Education in Aviandria

Even though school starts in August around where I live, September is the month that most closely aligns with the back-to-school feeling in my mind. It makes me think of books, and desks, and backpacks full of crisp, new notebooks and freshly sharpened pencils. It’s the season of new shoes crunching over fallen leaves, sack lunches in brown paper bags, and laughing with friends at recess. Some of those things may have changed since I was young, but some of them must still be the same. After all, aren’t new school shoes timeless?

Since this month reminds me so strongly of school and learning, I thought I would share a bit about education in Aviandria.

What is school like in Aviandria?

School isn’t really “school” in Aviandria. Yes, kids are expected to be educated, but it is considered a duty of the parents, primarily the mother, at least until the child is around twelve, since that is when they typically start training for their vocation. Unfortunately, this means that some children don’t get a very good education, however, most of the time parents find a way for their children to get the basics. Most often, a mother teaches her own children herself. If a mother isn’t able to teach her own child for any reason, sometimes a relative will do it, or the family will pay or trade a neighbor to let the child join the neighbor’s family education times. Once in a while, if there is someone who is especially good at teaching and well educated, they may set up a small school of sorts where parents can trade money or other useful objects for tuition for their child to attend. Some parents team up and take turns. There are different ways a child can be educated, but it is ultimately up to the family. The government takes no part in education.

Who gets to be educated?

All boys and girls learn basics together up till about the age of twelve. After that, they usually start training to be what they plan to be when they are old enough to be considered an adult. This includes all classes, as long as their family does it or arranged for someone else to do it. As mentioned before, this occasionally means a child won’t get an education in the expected subjects, but it is a strong enough expectation in most communities that most families find a way for at least the very basics. Those who are wealthier or have more educated parents might get a bit more than the rest, but almost everyone gets at least some.

What is included?

Basic education in Aviandria includes reading, writing, arithmetic type math, and usually a little history and natural science. By the time they are twelve, most children know how to read and write, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and fractions. Some may learn basics algebra or geometry, though that is less common. The history and science are what varies the most. Since most people don’t have access to officially written histories, it is usually passed down orally through stories. As a result, it varies a great deal from region to region, and family to family. This can be problematic, but most people at least try the best they can. Science usually includes learning about the world around them. This might include learning about the different plants and animals of the area, or dirt, or weather, or stars, etc., It varies greatly. Anything more than this is considered part of vocational training and only taught as part of that.

What resources do they have?

Whatever the family can come up with. Paper isn’t incredibly rare in Aviandria, but it is expensive enough people don’t just waste it either. Often children and those teaching will do their writing on things that can be erased and used over and over. It might be a stick in the dirt, charcoal on a rock, or even flour sifted onto the table. Books are very expensive, and most households are very lucky if they have even one which has been passed down. Sometimes parents will buy paper (which, while somewhat expensive, isn’t nearly as much as a book) and make their children homemade books to practice reading with. If paper is still too much, they will use whatever is available–cloth, wood, woven mats–anything. It isn’t uncommon to see fence rails or the sides of barns and sheds with reading practices scratched or painted on them. Sometimes children are sent to read other people’s barns for practice.

As you can see, though they learn many of the same things in Aviandria, the ways they learn them are quite different. Some are as good, some aren’t. It isn’t perfect, but it has worked well enough for them for hundreds of years. Is ours really better? Who knows?

What was your education like? Did you go to public school, private school, or homeschool? What did you like/dislike about it?