Feb 23 2008
No Right Answer in Home School vs Public School
The debate of home school vs public school always goes on with each side of the fence in heated arguments about how they are right when it comes to the future of their children. There is no wrong or right answer when it boils down to the home school vs public school argument, however many parents who choose to send their children to public schools have this to say
Parents Are Not Trained as Teachers
In the home school vs public school dilemma, one point that always comes up is that teachers have been trained specifically in imparting concepts, controlling classrooms and teaching subjects as opposed to parents who may be trained in other disciplines like accounting or science or may not even have a high school diploma. They feel parents can coach their children with homework but are bit ill equipped in becoming a full time teacher.
Homes Do Not Have as Many Resources
Another argument in the home school vs public school dilemma is that while you can have a desk and a chair and a dry erase board at home, you cannot have a gym, music room, theater, band and other supplies such as the variety of art supplies or sports equipment that a school budget can afford. They feel that these disciplines are essential to a well rounded child’s growth and hence they feel a home schooled child misses out on these.
Social Interaction
Home schooled kids are thought to not have enough social interaction with their peers. They might get the same or better education at a home school vs public school but they have that one-on-one. Some experts believe that the individualized attention they receive doesn’t equip them well enough for college life or the work environment that they have to adapt to later on. Having squabbles with peers forming groups and sorting out issues is a learning experience which they believe home schooled kids miss out on.
However, home schooling experts believe that the image of home schooled children sitting around the kitchen table is dated; today’s home schooled children are enrolled in a variety of extra curricular activities such as sports, arts, music and the like. They do not like the home school vs public school debate that their children are not being trained in a whole variety of disciplines. Instead they feel the home schooled kids are making better use of their time by not wasting time in commute, lining up, walking from class to class etc.
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The arguments presented in this article are erroneous.
Argument #1: Parents Are Not Trained as Teachers:
Parents decide whether they believe they can teach their children themselves. Part of this is experience and knowledge; part of this is personality. Am I, a parent, able to relate to my child in a way he/she can understand the material and actually learn? There are many home school co-ops who have educated teachers in particular fields that teach a particular subject to the students (eg., musicians, artists, scientists). Also, with all of the professional educational materials, DVD and on-line education programs available to the home schooler, this argument is not a moot point.
Argument #2: Homes Do Not Have as Many Resources:
There are many resources home schoolers have available to them, from computer, public libraries, the out doors, and many museums, zoos, . . . Resources are abundant!
Argument #3: Social Interaction:
Many home school families are large–they have plenty of social interaction right in their home. In our mobile society, children can have plenty of interaction with other children in their neighborhood, at their church programs, in local sports activities, and gymn clubs. There are also so many home school co-ops that this is an irrelevant argument also.
The decision to have a child in home school, public school, or private school should be left up to the wisdom and guidance of the parent.