Dec-05
30
Homeschooling
By
Hudson |
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Even Time.com is recognizing the “threat” of school choice and home education: Home Sweet School THE AMERICAN EDUCATION REVOLUTION: “Over the past decade, the ranks of families home schooling have grown dramatically. According to a new federal report, at least 850,000 students were learning at home in 1999, the most recent year studied; some experts believe the figure is actually twice that.
“…While politicians from Washington on down to your school board have been warring over charter schools and vouchers in recent years, home schooling has quietly outpaced both of those more attention-getting reforms (only half a million kids are in charter schools, and just 65,000 receive vouchers). In many ways, in fact, home schooling has become a threat to the very notion of public education.
“In some school districts, so many parents are pulling their children out to teach them at home that the districts are bleeding millions of dollars in per-pupil funding. Aside from money, the drain of families is eroding something more precious: public confidence in the schools.
“…Home schooling’s successes didn’t come easily, though the practice is actually an old tradition. In the early years of this country, most children were educated at home, either by parents or tutors.”
This is from an anonymous e-mailer: Homeschooling Family Find Ways to Adapt to a PC “Socialization” Program: When my wife and I mention we are strongly considering homeschooling our children, we are without fail asked, “But what about socialization?” Fortunately, we found a way our kids can receive the same socialization that government schools provide. On Mondays and Wednesdays, I will personally corner my son in the bathroom, give him a wedgie and take his lunch money. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, my wife will make sure to tease our children for not being in the “in” crowd, taking special care to poke fun of any physical abnormalities. Fridays will be “Fad and Peer Pressure Day.” We will all compete to see who has the coolest toys, most expensive clothes and the loudest, fastest and most dangerous car. Every day, my wife and I will adhere to a routine of cursing and swearing in the hall and mentioning our weekend exploits with alcohol and immorality. If our kids attempt to use the bathroom without permission, we will punish them immediately. And we have asked them to report us to the authorities in the event we mention faith, religion or try to bring up morals and values.
As soon as true American competition comes into play, government education and educators will realize that the real prize here is America and her future?Äînot the teachers” union and their self-preservation at all costs.
Well put ChoosingLife. Even aside all the things mentioned, a home school child can learn much much more efficiently and thoroughly in half the amount of time of the government schools or even at a much higher level.
Interesting anonymous email. I agree with all of the comments, very funny too. My wife and I actually considered home schooling our daughter after the great success we had getting her to read “early.” I too had some discussions with everyone from other home schooling parents to the local veterinarian. One person plainly stated (husband of a elementary teacher) that the one biggest concern over home schooling was “socialization.” To support this view they bring up as proof a single example of a child who was home schooled for several years and then placed into the government elementary school and had tremendous problems “fitting in.” I have heard this reasoning before and in non of the cases was the issue one of ability to learn, but rather a perception by the elementary teacher that the child was not socializing with his or her classmates the same as all the other kids and that this is bad… This is, by the way, the key issue for those who are devout believers in k-12 government schooling. The reason has to do with the whole concept of peer age grouped learning and social control / social engineering. However, this discussion needs to get much deeper. I think anyone can see the flaws of the argument presented above, not only from an empirical basis but from a practical one; it is really flimsy argument.
