homeschool or schoolschool?
Curious to hear your thoughts on this post (written so much better than I could).Obviously I don't have children, so I don't need to make any decisions about this anytime soon. But I will be getting involved with children soon, and I still like to think about this stuff for the someday scenario. I go back and forth on the issue. I used to be totally anti-homeschool, thinking that it leads to kids who are incredibly sheltered and lacking socialization skills. But then again, maybe Christian colleges do that too. But as I spend more and more time with my nieces (who, coincidentally, are homeschooled) and see what sponges their little brains are ... I can kinda see the value of being in a position of being the major influence in a child's education and development. Though I'm not so sure that a parent can't be that influence even if the child is going to a school outside the home -- even (gasp) a public school! Perhaps we have forgotten that there are opportunities to learn and develop all over the place. Maybe if parents did a better job of spending time with their kids in healthy ways (i.e. taking them to the museum or the zoo instead of letting them sit in front of the tv alone for hours at a time), this wouldn't be so much of an issue. What kids do outside of the classroom is just as important, if not more, than what they do inside of one (whether it be their family room or a real classroom in a real school).
Anyway, that's my rant. But I'm still not sure how I feel.
4 Comments:
rule of thumb: "whatever is best for your kids"
for the most part, homeschool kids get social in sports, extracurricular stuff, music lessons, etc. both sides are ok, both sides have pros and cons. the trick is finding out what's best for your kids where you're zoned and with what's available.
if you homeschool to save your kids from the evils of the public school system, and not because its the best education alternative, you might be selling them short. it's about more than being "right" - i'd rather have the opp to train my kids to be good christians and good people in the world (our current plan, btw). but if the schools are bad, and there's no private alternative, i think homeschooling is a more than valid alternative.
my $.02 :)
It's always interesting to hear people's thoughts on homeschooling. I agree with Rick in that it should really depend on the individual family/children/school situation.
I was homeschooled from grades 7-12 and I believe that saved me from a lot of grief. There's just a lot of crap in the public school system that I just didn't need.
But I also believe that my saving grace was the sports that I played and the youth group I was a part of. (It makes me relieved that it shocks people when I tell them I was homeschooled. "But, you're so normal!") There needs to be social elements in the lives of children so that they learn how to interact with those around them, both peers and adult.
You shouldn't homeschool to shelter your children from the world, they're going to have to face it one day. But at the same time, I don't see a lot of value in most of the things that are taught (either by teachers or peers) in the public school system, especially during these very influential years.
I'm not sure I have come to a decision on how my future kids will be schooled, there are pros and cons to both situations. But I do know that regardless to where they go to school, I will see MYSELF as their primary influencers. So many parents think they can just send their kids off to school or church to be taught, but a teacher should never take the place of a parents as far as a moral foundation.
Alright, there is my rant. :)
hey krista... i agree too that it should depend on the child. i almost homeschooled for a couple of years in high school, just because i wasn't being challenged enough and i was tired of the politics. the only reason why i stuck it out, i think, was because i was in a class of good kids, and a few of them reminded me that i was a light in our school. there is so much crap that goes on in public schools... and even private schools. my friend val is a teacher at a private school, and she admits that she can pretty much only teach at the level of the least brightest kid, which leaves a lot of the brighter kids on their own. private schools aren't necessarily better, because a lot of times parents are sending their kids there to be straightened out (because they obviously subscribe to the notion that the school should raise their kid).
so yeah... the parent should definitely be the biggest influence in a child's life and education. i think i will probably homeschool my children for at least part of their education. i know a family who homeschooled their kids until junior high/high school, and then the kids went to public school. they are some of the most well-adjusted, talented, mature teenagers i know. but they've also grown up with a lot of social interaction through church and community.
i don't think i just said anything new, but that's my 2 cents. :)
Thanks to people for your comments.
I think it's a mix too, and something that depends on a lot of different things.
My ideas lately (for the kids I might or might not someday have) would be to do sort of a mix of homeschool and school-school. If everything works out and I do end up teaching ... and then later having kids ... I think it would be kinda cool to have my kids in school ... but then in the summers we would just travel around like crazy and learn that way, through historical sites (Lewis and Clark trail in Montana, the battlefields in Pennsylvania, etc.), scientific things (hot springs in Glacier National Park, the landscape of the Grand Canyon, the marine life of the Pacific Ocean, etc.), and service ideas (going to help with building in rural areas or doing some kind of clean-up stuff in big cities). Then again, maybe it would be neat to do these kinds of things during the "school year" too, in place of a traditional classroom setting.
Of course this requires money and maybe a spouse who is ok with all of this. But it's just what I have been thinking about, seeing as I love to travel, and I love to see and do all this kind of stuff.
Did I mention I'm a big nerd?
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