Home Schooling And Its Effects On The Family
If a study by the National Center For Education Statistics is to be believed, almost 1.1 million children underwent home schooling in 2005 alone. That is a lot of children. Once upon a time, homeschooling used to be an extreme statement - something like a declaration of independence.
It was the conservative Christians who pushed for homeschooling in the 1980's and legalized it in each State. But these day, the average homeschooling student is not religiously motivated.
Later surveys indicate that parents are really fed up with the public school system where a lot of the learning is superficial and compulsory.
They are also worried about the damaging environment in school, which ranges from drugs and abuse to negative peer pressure.
Because of this, we have a surprising mixture of individuals who form the homeschooling world of today. They cut across all religious creeds and all regional borders.
Their main goal is offering meaningful and productive learning through a method that strengthens the bond between the various members of the family.
All these households have one major thing in common - a long standing commitment to the sanctity of childhood. The children of these families are accorded a primary position.
Numerous individuals believe, and, I think, rightly so, that home schooling allows parents to bring up their kids in a more natural and caring environment.
Public schools can make a child nervous, diffident and downright mean. Children who receive their education at home are protected from these damaging, negative influences until they attain
an age where they can cope with them.
Home-schooling draws the whole family into the almost religious job of teaching. Everyone has a function to play. Both the parents together form a bond with the children.
Any experience can be converted into an educational experience. Both the parents are conscious of exactly what is going into their child's education.
Parents also have a greater control over the kind of religious and moral values that their child is learning. Even watching a movie together can be an educational experience. Journeys to the libraries, zoos, museums and other places be educational experiences as well as recreational ones.
A home-schooling family is usually dependent on the income of one earning member. That means that quite often spending has to get curtailed and the proper planning of expenditure is a must.
This helps to bring the family members together and everyone gets concerned in the task of saving money.
Merely having a parent at home to look after, to nurture and to care for the children brings with it a lot of love and caring. Even the husband chips in and there is simply no room for complacency.
Yes OK, problems still do sometimes crop up, and there will be a great deal of misgivings in your mind, but whilst you know that your kids can always rely on you, and your kids know it too, then homeschooling becomes a very rewarding experience.
Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on numerous subjects but is currently involved with Home School Games. If you want to read more, visit our website entitled How To Stay At Home From School.