What are you opinions on homeschooling?

Question

WOW! Thanks everyone for all your awesome opinions. There were so many good ones that I couldn't bring myself to choose just one "best" answer. Thanks and keep posting!

Answer 1

i think home schooling is alright if the child doesn't get along with people at school or no longer wants to be there but it does take away the social skills teens and children do need to get thorugh life.

Answer 2

I was home school from 4th grade to 9th grade. I think that it is  a  good thing to do. Although some kids who are people persons might be lonely at time, but i was very active in my church, so i turned out OK. All in all i think home schooling is good.

Answer 3

Wow. I can't believe some of these answers. First, on the socialization, who do you want teaching your children to socialize? Would you like to handle that yourself, or leave it to the 26 kids and 1teacher in the classroom?

Second, you can look it up. Homeschoolers outperform traditionally schooled kids overall.

My wife homeschools my two children(9yrs and 6 yrs). We love it, my children are learning more than those in the classroom. If they get something 70% right, they redo it. In a classroom, they pass and move on.

My daughter plays basketball and takes gymnastics, and my son plays basketball and is a Cub Scout. They get all the socialization they need AND a superior education.

Answer 4

my cousins are home schooled. I think its fine, just be sure they can interact with other kids (sports, girl/boyscouts, ect.). That way if you ever stop home schooling them they know how to be around kids and won't think they are better than anyone else.

Answer 5

I was homeschooled! It was very unsocial and i didnt get to experience what all the other kids did. I MISSED MY PROM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:{..i think you need interaction with people and everyday life. It's just a good experience!

Answer 6

it can be ok if you have all the right work and stuff an the child actually learns,but they would miss out on social skills

Answer 7

I am sorry, I was going to post a long answer, however after reading all the opinions against home schooling I was just shaking my head at the eternal socialization myth, I cannot believe this is so ingrained into peoples minds; I do wonder where that came from.

As it has been said before, the reason our children seem different to their conventionally schooled peers is, because they are so far ahead especially in the maturity department; this does make them seem out of touch with young people of the same age.

I personally do not see this as a deficit.

Read:

http://www.nhen.org/printfriendly.asp?ID...

Answer 8

I made the decision to homeschool when my family moved to an area where the school that my 9 year old would have had to attend had a failing "report card".  There are many benefits to homeschooling including, but not limited to, extra 1 on 1 time with your children, the security of knowing that they are retaining what they are taught, and teaching their younger siblings while doing normal school related activities with your other children.  We take the kids to do extra curricular activities like going to the park and sometimes amusement parks so that they can interact with kids in their own age groups.

Overall, I would say that homeschooling is definitely worth it if you have the patience to be mom and the teacher.

Answer 9

My opinion is that it's great for families that make it great. Those who have had unhappy experiences--blame your parents for how they went about it, not homeschooling itself. I know homeschooled kids who don't want to go to school because it'd ruin the social activities they have set up with other homeschoolers!

My kids are happy and doing well. They are not anti-social--they are actually more social than I ever was in school. They don't live in a plastic bubble. We do leave the house regularly. They have friends who are homeschooled and friends who aren't homeschooled. They attend birthday parties, Christmas parties, Halloween parties, etc. We go on field trips with other families.  We have playdates with other families. They take community lessons. We go out and do stuff just on our own--always opportunities to interact with people when you are out and about in your community. We share things from the news that we find age-appropriate and discuss it. Etc.

They do not miss out on social interaction--if someone were to calculate how much they interact with me and with each other, never mind people outside the family, on an average day, it would far surpass how much interaction a schooled child gets. Add in the interaction they get with the various activities... Maybe some families keep their kids at home all the time, but most families I know don't.

As for this comment:

I think it is better to gradually teach your kids how to handle the bad things in life rather than protecting them from it.

I wholeheartedly agree. That's part of the reason we homeschool: to gradually give our kids more and more instead of just throwing them full-time into it at the tender age of 5/6--and forcing them to stay there for 12 years.

Answer 10

Homeschooled kids miss out on social interaction so I think it's a bad idea.

Answer 11

I love it, because this is what you get from public school "i think you should send your kids to a publec school"

Answer 12

I'm homeschooled, but I think I'd like a Christian school better. Public schools in my area are too dangerous. I like people, however I'm an independent person. I'd advise involving the kids in a homeschool group that does extracurricular activities.

