> In functional workplaces, yes. In dysfunctional ones, sometimes you have to leave.

Agreed! And that is exactly what home-schooling families are doing. Choosing to leave a dysfunctional environment.

> In the military, say, you don't get that option.

Yep, and other government institutions, like prison. I don't think those are what anyone would call a typical life environment though.

> In your neighborhood, you can move, but that's a fairly difficult and expensive step. When someone moves in whose kids want to be gang members, or who wants to verbally abuse people out jogging, or whatever other antisocial behavior, you have to deal with it, at least for a while.

That's another dysfunctional environment, and also what the police are for.

> So you can't completely avoid the brokenness of the real world. (Note well: I am not saying that throwing a six year old into the deep end is the best way to prepare kids for this.)

You're right, you can't. The world has a lot of dysfunctional environments, and I agree that people need to learn how to deal with them. Knowingly forcing your child to be in one of those environments full-time for many years seems like a pretty horrible way to teach them that though, bordering on abusive.

Public school is not dysfunctional, per se.

And, to be clear, EVERY workplace will have people you don't like. Every. Single. One. No exceptions.

Kids needs to be taught resiliency and healthy mindsets, to a degree. They need to learn to live and let go, to learn their value isn't derived from what people think of them, to learn that embarrassment is self inflicted.

You just can't do that if you're only around people who don't challenge you. If you're in a nice, cushy, social bubble, you will develop self esteem and confidence issues.