Why do you feel that homeschooling is better than public schooling?

Question

Why do you feel that homeschooling is better than public schooling?

Answer 1

I love homeschooling and have always done it because I'm a gifted child and tried one week of the first grade and already new what they were teaching me! However allot of people sort of consider me in a fish bole but I do 27 hours of gymnastics and also do swimming so I have a good number of very connected friends.

Over all I think that for kids in need of extra help and kids who are gifted homeschooling on their own pace really helps! Because I have lots of friends at gymnastics who say that the class is always going ahead and that they need tons of private tutors just to keep up and then their are the kids who say that they spent half the year waiting for the class because it moves so slow.  So if u r in the middle then public school may work out but if your on the high or low end then homeschooling may be a positive option.

Answer 2

I'm just starting to homeschool this fall and am planning to do it for this year alone.  My son is in a gifted public school (since 2nd grade, now 10th grade) and doing excellent.  My daughter (8th grade) has a 98 average in her school but didn't qualify for either the honors program or advanced math at the high school, both based on entrance exams. With a 98 average, I believe she's learning everything she's being taught, but isn't being taught at an acceptable rate, as the teachers are forced to teach to the middle of the class.   I feel that her grades are overinflated & she needs to catch up before beginning high school or she will start behind the 8 ball.  She also has some nasty "bullying"/"clique" issues that I am choosing not to subject her to again this year.  Because we are in a large school district, she will only attend high school with 1 or 2 of these children & possibly never have a class with them again.  She is on a swim team & goes to practice with the other kids 4 times a week, 2 hours at a shot.  Peer socialization & phys ed.  She also has a couple of best friends that she will "hang out" with on weekends.  One moved out of district 2 years ago & they are still the best of friends so I'm not worried about that either.  All in all, I feel that I am doing the best thing possible to prepare my daughter for the challanges of high school.

Answer 3

Not necessarily better, just different. Home-education is more available; better suited to me and my learning style; more culturally appropriate; heaps more relevant to my way of life and my needs, both now and in my future; and better able to meet and fulfill my needs, both now and in my future

I live in a country (Australia) with one of the better school systems in the world but I live in a remote area where there are no schools, public or private; the closest school is a two-day drive away, located in an alien (city-based) society; therefore, for me and my siblings, conventional schools are largely irrelevant, not particularly beneficial to our situation (and wholly unavailable anyway).

Answer 4

Because "Homeschool Students Score Better Academically and Socially" [1]  I recently read an interesting article you might want to read titled "Silencing Homeschool Critics Without Statistics". [2]

This is discussed in GREAT detail in a book I read recently.  The book is entitled Public School h**l (not my book, though I wish it was).  It shows the reasons behind the public school shootings, the drug abuse in the public schools, the rise in premarital s*x among teens, the failing education in the public schools, etc.  It PROVES that the public schools of the United States of America are RELIGIOUS humanist schools teaching their God-hating doctrines, parent-hating doctrines, U.S.A.-hating doctrines, etc.  And Public School h**l even gives the only key and sole solution to stopping the indoctrination of children in the public schools.  Public School h**l is (in my opinion) the most interesting and most important book I have ever read outside of the Holy Bible.  The main thing I like about Public School h**l is that it is very well documented providing a GREAT amount of proof with everything it says.  I believe that if you read it you will be 100% sure that public schools are religious, and you will know what to do to save your children from it.  Check it out on Amazon.com here: http://www.amazon.com/PUBLIC-SCHOOL-h**l...

Answer 5

Gangs

drugs

s*x

distraction

fixed schedule

Home schooling gives you more control over the pace. One on one training. More control over the people the student interacts with.

Answer 6

I don't feel that it always is...but I know it is for my son.

He's highly gifted and dyslexic, and the schools in our area (public and private) just simply don't have the time or resources to teach him in ways that will both challenge him and help him understand.  Several teachers (public and private) and some administrators in our area have even told me that we're doing the right thing for him.

The only school in our area that could come close is a 40+ minute drive each way and costs $15K per year.  That is outside of our budget and outside of how much time he's willing to spend in the car each day at age 10 just to attend school.

Answer 7

Im going back to school cos i hate homeschooling (u can give me a thumbs down i dont care) i hate being at home not doing anything, to me, school is a big part of growing up, i like to meet new people and i feel left out cos everyone goes to school, it just wouldnt be the same without school.

Answer 8

Well, I don't feel that, or even think it.  Afterall, I have one child who's homeschooled, and one child who's in public school.  We do what's best for *each* child.  For our son, it's HS'ing.  For our daughter, it's public school.

