What is your take on homeschooling?

Question

What is your take on homeschooling?

Answer 1

i do not like homeschooling.

it doesnt provide the child with the same

like they dont go through the drama, the guys,

the friends, the laughs, the crys, the dances, the activities, the sports,etc.

i mean some of that you may want to keep your child away from but it will also show them how to react to it and how to handle things.

this way when they go off to college it isnt all a new thing to them

Answer 2

I think kids benefit in so many ways by going to school. I'm not just talking about the 3 R's either. Socially it's important for them to have some space away from home & learn to cope by themselves in certain settings. These skills are important all their lives.

Answer 3

Why does a teacher have to go to college for so many years, but a parent can just homeschool their child? The child doesn't get the experience of school and the socialization.

Answer 4

I love homeschooling!  I admire all parents with the guts to make education the foundation of their lifestyle -- it's darn tough work!   :o)   Those folks who would compare homeschooling to public schooling compare apples to oranges -- they are very different forms of education requiring very different mindsets.

The vast majority of homeschoolers go on to live fulfilling lives after they leave home, lives that are defined by the homeschoolers themselves.  That's the biggest benefit of homeschooling, that homeschooled kids' are well prepared to make their lives what they want them to be, not to accept "life" as defined by someone else.

Those of us who choose to homeschool make that choice out of love for our children, because, as parents, only we know what is best for our kids -- and we take that responsibility very seriously.  Sometimes that responsibility means bucking the established forms of education and trekking out on our own, and, believe me, it is not an easy decision to make or to follow through on.

We've been homeschooling for three years, now, and I have yet to regret the decision.  Home education has a long and varied history spanning thousands of years.  Today, homeschooling continues to be a perfect fit for my family and for thousands of others across the US and the world.

Answer 5

My take on homeschooling is that it is great if parents make it great and it's horrible if parents don't do what they need to. Fortunately, most parents choose to homeschool because they truly care about their children's development and do make it a positive thing.

My take on most people who naysay homeschooling is that they really don't have the factual basis to be saying such things.

"i do not like homeschooling. it doesnt provide the child with the same"

That's really kind of the point of homeschooling--so that kids don't grow up with the same; they have a chance at having something BETTER.

"like they dont go through the drama, the guys,

the friends, the laughs, the crys, the dances, the activities, the sports,etc."

I know homeschooled kids who have to deal with drama--not on a daily basis, granted, but that's a GOOD thing. The homeschooled kids I know still can have issues over which they cry, they can still go to dances with friends, they participate in LOTS of activities, many do sports... In fact, I know a girl in high level sports who loves homeschooling because she wouldn't be able to do the training required of her AND be in school most of the day. Pure ignorance has someone say the quoted part above.

"I have not met any parents that were really qualified to teach (10 or 12 families) beyond the workbooks that can be purchased. "

Seems to me that a lot of my learning in school was workbook learning. Truly. I don't see how parents relying on workbooks means the kids are going to miss out on something. School learning and home learning are two different mentalities altogether a lot of the time anyhow.

"Socially it's important for them to have some space away from home & learn to cope by themselves in certain settings. "

I think many homeschooling parents would agree, which is why their kids get space away from home and learn to cope in certain settings. They're just gradually introduced to it instead of thrust into it full-time at age 5 or 6.

"The most bad thing about it is that it does not let the kids to meet other kids and make friends "

This is such a crock.

"but i cant imagine what my life would be like without it. "

That's not a valid point for saying people should go to school. If you hadn't lived in the country you lived in, you wouldn't be able to imagine your life having grown up somewhere else either.

"School has far too many opportunities for social growth,"

Ah, but what KIND and what QUALITY of social growth? Homeschooling offers social growth, too, just a saner, healthier sort.

i mean some of that you may want to keep your child away from but it will also show them how to react to it and how to handle things.

this way when they go off to college it isnt all a new thing to them

Answer 6

i liked hoemschooling b/c it was quick, i didn't have to wait for immature classmates to be quiet and let the teacher teach. i did my homework when i wanted and to the test when i wanted. at that time i thought that was the best thing about being homeschooled its self-paced, but that turned out to be the worst part now that i am in college. i received a scholarship to a private university and now i find it hard to manage my time according to my classes. i got so used to studying whenever i wanted, that i didn't notice i was mis-manaing my time. i am a full time student and time management is the most important skill a student should i have and i forgot how to manage time wisely.

   Also home school curriculum is NOTHING like college material. College material is fast paced and way more difficult... overall although i like being homeschooled at that time now its really been a pain learning how to do h.w a certain time and taking a test at a certain time... whereas in homeschool if i didn't feel prepared i'd hold off taking a class till i studied more.

Answer 7

We keep our homeschool child locked in a closet 24x7x365.

