Agree with you both to varying degrees. I was a USAF brat and didn't do kindergarten(which was NOT mandatory) because when my mom asked what they would be teaching she was told "well he'll learn the alphabet and his colors and be able to count from 1-20". Since I had been read to since birth and had been reading myself since age 3 1/2, my mom (correctly in my opinion) decided that my education would be better served by me staying home and learning on my own through reading and from picking things u from my parents and 5 older siblings. and honestly, the only reason I got more/much of anything from the first 3-5 years of school was that I was fortunate enough to attend schools and have teachers who recognized that I was better off being given assignments to work on by myself independently and help other students than to be bored to death sitting around til others were ready to move on.