Laura Derrick, the president of the National Home schooling Network recently said that, “Children can’t fly if they aren’t free, and they aren’t free if the conformity of a classroom is the only acceptable path to education. ” It is the case that home schooling is being viewed as a detrimental form of education. Those who are within the educational system today have been quick to judge home school despite their lack of awareness of the advantages that the latter could offer.
Such judgments are offered by those who believe that what make up learning are the detached and indoctrination methods of the classroom. The main advantage of home education is one-to-one teaching, which allows parents to adapt to their children’s individual learning needs. Children of all ages are educated at home, some going on to take General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) or other examinations. In general, academic achievement compares favorably with school.
(Encarta, 2005) In providing home education, parents are able to render lessons that they deem their children to need, and even equip the latter with certain tools that would be helpful for them to grow up as upright individuals. Another way of looking at this is that a child has certain potentials that may go unnoticed and thus undeveloped in a classroom setting. Some may argue that home education is incomplete and lacks certain interactions needed to raise a well-rounded adult.
However, we must first ask what makes an upright citizen? If we would take a look, the exposures to societal adherence and acceptance in the schools today aren’t exactly what you’d call positive. There are instances wherein values are instilled only within the four corners of the class, (and this I must note, are linear values wherein no other perspective is offered as an alternative), outside we see these so-called values being set aside, i. e.
playground politics. In a home-schooling setting, a lot of methods can be employed in order to guarantee that a child who receive the type of learning most likely to help him or her to become a morally upright, well-learned individual. The law should only require that our children be educated, the preference of parents to choose home school over and above public schools is a practice of their right to raise their children as they see fit and within their capacity.
There are several reasons why parents would choose to teach their children at home. In most but not all cases, these families often move around the country as a result of the nature of the parent’s occupation. Second justification would be the actual choice of these families backed by the belief that the public schools as we know it today is an insufficient medium of learning. This can be seen in the sense that children in public schools are at a teacher-student ratio that renders the latter often too isolated and overlooked.
On the other hand, home school provides kids to explore and learn not only through what the traditional teacher has to say but is in fact encouraged to gain knowledge via experience, the media, and even the internet with direct supervision. In so far as the ability to follow the course of a normal curriculum, there is no good reason to believe that home schooled children are left behind. It is the case that parents who chooses home school are able to avail of updated sources and data in terms of the various subjects taught in a regular classroom.
Moreover, children in this aspect are able to acquire advance learning; the pace is set by the capability of the children assuring that quality education is acquired. If one is still not convinced of the benefits of home schooling, think about this: through home school parents are able to form meaningful relationships with their children. Aside from educational benefits, recent studies show like that of Brian Ray’s, that the home schooled children are actually more socially equipped to take on the world as a result of their broad engagement in social activities.
Plus, psychologically, children that are home schooled are far less vulnerable to low self-esteem as a result of tribal mentality and playground politics. As such, educational and extended benefits are to be gained from home schooling the children of America. Those who think otherwise may well be those caught up in the dogma of a classroom.
WORKS CITED
“Home Education. ” Encarta Encyclopedia. Premium ed. 2005, Redmond: Microsoft Corporation, 2004 Leeming, Mark. Home-Schooling has Advantages. Shannonville. June 21, 2007 Mattox, William Jr.“Home schooling Benefits Children less preoccupied with peer acceptance. ” San Francisco Chronicles. March 19, 1999. A-23 Mimi Rothschild. “Home schooling Benefits: The Life-Long Benefits of Home schooling Your Children. ” JubileeAcademy. org. accessed 6 October 2007. At <http://www. thejubileeacademy. org/articles/the_lifelong_benefits_of_homeschooling_your_children. html> Storz, Peter. “Looking at the Benefits of Home schooling. ” Home School Christian. 2002. Accessed 4 October 2007 at <http://www. homeschoolchristian. com/Position/Benefits. html.