Is Homeschooling the Answer?
Homeschooling has had quite the publicity in recent years, and there are PLENTY OF OPINIONS that are going around about it. Today I’m sharing my observations and opinions regarding homeschooling.
Let’s start with the answer you’re looking for. Everyone is looking for a different answer.
If you’re looking for freedom to choose how your child is taught and what your child is taught, homeschooling is the answer.
If you’re looking for more time spent with your child and time your children have with each other, then homeschooling is the answer.
If you’re looking to be free from the school calendar schedule (vacations, snow days, etc), homeschooling is the answer.
If you’re looking to help your child in an academic or social area that has been neglected in school, then homeschooling is the answer.
If you’re looking for more opportunities to teach your child throughout the day through regular life tasks, then homeschooling is the answer.
If you’re looking for ways for your child to try skills directly related to the work force (and nurture those early on) then homeschooling is the answer.
When is homeschooling NOT the answer, then?
Homeschool is NOT the answer if you don’t enjoy being around your children.
Homeschool is NOT the answer if you are in love with the school culture and find your child’s worth and belonging there.
Homeschool is NOT the answer if you are unwilling to adjust your schedule and way of life.
Homeschool is NOT the answer if you refuse to learn alongside your child.
Homeschool is NOT the answer if you love the culture and environment. of a private school and have the funds to continue.
Homeschool is NOT the answer without a support network (Disclaimer: If you do not have one yet, you can build one through other homeschool families, churches, etc).
Homeschool is NOT for you if you aren’t willing to step up and volunteer opportunities for your child outside the house (meet-ups with friends, service projects, field trips, etc.).
Homeschool is NOT the answer (at least for now) if you cannot find an agreement on the issue with an ex-spouse with whom you share custody.
Considering homeschooling? Consider first…
There is no perfection. You are still a parent. There will still be bad days, good days, valleys, and mountain peaks. Don’t give up. Anything worthwhile takes work.
You are the teacher and principal rolled into one. You’re in charge. Just find out from your state what is needed to keep things legal. No one should try to make you feel like you are a teacher in a school building managing 20+ children that are not your own. Your situation IS different and you should recognize it will look different. As someone once said, “Don’t try to imitate public school at home.” They’re two different models.
Often reflect on what sort of person you are wanting to raise. What do you want your child to be like as adult? Homeschooling includes character education and discipline as well.
Be sure of career path options for your child. Many parents look at what is required by colleges before their child even starts high school to be sure they fit everything in. Some parents allow their child to work an apprenticeship if they are choosing a different path. Keep an open mind and do your research. The options are limitless!
What you will find when you
share homeschooling with others
The ignorant commenter:
When interacting online as a homeschooler, it’s almost inevitable that you will meet someone who is ignorant of the homeschool life and its possibilities. Many people do NOT personally know homeschoolers, and if they do they are going to assume ALL homeschoolers are EXACTLY THE SAME as the person they know. That’s like saying, “I met a child once. Children are NOT for me.”
The homeschool world is a hidden world. I didn’t know many people doing it before I chose to do so. I didn’t even have a library card at my town library and only knew a handful of people in the community before then. Homeschoolers are out and active while many other people are at work, so they can go unseen.
The double standard commenter:
People who are against homeschooling will often point out examples of homeschooling painted in a negative light (often with unfit parents or neglectful parents). However, they do not make that point when talking about public schools. There are plenty of public school children with neglectful parents (some reported over and over) who continue to live in those environments. A homeschooling family should not be assumed to be that way from random strangers.
Sometimes they want to quiz a homeschooler on certain skills right on the spot. How often are they doing this with public school children? Probably not nearly as much—if ever.
The offended teacher commenter:
Finally, there are teachers that take homeschooling choice comments very personally. Obviously, this is NOT ALL TEACHERS. I personally know many teachers who left the school system so that they could homeschool their own children. I’ve had some teachers comment to me privately, “I don’t blame you for homeschooling.”
However, there are teachers out there who call their career their “calling.” They are told in numerous inservices and meetings that they are the best that that ever happened in a child’s life. I’ve sat in meetings and pep talks similar to this. Parents are many times painted in a light where they are on the opposite side, when it should be that they all have a working relationship and respect for one another. In the schools and classrooms where I see that trust and relationship between all parties, it can be a beautiful thing (even if the parent still doesn’t have the option to choose curriculum). When that relationship happens, you must acknowledge (especially if you are that proud and offended teacher) that it doesn’t happen every year for every child. Recognize and own the fact that parents don’t get to choose their child’s teacher and the child’s teacher does not get to choose curriculum nor the classmates of the child. There are limitations, and if you’re the teacher you make the most of the situation. Don’t take offense when parents want to have their child home with them more. It’s a parent’s right to make that choice. You as a teacher only have influence in your classroom and not necessarily every other school in a system.
Reflect on how many pivotal people in history were homeschooled at some point in time while growing up. They invented things. They governed. They changed the world. I encourage you to do that research. It was all possible without the same curriculum standards of today and standardized tests. Schools haven’t always been as they are today, and the world still turned. Families still found a way to manage.
The conclusion
In the end, I don’t see everyone choosing the option to homeschool. There will still be children attending school. I don’t see negative effects occurring from more families spending time together learning about the world around them and one another.
If we are searching for critical ways to improve our society, homeschooling with purpose is certainly a viable answer. Watchful parents, school boards and different choices of curriculum are other areas with which people are choosing to change things. Families have choices to make: homeschooling, private school, and public school are all legal options. Families already have a choice of what sort of schooling their child has and they should be free to choose those to try with an open mind.
Remember, YOU are your child’s most influential teacher.
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Did I leave anything out? Write Rebecca@TheParentTeacherBridge.com and let me know.
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