Answer 13

Personally, I think it is a bad idea. Children do not learn the social skills needed to function in the real world if they are home schooled. Sadly, there is a lot of "Bad" out there and as parents, we need to be teaching our kids how to handle it rather than hiding them from it. Someday we won't be there to protect them and we have to get them ready for the real world.

Example: My daughter has a friend who was home schooled for a long time. His mother had a stroke and can no longer do it, so he is now in the regular school. He has feelings for some of the girls and is not capable of expressing it in an appropriate way because he has never had the gradual introduction to it that other boys his age have. He has a hard time making friends because he is different and therefore overcompensates by being bad to 'fit in'.

I think it is better to gradually teach your kids how to handle the bad things in life rather than protecting them from it.

EDIT: If the child is older and wants to be home schooled I don't see a problem with it, but let them get the social skills while they are younger.

Wow- Seems the pro-homeschool people are a passionate group. This is the most thumbs down I have ever gotten! Thank you. :-)

Answer 14

It's a wonderful option.

Abstract, you're mistaken.  Homeschooled children, on average, are involved in five different outside activities.  There is plenty of social interaction - it's just supervised.  No bullying, no illicit behavior, no inappropriateness.

They aren't in a bubble.  They interact with their WHOLE community, not just those institutionalized and segregated by age.

Answer 15

LOVE IT. I am homschooled. I would NEVER go back to public.

Answer 16

Great...But it can be boring too.I mean staying at home all day just learning instead of going out to a school to meet new friends.(And look for cuties)LOL!

Answer 17

Glee... *your* answer made me giggle!

There is a gap between homeschool student social skills and public school student social skills... and by the way I've taught in PS and my son has been in PS - but we homeschool now.

In my opinion homeschool student's social skills are much more mature and polite (that may be why they seem "weird" to some) than PS school students (generally).

Homeschool students are going to be interested in talking about good books, academic pursuits, philosophy, goals and such rather than TV shows or the latest Rap album and such.

It has been claimed here on YA by homeschool critics that homeschooled kids will not develop an ability to deal with diversity.  Just look, right here on YA, at how accepting and tolerant of different beliefs public school proponents are.

Even to innocent questions such as help me with deciding on a science project, the asker and homeschooling gets taunted. I think the new term is cyber-bullying.

If one were to honestly gauge social skills by nothing other than the posts here on YA the only conclusion one could draw is that homeschool students and parents are much more civilized.

By the way: Love Homeschooling!

Answer 18

good education, horrible life...

Answer 19

student will not have any social life experience as a child.

the student will become very introverted.

student will NOT know who to interact with other people as well as kids who attend regular schooling. .

Answer 20

home schooling is only good if you are committed to doing it!! Its hard you have to be self disciplined. as for the social interaction that can be solved by joining a homeschool group and church groups. I used to homeschool my children but I sent them back to public school because i felt it wasnt fair to them that i had gotten to busy to give them the time they needed. You have to make the choice not everyone here, your situation is different so go with what is best and what you feel is right...Good Luck

Answer 21

funny you ask that, I was thinking of doing this for m y kids. I chose not to homeschool, I work outside the home and just don't feel I would have the time to teach them right. Factors such as their age, the program you chose, the time you can allow to help. thinks of these things long and hard before you decide good luck!

Answer 22

i think you should send your kids to a publec school

Answer 23

Oh, my sides hurt from laughing! These critics have no clue about homeschool. They are just parroting what they've heard or else making it up as they go. Notice that no studies were given to back up their assumptions? Go to the homeschool websites and read about what other parents are doing. Read about what they have discovered works and what does not work for everyone. They will have links to actual research on what kind of social skills homeschool produces. My "poor" homeschooled daughter, a child these people would have you believe is raised in a bubble, is a social butterfly. She's a fairly edgy little kid. The only way you might think she was from another planet is if you don't get out much yourself. She was finishing Art class last night when she spotted an drama class full of older kids practicing and was invited to join in. She did and had a ball doing it. How many kids do you know who would have the grit to do that? Homeschool kids are not shy. They develop their own unique personalities just like any kid should. Meanwhile, she just got back from a bike ride and is heading over to a friend's to play. Homeschool is what you make it, and we make it great!

HA HA, "publec"!

