Flipping through the television channels late on a Saturday night, an intriguing news report catches my eye. “Homeschooling Gone Wild: Should Parents Be Banned from
Homeschooling Their Children?” the newscaster declared. “After spending a week with a homeschooled family, researchers were shocked on what they found at this home. The mother, thirty-seven years of age, left her nine year old daughter unattended every day while treating herself to a nice spa day or out with her friends. We asked the child when she did her school work and the daughter blankly stated “I don’t.” Amazed by this response, we decided to look further into this story. We asked the mother if her child had any education prior to today’s interview and she
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According to author Rachel Gathercole of The Well-Adjusted Child: The Social Benefits of
Homeschooling, “paradoxically, through, current research suggest that homeschoolers are actually better socialized than their conventionally schooled peers.” (4). She goes to emphasize that “in various studies homeschoolers have been found to have higher self-concepts, significantly few ‘problem behaviors’, and equal levels of self esteem compared with their conventionally schooled peers.”(Gathercole 4). Along with Gathercole, M. B. Nelson argues that “homeschooled children are more frequently exposed to a wider variety of people and situations that could be expected in a traditional classroom environment where their exposure is limited to twenty-five to thirty-five people of similar age and socioeconomic background(1998).”
(qtd. in Romanwski 126). Homeschoolers introduce their selves to a widely variety of people on a daily basics. When at home all day, a homeschooler develops stronger relationships with his or her family. Knowing how to act around family members automatically helps a homeschooler build relationships with other adults and kids that range in different
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Homeschooling benefits children in their socialization skills more
than public schooling. Along with socialization, homeschoolers have a greater academic education than public schoolers. Homeschooling bypasses the middle man(aka teacher). In a public school, a teacher teaches his or her students a subject. When the time draws near to leave, the student goes home to do his or her homework; but often times, the student forgets how to do the problems taught in class. The parent then sits down with the child for the rest of the night trying to re-teach the lesson to the child only to find out the next day that the teacher taught the student another way. In homeschooling, the parent becomes the teacher. The parent will have the manual and the student’s workbook. The parent will know the way the student should be taught, preventing long evenings frustrated at home. Homeschoolers get the one-on-one attention from the teacher unlike public schoolers. When a student gets the one-on-one attention, his or her grades automatically shoot up because of an understanding of one’s studies. Quoted in The
...atistical data but he claims that because of the sources supposed authority on homeschooling the data is true. He concluded that despite the myths, advantages or disadvantages to homeschooling, a parent’s choice should be respected and the main concern should be to maximize the potential of all children. When closely examined the article does not answer all possible questions that arise with the subject of homeschooling and the idea that all parents make the right choice for their children does not account for the possibility of abusive parents.
Homeschooling is probably one of the least known and least understood issues in education. Many people tend to think that most homeschoolers are religious conservatives or extremists. However, the truth is that people from all walks of life are joining the homeschooling bandwagon (Ray, 2004). The main misconception is that homeschooled children don’t get the same academic and social education as traditionally schooled children. Contrary to popular perception, homeschooled children have the same, if not better academic opportunities, social opportunities and college admissions prospects than traditionally schooled students have.
This allows each child to be educated when their able to retain knowledge, whether if it is early morning, afternoon, or in the evening. At the same time the parents can create a weekly schedule that intersects with their daily life, as well allows the teacher to do things without the restriction of a traditional classroom schedule. Every student has a different learning strategy such as kinesthetic, visual and auditory. As the Home Companion states, “Parents who would like to expose their children to a more hands-on curriculum will definitely enjoy homeschooling.” This statement is claiming that if your child needs more time in a specific subject, the parents can cut back and work in stronger subjects until they have become proficient the area of
Myths regarding the improper socialization of homeschoolers are as ever-present in modern society as they are false. Studies show that home-educated students are not only equal to publicly educated students when it comes to social skills, but are actually superior to their public schooled peers. While this may seem counter-intuitive, as public schooled students spend most days surrounded by dozens, or even hundreds, of other students, some suggest this is the very reason home-educated students hold the advantage in social fields. While public school students are segregated entirely based on grade, home school students interact with individuals of all ages, through partaking in various athletic activities with teams in their area, taking classes at co-op home-school centers, auditing classes at local colleges, and interacting with other social groups in their area. A study by the Seattle-based Discovery Institute in July of 2000, in which counselors were shown videotapes of homeschooled and public schooled children playing, supports the theory that homeschoolers possess superior social skills to public schoolers. Without knowing which children were from each category, the counselors noted that the homeschool students
Homeschooling offers students a more time efficient education that allows the student to focus on education in which is the sole purpose for school. Homeschooling also gives the teacher a thorough evaluation of a student’s strengths and weaknesses by visually seeing what subjects they excel in and what subjects they are weak in. At this point students can increase their individual progression in each subject. Homeschooling permits control of the environment a student learns in to retain the focus of the student. This will reduce the chances of drug usage, bullying, and violence. Samuel Blumenfeld said this on the importance of homeschooling “The home is a safe haven for the children in a world awash with drugs, sexually transmitted diseases, violence, and moral corruption” (Cindy Mur et al.76). When parents come to realize that the home is the safest place for their children, then will they act as Blumenfeld concludes “I look forward to the day when the public schools will be virtually empty not because we have abolished public education but because the parents will have abandoned it” (Cindy Mur et al.