If one takes the time to study the early history of government schooling in America (and its historical roots, such as ancient Sparta) you will clearly see the patterns of social control and values engineering that is only possible by age grouped learning and social promotion. Historically and currently it is an abject failure when viewed from the products produced and to continue down the path of supporting government k12 schooling as it is currently devised is, in my view, a costly error that is hurting children.. The flipant response, that actually holds a good deal of truth, to this notion of a concern over “socialization” is to simply say “why would I want to purposefully subject my child to socialism.” Such a philosophy has failed on every continent where it was tried. It has been totally destroyed as a philosophical model and was completely refuted as an economic system long ago. Why on earth would we want to pattern an educational system after such a flawed philosophy and why would anyone subject their children to it for primary training knowing that it is, what it is? After asking the now shaking and sweating government school advocate this question, you will get an emotional (irrational) reply which would lead to no other conclusion than that you are clearly onto to something… Also, I seriously doubt most parents of children who are enrolled in local government schools clearly understand the fundamental issues here. If they did (and more are every day) we would be seeing a faster exodus than we do now. I suspect as time goes along the pace of exodus will only increase as the understanding by and large rises…
There are rational reasons that compel parents to home school, and there is a host of people who would, if they could (time-wise and financially), send their child to either a private school or engage in home schooling. Chief among the reasons is the “environment.” Next comes the desire of parents to have their child educated in a setting that embues religious or moral precepts into the setting and educational experience. Let’s take a brief look at both of these attributes because taken together they account for the vast majority of parents who opt out of the gov sys..
First the environment. What, exactly, is so concerning about the “environment” in government k-12 that would lead parents to perceive this as troubling enough to not want their child exposed to it? I could be flippant again here and simply say, look at the results. And for many parents that is enough. But first and formost is the obvious fact of 20 to 30 boys and girls of the same biological age, regardless of intellectual maturity and intelligence, forced to learn at roughly the same pace, in roughly the same space, and be spoon fed a government proscribed cirriculum by a government employee. The parent has no control over what is taught, when certain ideas are introduced, or in what context it is delivered. It is simply a leap of faith, faith in a costly government system.
Also, environment then includes all of the behavior that comes with each and every one of these children most of whom any one parent has no idea of the sort of moral upbringing (or lack thereof) of the various other parents. Then you have all of the physical characteristics and other issues associated with a child going to a gov school, from riding the school bus to playground and lunch room antics, to all of the aforementioned social contact matters described in choosinglife’s anonymous email… The list should also include exposure to illicit drugs and constant peer pressure regarding sexual behavior. The fact that the government k-12 schools have to take virtually every kid (which isn’t exactly true, by the way)automatically creates an unusual “environment.” This is sold to parents and the kids as part of the “socialization” of the kids. That they should not just be exposed to all of the sordid affairs, behaviors, and issues of other people’s kids as the child progresses through the grades but immersed in it. That whatever constraints this may impose on your child’s natural learning progression is worth it because they are being sensitized and exposed to these other behaviors and that there is some inherent value in that… My first question is what value. My next question is why and what particular value system are they referring to that leads them to this conclusion? What moral code is at work here and please define it? Religious authority, NO. Altruism, partially. Ethical Egoism, probably not. Rational self-interest, I doubt it. What then is the moral code? Good question, and i’ll get to that a bit later.
Environment also includes the teacher. The teacher has a great deal of control over the environment of the classroom, less so over the school in general. However, what value system the teacher has, what personal experience outside of the school he or she brings, has a tremendous effect over the classroom environment. This too has a tremendous effect over a child and there is no guarantee it will be a good one. Don’t get me wrong here, teaching is not an easy task in life. It doesn’t pay extremely well, especially for those teachers who are stuck in the government system who are really great and highly intelligent – fact is, they don’t stay there long. What remains is, by and large, mediocre. Malleable characters who will play the government school game and generally buy the whole concept hook, line and sinker. Not all, but clearly most otherwise it would not operate – you need believers. Now, I have friends and relatives in government schools teaching. I chat with them about some of these issues and folks what I have described above is only scratching the surface. One trip to an Arizona government school will scare the hell out of you and will make you think twice about allowing your child to be exposed to the nonsense. It borders on child abuse to allow your child to be exposed to some of this crap.
