What are your thoughts on HOMESCHOOLING?

Question

Hi, I'm writing a report on homeschooling. I would love to hear your comments from everyone!! It doesn't matter if you're for or against homeschooling. Thank u! :)

Answer 1

My husband and I homeschool 3 of our children. One is 9, one is 7 and one is 4 years old. They are social, well behaved, polite and all are beyond children on the same grade level in public school. Socialization in a public school was exactly what we wanted to avoid, with all the corrupt and immoral influences they would be exposed to. We put them in situations where they can socialize in a healthy way with families and children we feel comfortable about. As for the academic side, our 9 year old is of average intelligence and does very well in his studies. Our 7 year old has speech and auditory processing issues and is getting through her work remarkably well because she has individualized instruction. Our 4 year old has been sitting in on lessons for the past couple of years and has been reading fluently since the age of 3. She can now read 4th and 5th grade chapter books, can skip count by any number up to 10, multiplies, divides and is learning a foreign language. When she starts kindergarten in the fall, she will be able to have her curriculum tailored so she can start on 2nd grade math, history, science, art, and 3rd grade LA. That would not be possible in a regular school and she would be twiddling her thumbs all day while her classmates learned abc's. We do look forward to putting the children into a larger school setting in the right environment, but they have benefitted greatly from being homeschooled during the early elementary years.

Answer 2

32, female, HS mom of an 11 yr old girl.

We love it.

Here are her thoughts:

"It is really fun. It is better than public school. I am not as distracted and I get to see my family more. I get to pick out my own books. I can take art or music classes. I get to ride bikes with my friends."

  You should know that in public school she was told she had ADD, and HAD to be medicated. Testing showed her to be reading as if she had only been in first grade for 1 month. She was in the third grade. She was often distracted by the noisy kids in her class. Her school did not have recess and she was often kept out of art and music classes for unfinished work. With the NCLB act, that is illegal, but it happened just the same. She had so much home work that she was never able to play with the other kids in the neighborhood. Now, she is unmediated, excelling in her studies and very happy.  I regret the time she wasted in public school.

   James M: We aren’t out to get published on here, hon.  It is after 1am, and I am not about to proof read my answers on Yahoo.

Also, when did the length (in inches no less) of a paragraph make it incorrect? Did you also notice that YA frequently eats indentions? Don’t pick nits. It is petty and pathetic. Check out the teaching section of YA. It isn’t exactly full of undiscovered writers either.

Did you think we would not figure out that you attacked the writing style of the homeschoolers here because you could not argue with the content of their writing?

Answer 3

I think that the Kids end up being anti-social unless they are exposed to extra-curriular activites.

Answer 4

There is a lot of research about how the brain learns and how children develop. Most schools are not designed in a way that supports how people learn, and how kids develop. Rather they are designed to maintain order and peace in a system where hundreds of kids are together under one building with only a few adults. When public school came into existence, the people who organized it proudly proclaimed it's purpose was to create a nation of workers for industry, hardly suitable to today's needs, yet the system is exactly the same as it was over 100 years ago.

When a family opts out of the traditional schooling, they can choose from so many different philosophies and gear their education toward their childrens' individual needs and desires, as well as create a very positive, social family environment. They can use curriculum, online resources, books, or they can follow very alternative styles of learning. The resources and support systems for their choices are plentiful.

If a parent recreated the school environment at home, they could "teach" the same amount of material in about 4-60 minutes as a child gets by sitting in desks 6-8 hrs a day. Imagine getting up whenever you awake, having breakfast, sitting down (or skipping around) while finishing the day's *teaching*, then having the rest of the 6-8 hrs available to do whatever your heart desires, depending on your parents ability to facilitate your wants and needs.

A parent could easily provide the same amount of socialization opportunities provided by schools... nowadays, some schools have NO recess. But if they do... let's figure about 30 minutes recess, 5 min between classes, 30 minutes lunch... We can cover a week of socialization in one park day with 20+ other home-schooled kids. And the quality of that *park day* socialization is top notch, the ratio of adults to children much much higher... no comparison to the superficial 5 minutes between classes a child gets at school.

Home-schooled children can pursue their interests, and along the way, develop friends who have similar interests. Their friends are not pre-determined by age and alphabetized seating order. They can meet friends at the classes they take to pursue their interests, at events, and by utilizing their local home school networks for regular meetups.

"Extra curricular activities" is basically Home schooling, defined. We can use public school though, if we want, for sports, clubs, activities, etc, because we all pay taxes to support it, and most schools allow home schooled kids to participate in their extra curricular activities.

But we don't need public school to provide that for us. Children can pursue interests by joining a variety of clubs and organizations, intramural sports, YMCA, churches, taking classes through community resources, colleges, mentoring, apprenticeship, jobs, etc.

Answer 5

I'm 55 and my wife is five years younger.

We live in Sacramento,CA

We have two boys that are grown now, but were taken out of school because of the quality of there public school!