Homeschooling is often portrayed as an overprotective mom - unwilling to let her kids leave her for a day at school, and a large number of children, all unable to hold a conversation, let alone function normally in society. As someone who was homeschooled from kindergarten through eighth grade, I can attest that my homeschool experience was the exact opposite of this confining stereotype.
With social and academic activities consuming time and the intense pressures to excel in social cliques being reason for the downgrading of family relationships, public school presents an obstacle for family relationships. In reality, the best way to get along with family is being with them for a substantial amount of time. With more spare and flexible time and family focus, homeschooling supplies bright rewards in this area, are the beliefs of authors Amy and Frank Vahid. It is author Lisa Rivero’s understanding that since homeschooling parents devote more of the day to their kids, homeschooling is severe parenting. Even if the parents and children initially have a healthy connection, the added time presents an opportunity to add to that connection as well as appreciate being around one another more. It will most likely lead to having to confront some challenging problems that ordinarily would not be crossed since they would normally come up in the classroom. Homeschooling parents tend to be more engaged in their kid’s social lives than parents that have their kids in school. Homeschooling will not miraculously repair pitiful parent-child connections. Although it will offer a precious opportunity to better your talent as a parent as well as design the connection you desire to have with your kids. Homeschooling parents and kids are with one another through the good and the bad...
There are a few parents who choose to educate their children at home so the students will not come into contact with controversial topics. However, by home schooling, the parents unwittingly enforce social learning issues on their children because they will never feel comfortable in situations that deal with other people their own age. This proves the children need the social aspect of school just as much as the educational aspect.
Homeschooling can get you into a lot of trouble. You could have social workers showing up at your house saying, “We’ve received complaints about unsocialised homeschoolers”. You could have worried family trying to counsel you because you are going to teach them in ‘isolation’. One of the charges most frequently brought against homeschoolers, the apparent lack of ‘healthy socialisation’, is one they continuously fight. Though they have proved themselves capable of healthy social interaction, the notion persists, leading some homeschoolers to accept the label, “weird, unsocialised homeschoolers” as part of their identity (Flynn). Is the schoolroom really that important to the social development of the child that any other method is deemed less
This identity recognition occurs in several different aspects of a student’s life, which includes the student’s familial ties. In a study by Joseph Murphy, a sociologist at Vanderbilt University, he acknowledges that a home school education carries a lot of requirements for the family’s time investments (Murphy 253). Parents have to rearrange their schedules and routines, which strengthens the student’s relationship with his or her parents. However, it can also put a strain on the student’s parents (Murphy 253). The parent who does the majority of the education has to balance homemaking with teaching, which can be a major stressor for some. A mother or father who wants to write the curriculum may find that other obligations around the house will need to be dropped in favor of time. A positive side to the home school education’s impact on the student’s familial identity is that there can be a strengthening of familial bonds (Murphy 253). The parents involve themselves directly in the child’s education, allowing for a strengthening of relationships. Home schooled students can also grow closer to their siblings because they will have time and space to deepen the relationship. Samuel Blumenfield, an educator and author, said that home school families build a “generation bridge instead of a generation gap” (765). A home school family’s
Homeschooling is increasing in the United States. Between the years of 2003 and 2012 homeschooling in America increased from a 2.2 to 3.4 percent, and it continues to increase. Many parents are deciding to homeschool their students because studies show that “The home-educated typically score 15 to 30 percentile points above public-school students on standardized academic achievement tests.” (Ray) Homeschooled children are achieving better academically but many miss out on one key feature to life, socializing. A couple ways that this could be fixed is to make kids go to public or private schools until 2nd grade, after that they should be in other activities that require socialization, and finally slowly ease
Why do families choose homeschooling? There are many motivating factors behind parents choosing homeschooling for their children, which includes religious reasons, children safety issues, and poor academic quality offered in private and public schools. It is impossible to list all of the reasons parents give for deciding to homeschool their children.
Thesis Statement: Homeschooled students often achieve higher academic success and are more active in their communities than traditionally schooled students, due to a personalized approach to learning that emphasizes individuality.
Homeschooling is a rising alternative in children’s education. As with any other major movement there have been doubts and debates as well as support and promotion for this educational approach. Homeschooling was once the norm in society before there was a public school system. But the parents involved in homeschooling feel very strongly about the positive outcomes that it has brought about in the lives and success of their children. It has once again surfaced and become popular but there are several people who question the possible negative effects this option creates.
School was designed to equally teach all children not only book knowledge but also offer practice in cooperation with others on a social scale. The home was designed to teach children right from wrong, to respect and obey authority, and how to socially function properly with others. Sadly, the parents ...