What possible benefit is this to a child when the whole purpose of education is to train the mind of a child to think? To learn the requisite nuts and bolts of knowledge, educational goals such as reading, writing, speech, mathematics, science, music, art, physics and history? Answer, nothing. Actually, it is worse than nothing. It is purposeful and it creates a whole host of superfluous issues which simple get in the way and create unique behavior issues (or worse) with your child that they would not otherwise display and internalize. If they see children behaving badly on a regular basis, or hear certain speech that is repeated by their “friends at school,” they begin to internalize it and display it outside of school. This is exactly what the purveyors of government k12 understand and actually want to see happen, it shows that their brand of socialization is working. And heaven forbid if your child is above average in intelligence, they will be pressured to help their peers which only slows down their own progress. The teachers have learned that it’s easier to let children teach children than to do it themselves – after all, this leads to more non-individualistic behavior! One then should not be so surprised when children get pregnant at 13 or 14. They have been pushed and forced into these social arrangements from age 6 or 7, why not go “all the way” down the socialization path!
Now, the purveyors of government k12 will tell you that yes, the above are the educational goals, but that the socialization aspects that arise out of the k12 environment create “constraints” in what would otherwise be a natural, faster, progression of learning. But that the socialization component is critical to the well-being of the child. If a government school representative actually were to suggest that all of this socialization actually increases the pace of learning you better ask for some hard facts, because they don’t exist. The proof of the matter is that by and large children who are home schooled are 1 to 2 years ahead of their government school counterparts. If you push them on this, you will be referred to a principal or some administrator who will cite some academic who says that socialization is a good thing, bla bla bla. Right. More and more parents, when faced with this reality, clearly see the fundamental flaw and pull their child out and pursue the natural progression of learning at home or in a private school that meets their criteria. The whole idea of socialization of children via the government k12 model is so irresponsible it borders on criminal because what is actually happening is that kids are being brainwashed into a pre-enlightenment, lord of the flies mentality mode of viewing the world. Am I being a little dramatic here? Perhaps, but to many parents the concerns for the safety and learning progression of their child forces them out of the gov k12 world.
Next is religion and morality. As I stated above, all of this (gov k12 peer aged, group learning) must be premised on some moral precept. If not, then we have no morality at work… Ahhhhh, now you get it. When pressed, teachers, administrator and school board members will run as fast as possible from this question. In fact, you better not institute any moral code into the system because that would be the antithesis of what the government k12 system is up to – an amoral, non religious system of instruction. Well, if no moral code is explicitly laid out then there is no possible way a child can internalize moral precepts other than by only a very superficial treatment of many different moral codes (except christianity, of course). This too is purposeful and is precisely at the root of the government k12 educational system. Not specifically stated, nor probably understood completely by teachers (especially new ones) the purpose is train children into a state of moral equivalency. Folks, this is probably the most dangerous aspect because when no moral code is taught then morality becomes an afterthought and again we see the results – teen pregnancy, promiscuity, under-age drinking, etc., etc. Behavior that is a direct result of the amoral philosophical approach which is part and parcel of government k12. Parents fight this battle with teenagers all over this country!
Above I rhetorically asked: “what particular value system are they referring to that leads them to this conclusion? What moral code is at work here and please define it? Religious authority, NO. Altruism, YES. Ethical Egoism, probably not.” Clearly, the closest to a moral code one can identify within this system is altruism which has as a social system corrolary collectivism. If you think about it, it is obvious. Look at the organization of government schools, look at the funding, look at how teachers are paid, how everything works – it’s collectivism. Folks, it doesn’t have to be this way and clearly the model is seriously flawed.
Is it any wonder that parents choose not to let their own children be indoctrinated into this collectivist model of education?