The main reason we HS our son, and why it *is* (no thinking/feeling) better, is that he's profoundly gifted and the public school system (two different ones) have said they cannot teach him.  They recommended HS'ing in the first place, when DS was four, and then they recommended it again when they tested him at age 7.  His academic needs are way too advanced in several areas for the PS system to be able to accomodate it.

HS'ing would not be a better choice for our DD.  She has multiple special needs, and for financial reasons alone, we cannot HS her.  She needs the peer modeling and routine that a school system gives her.  Our son would hate it.

Answer 9

It's only better for people who are willing to put the effort into doing it properly. It doesn't matter how smart you and your parents are, if you don't want to do it, it won't work. It doesn't matter how great your curriculum is, how well suited to your personal style of learning, if you stay home and have no friends, it won't work for you.

I have many reasons for homeschooling, but the most important is that I have control. It's entirely my fault if things aren't working, and since I have control, I have the power to fix it. If I sent my kids to school, it would be my responsibility (ultimately) if they weren't achieving, but I wouldn't have the power to do much about it. Ok, that makes me sound like a control freak, but I'm not really that bad! If my kids are here with me, I will become aware of problems much faster than if they were in school, and can get on with finding a solution; whether the problem is social, character or academic.

Answer 10

most people seem to like that it gives them control over everything their children do, and it keeps the negative stuff away from their kids.  many people in my family homeschool, but i see it as pointless.  What it has done to the kids is that they dont get out enough to meet enough people and interact on a daily basis with them.  The world is full of bad stuff, but you cant hide and protect your kids from it forever.  i also know MANY homeschooled kids (neighbors, family, kids sent to take special courses at high school when their parents couldnt teach them) who want to be in school and see other people daily.  my aunt was a special ed teacher before she had kids, and thats the entire reason for her not sending her children to school, she knows that the education system in america sucks academically, but then again, now that her kids are with her all the time, they dont always get to have class time scheduled as much as others.  one of her sons is 9 and he cant read.  the only benefits are a controlled environment and being able to avoid the rotten teachers the regular students face daily.  i agree with hannah, not better, but different.

Answer 11

I like knowing my children's environment and what they are learning.  I like knowing that there are no perverted teachers looking down shirts or flirting. I like knowing that no one is going to come in waiving guns and shooting everyone from being made fun of.  I like knowing that I can make sure that my child is learning, not cheating or memorizing for a test (or teachers "doctoring" grades to raise the bell curve for financial support).  I like not having to worry about school systems that are trying to pass laws that allow for either gender to be able to choose which bathroom they want to use.  My old school system is currently debating this.  They are trying to allow anyone that says they are g*y to be able to use the women's bathroom and vice versa.  This is not for a 1 stall bathroom either!  What's next?  Locker rooms?  And what's to keep a perverted youngster from going in another restroom to be a peeping tom, have s*x, or rape someone?

I can protect my children physically and mentally more at home or in a home-school group than in a morally decaying school system.

Answer 12

I *think* (not *feel*) that homeschooling is better for many (but not all).

I think this based on the fact that all of the research indicates that homeschool students perform well both academically and emotionally.  There is no empirical research that even suggests otherwise.

I think this based on my own personal experience.  For us, our son was very under-served by the public school system.

I think this based on tons of positive anecdotal evidence from college professors and admissions officers.

I think this based on the fact that homeschooled students commonly place at or near the top in academic contests, National Merit Scholarships, entrance exams, etc.

Answer 13

We started homeschooling because the public schools here are so bad! My daughter is smart she's proven it but while in school she couldn't figure out basic subtraction! Why? Because she missed a previous concept. She understands it now and is quickly catching up to her 4th grade peers. By the end of next school year she will be ready for 5th grade.

They also wanted to put my then 4 yo old ADHD meds. He is  now almost 6 and has been tested. There is no ADHD and medication is not needed for him. He has several health problems and is developmentally delayed so when he entered PreK he had just turned 4 but acted more like an early 3. His teacher knew this when we started because I had a conference with her the first week to discuss our concerns and issues. She just wanted to have him sedated. As time passes the delay is less obvious and he is settling down as a normal kid.

I also believe that kids do not get a true education in public school. They teach only one side of a story. They will teach American History as Columbus on but will forget the rich history of the Native Americans. They will teach evolution as a fact but will ridicule a student who believes in Creation (I've been that object of ridicule so don't say it doesn't happen). Yes there are absolutes 2+2 will always equal 4 but there are also things that should be open to discussion! there are things that need to be discussed. If a child is taught that this is the only way then how can they be taught to make their own decisions? Kids need decision making skills. They need practice in making the decisions that are right for them.

