That’s really not a fair characterization. Who should determine whether a parent is “qualified” to teach her own child at home?
So someone who graduated with a 1.5 GPA is qualified to teach their kids just because they love them?
Do you really think most parents graduated with a 1.5 GPA? I graduated high school with a GPA of 2.0-2.5. Does that mean I am no longer qualified to homeschool? My wife has only a year and a half of college. Should she not teach our 7th grade daughter?
That's a decision that each parent needs to make for each child. But I think as Christians we do a great disservice to our young people by not letting them know what the real world is like. There's a big difference between not letting your kids participate in/view something/read something and not letting them know that something exists.
Shelter a kid from all the evil of the world and when they finally get out from under your care, the evil will destroy them.
There’s a difference between letting your kid know what the world is like and putting him in their care for over 30 unsupervised hours a week.
I think the opposite. I think Christian parents are doing their children a great disservice by subjecting their children to a system that is diametrically opposed to what the parents are trying to teach their children.
The Left Behind books were just an example. The point (again) is that just because something has a Christian message there is no guarantee of quality. Just because parents are Christians there is no guarantee that they have the ability to teach their children.
I would still trust the average Christian parent with the education of their own children.
Kevin, I'm not attacking you. I've tried to make it clear that I think there are exceptions. You're one of them. You have had other experiences (most notably the military) that have expanded your world view.
But I will adamantly stand my ground in saying that not all Christian parents should homeschool. AND, I agree with Hair, not all public schools are evil. In my county, arguably the most Republican county in the state, the five members of our (elected) school board are Evangelical Christians. Sure our schools have problems. Some more than others. But they are NOT indoctrination centers.
I've talked about our issues with getting Jr. to do his homework, so we're pretty on top of what he's studying in schools. If I thought they were really a threat to him, I'd yank him out today.
Like I said to Rosie, I'm sure many of you that homeschool do identify the resources and can very effectively teach your kids.
But I also know some idiots that homeschool their kids...present company excluded...;-)