We put homework in a little mail slot and he spits out his work the same way.  This is also how we feed him.  He has never seen the light of day.  Nor has he ever watched a television program, gone to a dance, participated in sports, joined and participated actively in a club, taken classes outside the closet let alone outside the home, gone to a movie or the theater or music concert.  He has never attended educational camps or cooperative education courses.  Even though, next year, he will be academically and emotionally ready for community college courses he will not be allowed to do that.

Is this the type of answer that some of you homeschool haters would like to hear?

Think about these numbers....

Assumptions: middle & high school.

Class is 50 minutes

25 students in each class

That one teacher with 25 students, if nothing else is going on would be able to spend a whopping 2 minutes one-on-one time with each students every day.  Now lets get realistic about this.  After taking attendence and other administrative housekeeping duties, listening to announcements, lecturing or presenting a little to the whole class, that teacher MIGHT have about 30seconds to spend with each individual.

As far as credentials go:  Very little of a teaching degree program deals with the actual subject matter to be taught.  It is more about dealing with discipline, classroom management, public relations, pedogagy and such.  A teaching degree does not make the recipient of that degree an expert in the subject area.  It makes them an expert at teaching according to prevailing theory.

Public school (e.g. mass education) is a modern, 20th century, invention.  In part it was designed to turn out obedient factory workers (this is true) to fuel the needs of the industrial revolution.  The public education system has not caught up to the changes in our world.

I applaud any parent that takes an active role in their child's education - even in public school because it really does make a difference.  Homeschooling is the ultimate expression of parental involvement in the education of a child.

Answer 8

I think it CAN work and work well if the parents and kids are serious about it. I dont belive a school enviornment is necessary to learning. I think I'v learned more since I graduated Highschool than I ever did While I attended. If the parent is willing to put in the time I think it might even be better than classic schooling. One on one or one on two or whatever the numbers are has to be better than one teacher for thirty kids. Though I think the parents need to be aware of the childs social life and make sure they dont turn into hermits and that they have friends.

Answer 9

Again all these wonderfully ill-informed people think that homeschoolers lock their children up in the house and never let them out to deal with "real life".  Good grief.  

My kids get one-on-one attention that no teacher could give them plus get the benefit of social situations that very few ps kids will ever get.    My kids have sports, friends, girlfriends, boyfriends, jobs, etc.  

I have one daughter that is saving up her own money to go to boarding school when she's in high school.   Just something she'd like to experience.  

HS kids are NOT social misfits nor ignorant learners.

Answer 10

Homeschooling DID make going to college a little socially awkward for me, and I was not quite prepared for different teachers, but I am faring well. Homeschool literally saved my life; without it, I definitely would have committed suicide. Homeschooling ISN'T for everyone by far, but it can work if parents and students make an honest effort. Through homeschool, I've found what REAL friends are like. My brothers and sisters could never become buddies with the sometimes-immature high school graduates, but they found their own friends. They also had sports teams, school groups, art lessons., etc. as I did, and had childhood and high school companions. They didn't want for companionship. I made friends at summer camp, but they abandoned me for girls who liked to talk about boys, s*x, and the latest pair of jeans. My upbringing taught me how to seek real, improving friends and to depend upon myself. It also saved us from the detriorating American educational system. As for guys and dances--I had my own high school home school proms, where you didn't need a date, and nobody care if you didn't have a date. Girls and boys date way too soon, in my opinion, ruin childhood and make foolish decisions. Not all public-schoolers are lazy and S****y, and not all homeschoolers are unsociable and prudish. Would you like it if we went around saying that all public schoolers have s*x, care only about dances, and gossip? No, I've met many fine public-schoolers and admit it. So why stereotype us? It is one thing to have an opinion, and another to put it up with not facts or reason.

And look to history--Abraham Lincoln and so many other great men and women didn't have formal schooling, and look what they did!

P.S. My homeschooled siblings graduated Summa *** Laude (brother) and became National Merit Scholars (two brothers and a sister).

Answer 11

It works for my kids.  We love it!

Answer 12

The families I have met doing home schooling had kids that were unable to perform up to what the parents thought they were capable of doing.  I have not met any parents that were really qualified to teach (10 or 12 families) beyond the workbooks that can be purchased.  When a kid attends school they are exposed to more ideas and more experts than just their parents.  I could teach the social sciences, but I would not be qualified to teach chemistry or trigonometry.

School has far too many opportunities for social growth, learning how to work with other people.  Parents cut their kids opportunities to learn when they are not exposed to outside learning.

Answer 13

I wish that my work schedule allowed me to do it.

My daughter goes to what is considered a "good" public school and the quality of education she receives is atrocious. In fifth grade she is doing the same work that I had in third grade thirty years ago. At this rate, by the time she graduates high school she'll have gotten only up to middle school material.

