Abstract:
School resistance is usually understood as a pathological behaviour or condition
indicative of underlying mental disorder for which therapy is ‘indicated’ and home schooling
is ‘contraindicated’. However, I argue that the psychiatric/psychological classifications
commonly used to identify school resistance (i.e. ‘school phobia’ and ‘school refusal’) are
socio-historical constructs that function to socially and discursively position school-resistant
children as ‘abnormal’, ‘irrational’, ‘dysfunctional’ and ‘sick’ individuals whose problems
are likely to be compounded by school withdrawal. Assuming that school resistance and
home schooling can be constructed in multiple and competing ways, I explore the
perspectives of seven school-resistant children who are being (or have been) home schooled,
their mothers, and nine practitioners working with children. I argue that by applying a
different set of assumptions to school resistance, the meaning of this phenomenon can be
radically transformed and so too can the experiences of school resisters and their families.
This research suggests that for some mothers and their school-resistant children, home
schooling can provide an acceptable and effective solution to the problems raised by school
resistance.
