Amish

Education - Amish Schools & Education
The Amish believe strongly in education, but only provide formal education through the eighth grade and only in their own private schools. The Amish are exempt from state compulsory attendance beyond the eighth grade based on religious principles, the result of a 1972 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. One-room Amish schools are private institutions, operated by Amish parents. Schooling concentrates on the basic reading, writing, math and geography, along with vocational training and socialization in Amish history and values. Education is also a big part of home life, with farming and homemaking skills considered an important part of an Amish child's upbringing.

Work - farming is not merely a job or career; it is viewed as a way of life anchored in Scripture, blessed by God and handed down over the generations by Amish ancestors. It provides a seedbed for nurturing strong families in the values of hard work, frugality, responsibility, simplicity and family cooperation.As more family work roles,men usually work on the farm, with women helping from time to time, if needed. Men are also mainly in charge of financial matters, while women do the cooking, washing, cleaning, etc. Children grow up identifying with the parent of their gender. Boys tag along behind their father, and girls stay indoors to help their mother.

Recreation - Recreation in Amish life often focuses on local activities involving nature. Without cars and with many chores, Amish families are more tied to the local community. Sledding, skating, ice hockey, swimming, camping, fishing, and hunting provide breaks from the routines of work. Informal games of softball, corner ball, and volleyball have long been favorites in many Amish communities. Camping in local meadows and wooded areas is also popular in some communities.Families involved in businesses or factory work are finding more time for recreation. “We are more of a leisure people now,” said one businessman. Another shop owner said, “We're business people now, not just backwoods farmers, and sometimes we just need to get away.” Several couples may travel together in a hired van to visit friends and relatives in out-of-state communities. Along the way, they may visit historic sites or a state or national park. Increasingly, groups of Amish charter a bus to a historic village, a zoo, or a natural site as well. Family reunions and picnics are also popular leisure-time activities.Men sometimes rent a hunting cabin for several days or charter a boat to go fishing in eastern waterways or on one of the Great Lakes, depending on where they live. Archery is popular in some areas. Adults who enjoy birding sometimes travel across the country to popular migration sites. Some young men go big game hunting in the Rocky Mountains for a week, equipped with guides and state-of-the-art guns and supplies. Snow and water skiing are popular among some youth.Group singings, barn raisings, "sisters days," "work bees" (sometimes called frolics) and other similar activities are important social events that blend work and leisure or, in the case of singings, leisure and worship together in most Amish communities. Such activities within church districts and sometimes across districts weave leisure into the larger social and spiritual framework.Recreation and travel is on the rise among more progressive families. Nevertheless, Amish leisure, for the most part, is not commercialized and remains connected to nature. It is almost always community oriented, revolving around family and friends.

Philosophy - Technology & the Amish
The Amish are averse to any technology which they feel weakens the family structure. The conveniences that the rest of us take for granted such as
electricity, television, automobiles, telephones and tractors are considered to be a
temptation that could cause vanity, create inequality, or lead the Amish away from
their close-knit community and, as such, are not encouraged or accepted in most
orders. Most Amish cultivate their fields with horse-drawn machinery, live in houses
without electricity, and get around in horse-drawn buggies. It is common for Amish
communities to allow the use of telephones, but not in the home. Instead, several
Amish families will share a telephone in a wooden shanty between farms. Electricity
is sometimes used in certain situations, such as electric fences for cattle, flashing
electric lights on buggies, and heating homes. Windmills are often used as a source
of naturally generated electric power in such instances. It is also not unusual to
see Amish using such 20th-century technologies as inline skates, disposable diapers
and gas barbecue grills, because they are not specifically prohibited by the Ordnung.
Technology is generally where you will see the greatest differences between Amish
orders. The Swartzentruber and Andy Weaver Amish are ultraconservative in their use
of technology - the Swartzentruber, for example, do not even allow the use of battery
lights. Old Order Amish have little use for modern technology, but are allowed to
ride in motorized vehicles including planes and automobiles, though they are not allowed to own them. The New Order Amish permit the use of electricity, ownership of
automobiles, modern farming machines, and telephones in the home.

My opinion - I feel that the way that the Amish live is very interesting. They are doing a great part in saving the earth by not using much of technology. However, I cannot understand how they can live without technology. For me, technology is in my daily life. I have been born into a world full of technology and I feel that technology for me is an essential part of my everyday life. For example, when we are lost in a car, most of us will just use the GPS system which could easily get us back on track. I also cannot imagine living without motorised technology. For me, I already take one and a half hours to get home by public transport. If I ride bicycle, I would have to take like four hours... to me, that is a total waste of time. However, if everyone can adapt to this change of not having any motorised technology or a small number of them, global warming will not form as a problem to us. At least not yet. In conclusion, I feel that the way Amish live is very interesting, they can live without technology which i definitely cannot do. However, they are doing a part in saving the world, which many of us talk so much about but do not do anything.