Posted on 05/11/2005 6:09:07 AM PDT by The Great Yazoo
Home schooling: Some of the Pros and cons ...
By Teri Weaver, Stars and Stripes Pacific edition, Friday, May 6, 2005
Stars and Stripes talked to four Seoul-area families who home-school their children. They said they choose this method for a variety of reasons, some religious, some educational. They discussed their teaching methods, schedules, and belief that their children are benefiting from the choice.
None said their children lacked friends outside of their brothers and sisters.
Church, activities with other home-schoolers and inevitable time with the neighbors’ kids make up a healthy supply of friendships, they said.
The parents offered these advantages and drawbacks to home schooling for families who might be considering the option:
Advantages:
Freedom to stress religious beliefs.
Freedom to schedule family trips and be flexible with other scheduling needs.
Learning time and playtime become intertwined. Because the classroom often is the dining room or living room, science projects become something to do on the weekends, not just in labs.
Each child can learn at his or her own pace, without falling behind or waiting for others in the classroom to catch up.
Freedom from peer influences, such as cliques, gossip or “class clown” antics.
Drawbacks:
Adapting to a new schedule and new roles can be hard for both parents and their children.
Home and school are intertwined; finding a sanctuary from either can be hard.
Winters can be long.
Some accreditation programs or state education departments request thorough testing and paperwork.
Choosing a curriculum that works for each child can be trying, in part because there are so many options from which to choose.
The moment the pool of homeschoolers ceases to be self-selecting, however - e.g., if there is a financial incentive to homeschool (i.e., vouchers), the admirable job most homeschoolers do now will be diluted by people interested only in the check. Then, homeschoolers will include more parents who aren't as dedicated to their children, and more children for whom homeschooling is not the ideal choice.
"In some ways Christian school is worse than public school because parents are lulled into believing the Christian school is a sanctuary from the outside world."
This is where we made our mistake. Not in a million years did I think my children would be exposed to pornography in a private Christian school. I'm just glad I caught it and alot of the parents have thanked me as well. I'm the only parent, so far, who was familiar with who Mapplethorpe was so no one knew to check the book out. The reason I knew who he was was because he was getting public funding for his art. (this was many years ago, the guy is dead now. he died of aids)
Hence, as a concerned Christian parent, I must oppose voucher systems and charter home schools in every way possible. If I sit down at the State's table, I have no right to complain about the menu. What it feeds me, I must swallow. He who pays the piper calls the tune.
I agree with your point. Vouchers would have the private schools catering to the money source.
Then would you support tax breaks for home-schooling parents?
Ever read Lincoln Steffen's book Moses in Red? Moses got the revolutionary process rolling by making a SMALL request of Pharoah, something so completely reasonable that the refusal thereof made plain the real issues at stake. I'm thinking that, if we began making such a reasonable and logical request, the facts of the matter would soon become plain. Government schools are not about educating children, but rather about controlling children. Government schools serve the State, and ensure a generous stream of docile factory hands and cannon fodder.
Thankyou for your ping to this thread.
I thnk it is a shame that your husband dose not agree with your wish to homeschool, however I do think parents have got to be united on this important decision.
We are homeschooling next year for the first time. We are dedicated parents who know that our children are bored in school waiting for those less able to play catch up. Our school system is good, in fact it is the best in the state, so I can't fault it, but I do know that we can give our children more. So much time is wasted in schools when it could be put to good use in a more individual situation.
As well as the basics, I believe teaching children another language, to sew, and to cook is just as important.
As a family we are all excited about next year, we are structured and have discipline, also our children love learning. I don't think everyone should homeschool because there are some out there who have children who have been raised with no respect.
Interesting. Thanks for posting.
"Why do you think the outcome would be different if that family remained in private school or placed the child in public school?"
Sadly, I don't think the results would have been much different. The dad works, but he seems to be the sole source of ambition in the family. I suspect the girl, who is fairly pretty, is trying to ride her looks off into the sunset: Cinderella-syndrom, without all that hard work and good character before hand.
My point is simply that while the home-school thing CAN work very well in some situations, there CAN be some problems as well. Of course, you can and should say the same thing about public schools (or publik skools?). I'm very concerned about the FEDERAL GOV't having so much control over the education system. Previously on this thread the idea was put forth that home-schoolers get 10% of the funding for the students who would have gone to the public schools. I like that idea a lot. Education in this country NEEDS some alternatives that working, non-millionares can afford. Vouchers seem like such a sensible idea that only those being made rich by the current system oppose them. But even the vouchers should be managed at a State or County level.
"So I question the wisdom of the state seeking to compel kids to attend school when the parents don't want them to."
I don't. It is in the "States" (which I think of as the Fed. Gov't) best interest to have a fairly well educated population upon which they can place their taxes. If they are too smart, or not "properly" educated, they might rebel. If they are poorly educated enough, they can't compete on the world market. The Gov't needs a mix of really really smart people, some fairly smart people, and a large number of people to dumb to care. They only has to allow the radically successful to make huge $$$ to keep the rest of us motivated. All the while, they tax and tax and tax.
Like I said, having the Gov't controlling education is not a good thing.
"Choosing a curriculum that works for each child can be trying, in part because there are so many options from which to choose."
Yeah, permitting the govt to shove a curriculum down your kid's throat, whether it's appropriate or not, is definitely preferable to this "downside" of selecting a curriculum that will closely fit your kid's needs.
Dear jude24,
I agree that when you do things to make homeschooling less self-selecting, you'll see homeschooling average educational attainment decline. In fact, regrettably, I see that where I live now.
Against federal law, local public school systems are giving up on lots of difficult kids, and more or less forcing them to homeschool. This kills two birds with one stone: it gets rid of lots of problem kids for the inept, incompetent, and immoral publik skool educrats who mostly hate kids anyway (ever wonder why the NEA is pro-abort??); and it gives homeschooling a bit of a black eye.
However, even though the "prestige" of homeschooling might take a hit by doing things that attracted more folks to homeschooling (like vouchers, etc.), here's what I know:
The majority of kids would be better off homeschooling than going to most public schools. Here in Maryland, the majority of children would be less harmed staying home and playing Gameboy all day than going to most of the local public schools.
Too, as others have pointed out, kids who don't thrive in homeschooling are kids who often don't have involved parents. Those kids underperform in public schools, as well. But kids who might get by, or do pretty good in public schools, in part because they have involved parents, almost always thrive in the homeschool environment.
Thus, homeschooling really isn't going to do much harm to the kids who would likely underachieve in either environment, but homeschooling really gives a big boost to kids who would generally get by okay in schools.
Finally, there are large numbers of kids who don't thrive in schools, public or private, who can thrive from homeschooling.
sitetest
Yes. And the government is unlikely to reverse itself if the curriculum it purchased proves unsuitable. We scrapped last year's curriculum almost in toto before Christmas because it didn't work for us.
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