In home school you can teach what they need to know as well as more in history and science. You can teach both the theory of evolution and Creation. You can teach anything they want to know with a little thought and preparation!

Answer 14

Teaching in an elementary school showed me some things I wasn't aware of before and that I didn't like. Things like:

-kids' role models were each other--same age, more or less, rather than older kids who would guide them to more mature behaviour

-lots of nasty social stuff that kids shouldn't have to deal with, like clicks and ostracization and what have you; they're kids and not intellectually and emotionally mature enough yet to properly deal with stupid things like that

-academically, the kids who needed more time were not allowed to get it and were not getting the education they deserved

-and the kids who were doing great were really not getting the education they deserved: they were capable of doing so much more but the public schools have a set curriculum and there's only so much you can do

-I really didn't like how very mature topics that I hadn't been exposed to until I was in gr. 8 or 9 had filtered their way down into gr. 4

-the idea of raising kids in what is essentially a sibling group of 20-30-uplets made no sense to me whatsoever

-there were times when I felt that the kids really needed their parents and realized that I spent more time with them than they did their own parents--I was a substitute parent

All of this and more led both me and my husband (a jr. high teacher) to decide to homeschool our kids. It's not that we think that public schools are absolutely horrible; just there's enough there that we don't like and we feel we are capable of providing them with something better.

It's sad to see comments about homeschoolers who are at home all the time and don't do anything. One thing my kids enjoy is our outings--we, and the homeschoolers we know, certainly don't spend all of our time at home and do meet new people.

I also feel that we have some very young minds responding to your question: "Being in school is a big part of your life/big part of growing up." Well, only if you are in school--you're there a good 35 hours a week, so yes. If you're not in school and have never been in school, then all the other things that you do instead are a big part of your life and a part of growing up. We also have young minds who are concerned about being different--my kids are totally fine with being different. I think that's a good thing. They have no problem telling people they're homeschooled when they are asked which school they go to.

I also think there are some pretty wacky ideas being spouted:

"most people seem to like that it gives them control over everything their children do, "

I have yet to meet a homeschooling parent who controls everything their children do, or even has a desire to. To be honest, probably 25%-50% of the homeschoolers I know are unschoolers. They most certainly don't control their children's lives.

"What it has done to the kids is that they dont get out enough to meet enough people and interact on a daily basis with them"

So, they don't interact with their family on a daily basis? Or you mean people outside the family? What psychological need is there to be with people outside the family on a daily basis?

Just because you've got family that homeschools doesn't make them representative of homeschooling in general.

Answer 15

My children have been in private schools, which I can no longer afford due to the fact that we are expecting another child.  I have chosen to homeschool rather than return them to public schools largely for religious reasons.  However, I must say that I am impressed with the experience so far.  

My children are now receiving a customized curriculum tailored to their level in each subject, and our faith is supported throughout that curriculum even more so than it was in the private schools they are coming from.  Further, my oldest daughter is able to wrap up her studies each day in about the same amount of time she used to spend doing just the homework she brought home after a seven hour day at school. (One has to wonder just what are they doing with all that time?)

It also allows us quite a bit of additional freedom.  By working some through the summer, the kids are not sitting idle and bored waiting for me to find them yet another expensive summer camp or other activity or forgetting what they learned this past school year. And, we can decide to take off and travel a bit and such as it suits our family rather than as it suits the school's schedule.  This means we can take advantage of off season travel discounts, cooler weather, etc.  Meanwhile, my husband can more easily schedule his vacation time at work, because he isn't restricted to asking for time off at the same time as everybody else due to the school schedule either.  

Aside from all these advantages, I am enjoying an unexpected benefit.  My children and I are now able to sit down and have real conversations regularly because they are home with me during the day instead of only in the evening when I am cooking, doing dishes, and tucking them into bed.

Answer 16

I think it would be better to be home schooled because children are not exposed to bad behaviour and drugs and all that.

Answer 17

Parents/students can choose what, where, and when to study. (And who to study with.)

More family time.

More social time.

No 'forced' social time.

Less peer pressure.

More time for 'after school activities'.

Students can move ahead based on fully understanding a concept, not on the school district's schedule.  

Homeschooler's score higher on standarized tests (that are so important for college) than public schoolers.

College's are recruiting homeschoolers like nobody's business.  Being homeschooled actually helps your chances of getting into college.  (Told to me by my admissions officer.)

Answer 18

personally I think public school is better than homeschool. Being in school is a big part of your life, you miss prom, dances, social life, a lot of things and people say, "what high school did you go to?" Well you didn't if you are homeschooled