She's not a bad student, all her teachers say she's one of the best in her class, she just is not given anything that comes close to her actual ability.

I love the answers on here that mention how much education teachers have compared to parents. A number of my college friends were education majors and their course load was heavy on how to teach, but not on the actual material being taught.

That meant that the typical elementary school teacher had no more knowledge in any particular area than they had coming out of high school.

I've gone to parent teacher conferences several months into the school year where my daughter, who was with me, had to remind the teacher of her name, because the teacher didn't know it. Admittedly this teacher only had her for three classes a week, but it makes me appreciate the value of the one on one time that homeschooling parents mention.

So, congradulations to all the parents out there doing home schooling. We'll never be able to fix the public schools over the opposition of the teachers unions, homeschooling offers the only hope most of us have to provide a real education to our kids. I still hope I'll be in a position to do it someday.

Answer 14

Very favorable, we home schooled, and are still home schooling our children; if we had to do it all over again, we sure would.

It is a very viable, and great alternative to conventional schooling.

Answer 15

as a whole it seems to be working quite well

One kid here recently got admitted to Stanford

College studies show the average homeschooler to be 2-3 grade ahead of public schoolers and ahead of private schoolers

a few school systems are cooperating and offering on line schools, the ability to take PE, football league, cheer leading, drama, labs and proms

The college system is starting to embrace this with what they called "distance education"

We're talking the likes of Cornell and eventually Harvard offering virtual courses, but for a fee

homeschooling has actually made more progress than work from home

since 1970 homeschooling has grown from under 1% to over 8%

some public school teachers homeschool their chidlren

I do see some problems with homeschool

Fixed program, which end up being public school at home instead of a totally alternativite approach to eduction.

That isn't necessarily a solution it's simply moving the child from school to home with the same weak program.

parents, however, have the freedom to pick and choose

I also see a problme with testing and feel states of the Fed should allow parents at least 3 free tests during a homeschoolers lifetime

I'm talking Stanford-Binet or Minnesota Multiplastic or a similar evlaution test.

I think all children should be allowed at least a few free evaluation tests and at least one free IQ test in their lifetime.

Answer 16

My wife and I home school our children, we chose to do so because of the poor standards of the US education system.  The schools only seem to care about test scores, and teach to those test scores.  The theory of multiple intelligences shows that not all kids learn the same, and not at the same rate, and not at the same level on all subjects.  By home schooling we are able to teach our kids based on how they best learn, and are able to explore areas that they show interest in with more depth than public school can.

I went to school for 2ndary education, I have a degree in Biology, Chemistry, Geology, and Computer Science, and I have a strong interest in Physics.  My wife has excellent English skills, and has had lots of experience in child psychology, social issues, and music.  Together we are more than qualified to teach our children.

The socialization aspect is a ridiculous criticism of home schooling.  Our children socialize outside their age group, which is something that most public school kids rarely do.  They may miss out on the whole school violence thing, and the fashion show that has become such an integral part in public schools, but I think they will do just fine without those points.  

I do agree that not every parent may be qualified or able to home school their children, but I encourage anyone that has thought about it to do some research and give it a try.  My children spend only a few hours a day in a classroom type environment, which frees up the rest of the day for them to pursue their own interests, or go to a museum, or participate in activities.  The benefits of home schooling far outweigh the minor inconvenience it may impose on the parents.

Answer 17

I love it! I also know that not everyone is cut out to homeschool or be homeschooled. My children love it too. They do miss hanging out with their friends all day long though.  

They don't miss having to get up at 6am, standing in line, getting punished as a class because a couple of students were acting up, having homework, sitting bored all day long, and the list goes on and on.

They love that they do in 2 or 3 hours what their friends sit all day doing. They can follow their interests and study what they want. My son (age 13) just built his first computer out of computer scraps someone gave him. They get to "play" all day while everyone else is at school or doing homework. They get to go to bed later and sleep in. They get to do schoolwork in their pajamas and take breaks when they get tired of doing their schoolwork.

Social involvement is a myth that is often dwelt upon by homeschool haters. Homeschooled children are often more involved in our society then those in public schools. My children have volunteered in a food bank, been involved in 4H, both ran their own summer business when one was 10 and the other 11, played sports, been involved with kids from church, my daughter (age 10) started her own recycling club, and my son is part of the Civil Air Patrol.

The middle school my son would go to is guarded by the police all day. The students go to jail daily for fighting, drugs, or bringing weapons to school. There are gangs in the school which are always trying to get new students involved with them. As a parent I feel my 13 year old son is safer at home than in this environment. I have been told that if my son keeps his nose in his books and stays away from the other students that he'll do fine in this school. My reply to those who tell me this is "I'd rather have my son at home bored with me than dead or in jail because of where he went to school."

