Overview
If there was ever a perfect union it is between Touch the Future and the annual Rethinking Education (RE) Conference, held every September in Dallas, Texas, USA. As of January 2008, Touch the Future is serving as the nonprofit sponsor for this unique and powerful event.
2009 marks RE's 13th year of producing an international conference for families and others who unschool their children and teens, those wishing to do so, and those simply in search of fresh ideas on education and parenting.
At the heart of Rethinking Education is the awareness that children are supremely capable of absorbing and using knowledge from our complex world. There is no need for arbitrary structure in education; the use of coercion, rewards or other behavior modification techniques as motivation are counterproductive. With freedom, respect and nurturing support, children have a powerful drive to self-direct their own learning; the result being children who direct their own education... indeed, their own futures.
Education viewed this way becomes a mutual endeavor, a life-long process of questioning and discovery ... a true exploration of self, society and the larger world.
Unschooling is a term used to describe a broad-based approach to education that focuses on student-centered learning, i.e., recognizing each learner as a highly unique, diverse being with continually developing interests, readiness and abilities.
The RE conference aims to educate, nurture and support each family member in the skills of communication, self-assessment and resourcing to meet each individual's needs. For ongoing conference details and registration information, please visit their website: http://www.rethinkingeducation.net
Background
Founded in 1994, Rethinking Education is at the forefront of a rapidly growing trend in alternative education. Proponents are widespread and include John Taylor Gatto, Jan Fortune-Wood, John Holt, Bruno Bettleheim, Alice Miller, Ivan Illich, Susannah Sheffer, A.S. Neill, Daniel Greenberg, Jonathan Kozol, and numerous others.
What is Freedom? Unschooling successfully is all about maximizing freedom, for each child, teen and parent. Simply put, freedom is living life being true to yourself, making your own decisions, all of which directly affect you. Freedom is NOT taking action that intrudes or violates the personal freedoms or personal space of someone else. 
At the Rethinking Education conference, each person will be extended maximum freedom to have fun, choose their own awake-and-sleep hours, choose activities and new friends, mealtimes and meals. Be free, be wild if that's your thing, be true to whoever you are or whoever you want to be. PLEASE... be sure your actions are YOURS, and will not intrude upon someone else's space or freedom to do or be what THEY want for themselves.
Example: YOU want to stay up all night, having fun with your new friends. (By popular request, we will be planning and hosting activities that go into the wee hours this year.) You are FREE to do this! You are NOT FREE to make noise or otherwise keep others awake who prefer to be sleeping. Remember at all times that your choice of action should always be that which affects you alone, and not anyone else. If someone else chooses to participate in your activity, they will let you know.
FREEDOM, as it applies to individual rights and freedoms, will be dissected and addressed at length during our weekend event. For a liberating and radical insight into freedom, read A.S. Neill' "Summerhill" and other works by this author.