They were enrolled in home schooling and eventually graduated, only because of the very casual structure of the home school.  

They were exposed to more information than if they were left in the public school.

As far as being better, it depends on how close you are to your kids and how bad the situation is at there public school, and how long you expect to have your child/children separated from his peers.

It is important that they grow together with there friends, so they learn the necessary social skills, by working, eating and succeeding or failing, with there friends!

Things that they cant learn in Home Schooling!

I wouldn't recommend Home Schooling, unless of a medical Emergency!

Answer 6

I am female, 21, and was not home schooled. I am a college student working on a Master's in Econ.

For the past couple years, I have been a coach and have gotten to spend alot of time with kids/teens 8-16.  I think that home schooling is something that alot of people start off doing with the best of intentions, but end up falling behind or slacking. Since they do not have the structure of real school they seem to fall behind easier. What I notice about kids that are homeschooled is that they all seem quite and unsure of themselve in social situations. When put on the spot to aswer a question or demonstrate someting they panic. The younger homeschool kids seem to struggle with reading simple words and telling time more than the public school kids. They also seem to not want to do anything themselves (like go to the water fountian in the hall). The teenages are better about things like this, it just seems like it take homeschoolers longer to mature in many ways.

In my first year of college, I saw a few homeschoolers doing well, but many of them were falling behind. When my English 101 professor assigned a 5 page paper in MLA format, the two homeschool kids brought in their papers with pretty much no form. I feel like they didnt understand the need for structure and how to follow guidelines because they dont have to follow as many guidelines when they are homeschooled.

In the end some people turn out great from it, but many dont. It takes a special type of person to thrive at being home schooled.

Answer 7

my friend does homeschooling and she says she hate it because she's stuck inside all day

i'd feel the same way

Answer 8

Im 16, in the 11th grade, and I am homeschooled with keystone national high.

Well, I went to public schools k-8 and started homeschooling when I started high school. I can honestly say that I enjoy having the freedom and versatility of doing schoolwork on my own time, but at the same time, this particular program lacks in student-teacher contact. You usually have to leave a message on the phone or email the teachers, I've never spoken directly to my teachers. The courses are top-notch in my opinion, I'm taking biology, spanish 1, English 3, american government, and Algebra this year. So far, I've taken English 1 & 2, Pre algebra, algebra 2, life science, earth science, health, art and music appreciation, civics, and a few other things I can't remember right now. When I complete this year, I'll have 15 credits, and I need 21 to get a diploma at this high school. You get 12 months to complete all of your work, instead of the regular 9 months, and they evaluate each and every test and they send you your score back along with their comments on how you did. ( This is through correspondence, not the online program) And if you don't complete everything in 12 months, they will generously give you another month to complete everything. Out of 1-10, I give keystone a 9.8. The only negative about it is that there isn't enough direct contact with the teachers. Right now, I currently have a part time job, while continuing high school. And for anybody who thinks home schooled kids are anti social, TRUST ME, getting out of public schools and away from certain morons that are there, is a HUGE relief. I used to get headaches all the time and I suffered from anxiety in public schools, but every since I started home schooling, I feel so much better, the headaches are gone, I'm about 90% less anxious than I was before, and my confidence has gone up tremendously. And as another plus, I have access to courses that I wouldn't have had a chance at in the public schools in my area.

Answer 9

I think homeschooling allows for more opportunities in life.  There are too many places to go and people to meet to spend so much time in a classroom.

You can learn much more if you are motivated by your own interests and aspirations than being subjected to a system geared toward a large group.  You get an individualized education system homeschooling and it has so many advantages.

Homeschooling offers a more diverse population with whom to socialize, and more time to do so.  

Good luck with your report :D

Answer 10

Public school, I have read previous post like this, and in some of the answer...  Some that have been homeschooled, didn't like it...

I often wonder how I would have done on my own resource?

Answer 11

Hi, I am a mom of two homeschooled kids.  My 18 yo daughter was homeschooled until grade 10, then she chose to go to school.  She is now in first year University, and excellent student, an exceptional person, loves working with kids, doesn't do drugs or get into any trouble.  She has many interests, and was able to pursue so many more things in depth because she was homeschooled.  My little son is now only 6, but we certainly will homeschool him.  He has already taught himself to read, he has several good friends, and is taking classes in swimming, yoga and karate.  

It is a common misconception that homeschooled kids are "not socialized".  If by this you mean that they are not rude, trend-following, peer-pressured freaks who can only relate to kids their exact own age, I agree.  Our home is rich with music, friends, pets, books and activities.  The children are socialized in a much healthier way:  by living actual life, where people of all ages interact with each other, and where there are always an adequate number of adults around to help settle disputes, and offer guidance.  Socialization, in my mind, is one of the main factors IN FAVOR of home schooling.

Peace and Happy Learning.....

Answer 12

Homeschooling sucks.  The kids never become socialized and don't know how to function in a world beyond their family.