Is Homeschooling a Recipe for Geniuses?

“Anything one can teach in an indoor classroom can be taught outdoors, even in homes, in ways that are more enjoyable for children.” Cathy James’ quote asserts and proclaims that what good education means is never teaching pupils, but providing the conditions in which they can learn. As such, homeschooling is an educational method that advocates learner chosen activities as a primary means for learning. Homeschooling portrays two faces of a coin, so a homeschooler should be aware of its construction as well as its destructive impacts.

To begin with, homeschooling has various advantages such as changing the negative school environment and getting a higher quality education. The highest rated reason parents choose to homeschool is the negative environment of their child’s school. To illustrate, according to NHS, over 26% of the parents cited a negative environment as their most essential reason, and over 90% listed it as one of their reasons for making a change to homeschooling. Another example is that children can experience progressively abusive or hurtful language, school violence, mainly bullying. This may lead to lower grades and self-esteem and other psychological problems. Homeschooling removes the psychological and physical torment that happens with bullying. Parents who homeschool as a result of their child being bullied or facing mishaps in his schools, often report significant academic improvement, as well as greater personal happiness. Another positive influence is that homeschooling provides parents more control over what their kids are learning. For instance, for many homeschooling parents, there is a strong belief that the school’s curriculum is not providing the right knowledge and skills for children. A recent study done by CCRS has proven that less than half of high school students feel academically ready for college, for the prepared students’ percentage has dropped from 28% to 14% in the last 10 years. Also, parents are able to use a state-approved curriculum and supplement their children’s learning with additional lessons. They can also control the time needed for each material when they notice their children’s confidence after learning it.

On the contrary, homeschooling’s dark side is displayed by encountering financial hindrances and relying too much on parents. Parents have to take care of the high costs they would pay when they homeschool. To clarify, a parent has to give up his/her job to become a homeschool teacher, causing lost earnings and fewer incomes. There are no government funds available to parents who decide to homeschool their children. Also, Jennie Eriksen caused different financial problems for her family after homeschooling. Her mother lost her job which prevented the family from $1000 earning per week; she also found that Jennie’s learning costs are much higher than her elder brother’s who studied at a public school. Moreover, teenagers tend to depend on their parents, for they are not exposed to the early challenges of the outside world. They are confined to parental supervision and their comfort zones, so their progress eventually becomes difficult if they do not learn the art of being independent. For example, Michelle Heron used to give up too much to homeschool her kids, she got very jealous when one of her friends told her what she had been up to while her kids were at school. She was missing out on doing that, then she realized that she is getting anxiety and hardships to herself. She then gave up and sent her children back to a public school.

To sum it up with, homeschooling is a double-edged sword present in our life battle. Some consider that real education which makes us successful takes place outside the controlled environment of a classroom, others think that a school is the only place of education. On the long term, in our Arab society, homeschooling will be a better choice for more parents due to the ruin of education in our societies, hence, homeschooling should be applied in some countries.

OUTLINE:

Is Homeschooling a Recipe for Geniuses?

I. Homeschooling portrays two faces of a coin, so a homeschooler should be aware of its construction as well as its destructive impacts.

II. A) Homeschooling has various advantages such as changing the negative school environment and getting a higher quality education.

1) changing the negative school environment

a- being an essential reason to homeschool

b- solving psychological problems encountered in school

2) getting a higher quality education

a- giving children enough preparation and the right curriculum

b- providing parents the capabilities of managing their child’s learning

B) Homeschooling’s dark side is displayed by encountering financial hindrances and relying too much on parents.

1) encountering financial hindrances

a- causing lost earnings and fewer incomes

b- leading to high costs and less income to Jennie’s family

2) relying too much on parents

a- causing  difficulties for the child’s learning progress

b- yielding to the surrender of Michelle’s mother who gave up much to homeschool her daughter

III. Homeschooling is a double-edged sword present in our life battle. Some consider that real education which makes us successful takes place outside the controlled environment of a classroom, others think that a school is the only place of education.