No one reads at a "6th grade level." 6th to 8th grade levels entail a range that kids bounce back and forth in. It is too close to really measure accurately. (In reality the only grades that can be measured with a great deal of accuracy are primer, 1st, 2nd and 3rd. There is overlap everywhere else.)There is some wiggle room there. So if she is in 10th and the reading materials are around the 8th grade, then she has a fair shot at understanding. Plus, I would imagine that her receptive vocabulary to spoken materials is high. Therefore, she can take notes from lectures and study those and do fairly well.
The reason she is in an algebra class is probably a county decision. Many counties now are forcing kids into algebra whether they are ready or not. The idea being that if they fail, at lease they should have learned something, then take it again and pass. I don't agree with this approach, but then I'm not in charge.
If you will refer back to my post, you will notice that I said I had seen successes in every area of schooling and that in my experience as a special education reading teacher, I'd seen about 25% at a failing level. That's out of about 20 kids I've come in contact with. Therefore, that is about 5 kids in the last few years. Hardly a stinging indictment of the homeschooling system.
Who knows, in the next 5 years maybe I'll see more successes and that number will change dramatically. But if parents buy into the "unschooling" concept, I think I'll see more. As I read the article, unschooling is a chance for the child to direct his own learning. That is a constructivist approach I reject in my classroom as would many here. It sounds so nice, but without guidance, what keeps it from becoming a front for truancy? Therefore leading to yet more kids in my classroom who know the TV schedule better than their alphabet.
Obviously, this is my little corner of the world. Your's may vary. :)
My dictionary defines "truant" as a student who stays away from school without leave or permission.
How is it that you think my son owes you his time?
You cited 2 so I cited 2. I could cite more.
I didn't make the assessment of the 10th grader reading at a high 5th grade/low 6th grade level. That was done by a reading specialist, who the parents took the boy to see at the auggestion of a guidance counselor. My friend, the boy's mother, has the report and I have seen it. I still am amazed that he was able to get such good grades. Although I really know the reason; he was good at the busy work, the extra credit projects.
As for his sister, who is failing algebra. You're correct, the school system wants her in the algebra class. I seriously doubt she will pass it when she takes it a second time. She does not have the basic math skills needed to do so.
As I said I have known successes and failures in all areas, public, private and homeschool including unschool.
I organized the local chapter of the homeschool honoor society and a couple of our students were unschoolers. They were bright and articulate young people.
Unschooling was not for my family and I would not recommend it to anyone asking for my help as they begin to homeschool, but I have seen it work and I support the right of parents to choose the type of education their children receive. I support my friend's choice to leave her children in the public school. She wants them to have a "real diploma" even though I think that diploma, if they ever get it, won't be worth much.