mean nothing? The questions led to other (better) ideas, but for a while I was afraid to learn. I thought, what was the point of trying to learn something if I don’t figure it out? Isn’t that a waste of time?

I was going through those thoughts again when James showed me his book. One of the “great secrets” he talks about is summed up like this:  “If I try to understand, but fail, that’s progress.” That statement stood out to me. It helped ease up the pressure of remembering everything I came across. I could learn without focusing on the end result.

Self-education is a very personal process, and because of that I think everyone will take away something different from this book. I got the confidence to try despite the prospect of failure. You might (and probably will) learn something very different.

“The key to success … is to suspend self-judgment and tolerate confusion. I couldn’t do that when I was very young, because I secretly feared that I was stupid, and I thought confusion would prove it.” p.95, hardcover edition

Final Thoughts: 4.5/5

There are some key ideas that the book gave me.

- Learning in passion is the best way to learn.
- Confusion is okay.
- Taking advantage of right brained thinking works no matter the subject (even technical ones).
- Self-education can be as structured or as free formed as you want it to be.

The only thing I missed was a more open invitation to explore my own learning methodologies. When it comes to reading the book, I have a few suggestions:

- Relax. Enjoy the book as you would an interesting conversation.
- Focus on yourself, too. Apply and tweak the ideas to your own learning. Find out what works for you.
- Read it in one sitting. Each page of the book supports and builds upon the pages before it.

Approach Secrets of a Buccaneer-Scholar open mindedly by first seeking to understand James’ way of thinking, and then playing around with your own learning process. You won’t regret it.

Connect With James Marcus Bach
Website – Twitter – Facebook

Secrets of a Buccaneer-Scholar is available for purchase on Amazon.

Like a lot of families, I came to choose unschooling through a gradual process. In my first years at school, I enjoyed it. I loved the opportunity to learn. When the system started working against me, I started to question it. Why couldn’t I learn something the higher grades were learning? Why didn’t we read more than one chapter, if everyone was interested and concentrated on it? I didn’t know the world arbitrary then, but that’s what it felt like: a bunch of rules and regulations with no real connection to learning.

Then I discovered homeschooling. That made more sense to me. I already learned more at home than I did at school. A few years after my discovery of homeschooling, I discovered unschooling. That’s when I realized unschooling was what I had wanted all along.

So here I am.

There are a huge number of reasons to unschool. It’s likely there are as many reasons as there are unschoolers. My biggest reasons were not wanting to be stuck with my grade level subject matter. I wanted more.

Among everyone’s reasons to unschool, there are a few things we all agree on:

• Flexibility

No matter your lifestyle, budget, schedule, or interest, unschooling can work for you. The minimal necessities to a rich unschooling experience are a library card, internet access, and loving parents. Good friends, good experiences, and learning will follow.

The flexibility of unschooling can have a lot of small bonuses, too. Shopping can be done during a quiet hour. It’s easier to travel when tickets are cheap. If plans change, it’s not that big a deal. You can have a family vacation whenever it suits you. It makes a lot of things easier!

• It’s About the Learner

Schools have a lot of kids, teachers, and parents to focus their time on. Unschooling lets the experience focus on the learner and their needs. This puts the learner in a more comfortable and more secure environment. Feeling comfortable  enough to seek information, ask questions, try new things, and share experiences is very important to learning. Unschooling does just that.

Knowing that what they need is freely available (entertainment, comfort, food, sleep, etc) lets children be comfortable enough not to hoard those things. Having the freedom to choose early on helps children establish security in the world around them, and make better choices with the experience they get.

Maturity doesn’t come with age. It comes with experience.

• Real-world Experience

Speaking of experience! Instead of just focusing on theory, unschooling gives kids real, hands-on experience. There’s nothing arbitrary about any of their experiences. The things unschoolers learn are put into context (this is important – why do you think schools try to give students stories for math problems?). Their learning is a more complete experience, and is more memorable because of that.

It’s more than just academic knowledge, too. Responsibility and respect are things you learn from experience, and they can’t be forced. Unschooling helps kids learn (and experience) both, without instilling fear (like schools do with punishment, bad grades, and other assessments).

• Families Are Closer

Many parents of schooled children don’t know their children very well, and don’t spend much time with them. On top of work, school, homework, errands, and free time with friends, there’s very little time to sit down and spend time together as a family.

This heart-rending article puts it in perspective: working parents on average spend less than 30 minutes of active time with their children. Unschoolers don’t have that problem.

• It’s Fun!

Unschoolers have the biggest playground of all: the world. Unschooling encourages families to focus on making fun, entertaining lives, because that’s the best way to learn. No matter your age!

Why did your family choose unschooling? Share your story in the comments!

• Be sure not to miss the other parts of the Self-Ed 101 series:
  Self-Ed 101: A Brief History
  Self-Ed 101: Deschooling