Now, as a final thought, one might get the idea that as a parent I believe my child should be completely sheltered and schooled rigorously with no contact to anything but a very basic cirriculum. Quite the contrary. I believe there is no reason why a child ought not learn at a pace that makes sense, and be exposed to a great hierarchical education. I believe that no abstract concept should be introduced to any child before the requisite concretes (including history) are developed and fully understood. Further, I think it is great that kids play together and learn from each other, but when they are children this needs to be controlled and directed by the parent. Parents need to be able to control who their kids are with, when and for how long. Furthermore, I firmly believe that a strict moral code is not just advisable it is critical. From their earliest years, children need to be taught right and wrong and why. The why is the critical issue here – on what moral system are those right and wrong borders based. Religion is one way, natural law and rational self interest (egoism) is another. For that matter, atheistic altruism is another – I am not going to go down that particular road with my child for where it leads is a failed a flawed philosophy and economic system. Bottom line is this, little johnny and little sally need to know more than just the mere fact that some particular behavior is wrong, they must know why and the why must have a system upon which it is built so that when they come upon other situations they have a solid moral code with which to evaluate the situation and make a decision. It’s critical, but in the government schools no such system is allowed.
It doesn’t require a village, it certainly doesn’t require immersion into other people’s troubles, problems and habits, but it does require a mother and a father who care enough about their own children to make sure that they are learning at a natural pace and that it contain lessons which clearly point out the moral code at work. If that means they are performing algebraic manipulations at age 10, all the better. If that means that they are in a reading class with kids two years younger, fine. Point here is that the environment and morality are the two fundamental flaws of government k12, they are also the two biggest reasons why parents pull their kids out.
While reading bergwin – comments, I found my head bobbing in agreement with every word. Sadly, when meetings are organized to provide information on home education to parents, the majority of the attendees are TEENAGERS who WANT to be home educated. Those government-educated students are bringing their parents to these meetings to convince them to home educate them! The students in government education sometimes realize more than their parents the educational opportunities they”re missing and non-education-related behavior they”re being indoctrinated into against their will. Parents, if you are struggling with home education decisions, listen to your kids. Sometimes they”re the ones who are much more perceptive than their parents. If you can afford it, and that – sometimes difficult with the out-of-control taxes that force parents to take two jobs when they don”t want to, sit back, search your hearts, and realize that parents are the #1 trustworthy educators in their kids” lives. If you can teach your child to walk and talk, you can teach your child better than anyone else. There are resources available like never before, including opportunities for tutoring, if needed. Chances are good you were cheated out of a good education. If you”re never too old to learn, you will be shocked at how fun it is to learn things that you never knew, right along with your child. Never stop growing in knowledge. Be willing to say, “I Never Knew That”, “I Wish I”d Known That”, “Wow, That – Amazing”, and your kids won”t ever stop growing in their knowledge, either.
I agree to a certain extent on the socialization issue. I have seen both homeschooling work when the kids were involved in outside activities like scouts, sports, church, etc. On the other hand, I personally know a family whose children did not get these outside opportunities while being homeschooled. They had great difficulty making any friends within the neighborhood and when they did interact with other kids they did so in a “parent/child” type way. Their only real interaction was with their parents so when with other children, they tended to take on the “parent” role of being a bit more bgossy and controlling…however, this too could be because these parents were this way. I truely beleive these kids would have done much better with some more interaction with peers their own age. If parents keep that in mind, homeschooling can work for many kids. However, we also must remember that sheltering your kids from some of the less desirable things (such as some of the stuff mentioned in the anonymous letter above), we do not prepare our kids very well for life at a job when adults. Sadly, many adults do not get past all that childish behavior. I personally was a bit sheltered as a child and teenager and when I got to adulthood and my first corporate job, it was quite a shock and a bit disheartening to see that many adults do not “grow up”.
15 years ago, I had observed people who homeschooled their children in order to (as it looked to me) isolate them from interaction with other children. It left me with a bad impression of home schooling.
A few years later, I met some other parents who home-schooled, and found just the opposite, kids who were smart, well-adjusted, and knew how to interact with other children, as well with adults. There is a thriving home-school group in the Hudson area – the kids from this group virtually ALWAYS beat the Hudson (and other local) H.S. kids in test scores. The kids get together on at least a weekly basis, have experts in various fields come in and do presentations (and the kids actually show respet to the presenters). These home-schooled kids probably learn more in a day than the government-schooled kids learn in a week!