Answer 18

I have home schooled all 3 of my children and it worked out great for me. I have a son that graduated an online charter school and now attends the University of Dayton with scholarships ..here is more info

http://www.homeschoolinganswers.info

Answer 19

Homeschooling has its good traits and bad ones. The most bad thing about it is that it does not let the kids to meet other kids and make friends and get more familiar with their environment.

Answer 20

I think that kids need to have the whole school experience. i mean, i never have liked school, but i cant imagine what my life would be like without it. Homeschooled kids seem alot more sheltered and lack social skills.

Answer 21

It all depends on the kid.  The child has to have some self motivation and be very obedient to be sucessfully HSed.  I was HSed and it worked great for me.  Another key to homeschooling is making sure that it is still structured and disciplined even though you have more flexibility than in traditional school.  getting up at a good time and having order will keep things under control.

Answer 22

I was homeschooled for nearly half of on elementary education. During that time I just laughed at people who said that homeschoolers are missing the social aspect of education, but when I finally did go to school, I felt very out of place and had trouble communicating with some people. I think if a child is to be homeschooled, it should only be at a very young age.

Answer 23

Its great!

Criss

>>>>i do not like homeschooling. it doesnt provide the child with the same like they dont go through the drama, the guys,

the friends, the laughs, the crys, the dances, the activities, the sports,etc.<<<<<

Homeschoolers actually do get to know people, and where there are people, there is drama.   There are also...gasp...guys that are homeschooled!  My teenage daughter just spent the day with a friend, and believe it or not that is not a rare occurance!  Has she ever cried?  Yes, I believe she has.  Many homeschool groups have dances, activities, sports...  school isn't the only place those things happen.

>>>>i mean some of that you may want to keep your child away from but it will also show them how to react to it and how to handle things.

this way when they go off to college it isnt all a new thing to them<<<<<

Contrary to what you may think, the best way to learn to swim is NOT to have someone throw you in and shout "Sink or Swim!"  Same is true with other experiences in life, if at first you experience things with an experienced person with you to guide the way, and then slowly get more independence when you are ready, you will be BETTER prepared to handle things.  Which is why most homeschoolers don't report having much trouble adjusting to college.  They are already used to doing a lot of what is required in college, independent studying, management of their own time, focusing even when a bunch of roudy kids are making noise, tuning out the sound of the T.V. that someone else is watching while you study...

Not only that but most homeschoolers have learned to use apostrophes in contractions.

Answer 24

Hi Edna,

Please have an open mind about homeschooling.  Many answers you have received were from uninformed people.  Homeschooling is very successful.  Public school is understanding this and are getting on the band wagon with "learn at home" programs.  Unfortunately, these government controlled programs do not work as well as homeschooling.  True homeschooling is where  the parents guide the students by focusing on the child's interests, talents, and goals.  The public school programs, done at home, are better than the traditional classroom for many students.

Some of the answers concerning having drama and making friends may have been true 75 years ago, but with  modern transportation and communication, there should be no reason why a student would not be able to visit and talk to their friends.  They can create as much drama as a public school student can...only it doesn't interfere with their education.  I don't pull him away from his learning time to do conflict resolution.  (smile)

I work in the public school.  I think kids are kids.

Answer 25

I love "homeschooling."  I get to watch my daughter grow as a student, and a person, and I get to see her eyes light up when she finally "gets" something that I'm teaching.  At least I don't have to watch my daughter cry because some boy or girl made fun of her, or worse yet the teacher.  I don't like the public school system in my area and wouldn't even think about enrolling her in that mess.  

I can teach her here at home and do just as well if not better than public school systems.  

Some of you mentioned that the kids do not get to go through the same stuff as public school children. What are they really missing out on, REALLY?  BULLYING, FIGHTING, s*x at a young age, teacher making fun of them because they don't read well orally, PEER PRESSURE, having 3rd graders bring guns to school.  DID I MISS ANYTHING?  

My child can socialize as well as any other her age.  I believe I heard this in PUBLIC SCHOOL:  Education begins at home!  My child is NOT a social deviant, and she DOES NOT stand up and back talk me either, like I've seen other "well-socialized" kids do to their parents.  

Homeschooling parents do NOT lock their children away so they can't get out and have fun.  We also teach morals, that are most definitely lacking in today's public school setting.

People who send their children to public school, do so with my blessing and prayers.  I, however, feel if I want to teach my child at home where I know she's safe from children killing children and public humiliation that people should leave us alone, because we are doing this for the child's sake, not some sadistic control thing that people think it is.

Answer 26

Anyone that has the patience to do it my hat goes off too.  Its hard for me to help my daughter with her homework.  So there is no way I would even think of homeschooling I don't have the patience to teach anything to anybody.