Answer 24

not good ... that makes your kids antisocial... even if you send them to public school later... all the kids I've ever met that were homeschooled act as if they're from another planet ... and they are desperate for friends and don't realize how to make them... it's sorta sad

Answer 25

Like Public or Private school... it is in large part, dependent on the individual, what resources they have/will have, and who "at home" will be teaching/guiding them. If a child is "home-schooled" by sitting at home all day and paying video games... it is likely to fail. If a child is home-schooled by a dedicated and educated parent or group of guides that choose to take advantage of the opportunities to explore both conventional as well as unconventionally methods and get out and really see the world... they  can be very successful. But then again, with parents like that, they could possibly be very successful in regular school too. that is where the individual child comes in, what works best for THEM?

Public school is a bit like having a job that requires you to "sit there and shut up" (I don't know any adults that would tolerate a job with the same rules their child have to live by), but then again, it does build discipline (in a good way too), and dedication for some. Of course, that is also dependent on the school, some are good, safe schools... others, are full of bullies or criminals and are pretty unsafe.

Overall, i encourage homeschooling provided it truly is SCHOOLING... (not that it has to be LIKE school, it can be completely different.... but it has to be educational and consistent). Good Luck.

Answer 26

I thinks it's resoucreful. I mean, it's not like your child is NOT getting an education. Besides, it gives teachers one less brain to teach. I'm sure the educational system loves that.

Answer 27

Homeschooled children, on a whole, are so very well adjusted and mature that they usually blow traditional kids away at spelling bees, geography olympics, debate squads, etc... Most major universities here in the United States are wooing homeschool graduates.  University of Maryland gives grants right and left for homeschooled high school students.  Last year, out of the top 2 percent of the medical graduates, half had some form of homeschooling in their elementary, middle school and/or senior high education.

My son can carry on a conversation with any adult and he's 12.  He offers his hand when introductin himself and is very respectful.  What public school young man does that on a regular basis without being told to do it?  

Also, over 40% of the nations teachers only have a 2 degree education.  My sister is a CPA and teaches Chemistry at a high school in Evanston ILL, considered one of the top high schools in the nation.  She flunked chemistry in college, but school are looking for warm bodies to fill science and technology teaching positions.  No wonder that public school seniors rank lower on SAT scores than homeschooled children.  

Homeschooled children volunteer at senior homes, libraries, hospitals, etc.. willingly, not because they get  credit from high school to do it.  

My kids did traditional school and came home with the socialization from the school pertaining to 9 yr olds on birth control, 8 yr olds smoking at bus stops, brochures for 'same s*x' parents, how to cuss in different languages and high turnover of teachers.  

Kids only get about 30 minutes throughout the day to 'socialize' with their  friends.  I substitute at our local school district and each time I am called to sub I bless my stars I homeschool.  

Public school teachers many times thank me for homeschooling my children.  Reason being is that the new policy "No Child Left Behind" instructs school districts to teach the test and teach to the lowest common denominator. My 10 yr old is on a 6th grade level and my 12 yr old is on an 8th grade level.  In a public school they would be chastised.  My 7 yr old is a delayed learner and in a public school setting he would be passed over.  I know this because of my substituting.  One day I was subbing for a Junior high school history class.  I was fired up to talk about the American Revolution.  We were having a great discussion and I was called into the principal's office and told to not do that any longer.  It might make the advanced kids smarter and make those that just sit there and pick their nose and swear under their breath every moment they get, uncomfortable.  This is the condition of American schools now.  Back in the day, in the 60's when I was going to school we were actually taught by teachers who chose teaching as a lifelong profession.  The average 'life expectancy' of a teacher is only 5 years of teaching then they get burned out and disenchanted and go on to other things.  OR homeschool.  

Oh, by the way, when I substitute I bring my kids along to do their work and each day they thank their stars they don't have to be in 'bedlam' as my 12 yr old says.  Also, we are in a homeschooling group in our county that is 85 families strong.  Socialization is NOT a problem!

Before anyone discounts homeschooling, they really need to do some research that is not biased.

Answer 28

good

Answer 29

Bad, because yur not able to interact with other people educationally or socially like a normal school does.

Answer 30

Like all things....advantages and drawbacks.  Personally, for our family...we'd kill each other if we had to hang out all day together.  lol

Answer 31

IT'S GREAT!! i used to go to public school, then my wonderful mom took me out to home school me, and i love it! just like any other public scholars, i have great friends, and am very socially active!! wonderful option, look into it.

PS and i HATE it when people think home schooled kids are like some kind of bat hidden away in a cave, never to see humans, or have interaction. we're not monks! Gosh...