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Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

washingtonpost.com

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Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#301

Post by noirbot »

FireBeyond wrote: post #262
merpnderp wrote: post #216

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m sorry for you bad experience, but statistically kids do better when homeschooled. It’s not like public school as some minimal level they’re assured to bring kids up to.

Citation needed. Beyond studies by the National Home Education Research Institute, that is. The three leading studies by homeschooling advocates looked at "homeschooled students who went to college" and how they did at school versus public schooled students at college, and ignored the fact that the percentage of homeschooled students who went to college was much smaller (why?) than for public schools.

My guess for the college admission situation is at least partially because, until recently, a lot of public and private colleges essentially refused to recognize homeschooling as a way to get an education, so your chance of getting admitted was almost zero at a ton of schools. This lead a lot of people (myself included) to essentially join something that's legally an accredited private school, but functionally homeschooling, but you take your exams at a central place at a central time. For statistical purposes, I was private schooled, because that was what I needed to do to make it into college. Actually fully homeschooled people went to community college and then tried and often failed to transfer.

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#302

Post by twobitshifter »

jawns wrote: post #150

People talk about homeschooling as if it's one single concept, but it's actually a whole bunch of very dissimilar things. There are people who homeschool because they don't agree with the government's viewpoints, people who homeschool because the public school system has failed their kids, people who homeschool because it just happens to fit their lifestyle. Those are all very different motivations. Likewise, there a…

How do you deal with the cases where kids are neglected or indoctrinated against American society?

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#303

Post by scarmig »

fzeroracer wrote: post #297
biomcgary wrote: post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did you notice that the article highlights the rise of homeschooling co-ops? This is intentional on the part of the homeschooling movement. It improves both socialization and educational opportunities (e.g., shared lab equipment). Rather than pearl clutching about individual anecdotes or doubling down on government control, I think states should provide direct funding to homeschool co-ops in addition to direct fundin…

A homeschooling co-op is literally us just reinventing the wheel. A large enough co-op becomes a school system and a school system eventually adopts a standard curriculum.

People who do co-ops might not object to public schooling in principle but to the particular implementation that their locality has adopted. If co-ops becomes public schools with better management, all the better.

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#304

Post by jandrese »

llbeansandrice wrote: post #281
jandrese wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is a huge spectrum, but back when we homeschooled (my wife wasn't yet comfortable sending the kids back to the classroom in 2021) we did a few events where local homeschool kids got together for various activities. Tree identification/nature trail at the park, visits to historic sites, stuff like that. Of the parents I met there was some variety, but 9 times out of 10 it seemed like they were mostly doing it be…

It's really difficult because a lot of the resources and groups are created by and supported by this very religious group that homeschools. There is still a very wide margin though. My wife was homeschooled because she did gymnastics at a fairly high level when she was young and so scheduling was easier for her that way. Her older sister wasn't homeschooled hardly at all though.

Yes, no more recommendations for "excellent PragerU material", please!

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#305

Post by chasd00 »

zaphar wrote: post #14
boeingUH60 wrote: post #5

Good luck to these people, hope it turns out well. Personally, I can't imagine home-schooling kids. I neither have the time nor patience to do that, which is why I appreciate teachers. Besides, I believe school is also a place for kids to socialize with and learn from their peers. I'm very introverted, but I think I would have ended up horribly social-wise if I was home-schooled.

I think possibly the worst place to learn and practice social skills is from other kids who are just as in the dark as you are. In my experience a home schooled child is significantly more likely to be good at social skills than a public schooled child. They are also adept at navigating adult conversation and social situations much sooner.

home school kids arent locked in a cage. There's all kinds of social engagement activities available to home schoolers, i would argue even more than public school. The social isolation rumor of home schoolers is totally unfounded in my experience. Maybe it was true 30 years ago but it's certainly not true for school age kids toay.

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#306

Post by kbelder »

alexvoda wrote: post #205
jawns wrote: post #150

People talk about homeschooling as if it's one single concept, but it's actually a whole bunch of very dissimilar things. There are people who homeschool because they don't agree with the government's viewpoints, people who homeschool because the public school system has failed their kids, people who homeschool because it just happens to fit their lifestyle. Those are all very different motivations. Likewise, there a…

There is a single opinion that is valid of all those different forms together: it (home schooling) will increase inequality in society in terms of amplitude, spread and flavors.

I'm doing everything I can to raise my children unequally.

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#307

Post by FireBeyond »

akira2501 wrote: post #237
vharuck wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I didn't need your permission to give birth to my children, why do I need your permission when deciding how I educate them? One legal theory that may be relevant was brought up long ago for a case on banned books in school: you have the right to raise your kid according to your beliefs, but many states guarantee children the right to education. So the state could regulate homeschooling to ensure all children have ac…

> but many states guarantee children the right to education They guarantee the right to /access/ education. This is not at all the same as guaranteeing that all children "must be educated at a state approved school." > If nobody outside the home ever sees or talks to the kids, there's not much the state can do to even start an investigation. I read an incredible number of police reports. There's a lot of abuse that g…

> They guarantee the right to /access/ education. This is not at all the same as guaranteeing that all children "must be educated at a state approved school."

That's oversimplifying. You're right about the "at a state approved school", but the right is to access education to a set standard that will equip them for life.

You can't just say "well, they have access to -my- education, so we're good". There should be caveats around quality and deliverability of education.

Because if you (the generic 'you', not singling you out individually) have low/zero value educational material, and no desire to provide it for your children, then that is /not/ them accessing education in any meaninful sense of the concept.

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#308

Post by chasd00 »

rootusrootus wrote: post #30
zaphar wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think possibly the worst place to learn and practice social skills is from other kids who are just as in the dark as you are. In my experience a home schooled child is significantly more likely to be good at social skills than a public schooled child. They are also adept at navigating adult conversation and social situations much sooner.

My experience is exactly the opposite. Homeschooled kids frequently have to learn how to adult all at once, right as they get dumped into the pool with everyone else to go find a way to make a living. The most successful kids that I see are the ones who have professional instructors by day and excellent support at home. Not one or the other, but both.

"who have professional instructors by day"

what school age child has access to that? Maybe in the most selective and well funded private schools there's professional instructors put public school? No way.

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#309

Post by A4ET8a8uTh0 »

alexvoda wrote: post #205
jawns wrote: post #150

People talk about homeschooling as if it's one single concept, but it's actually a whole bunch of very dissimilar things. There are people who homeschool because they don't agree with the government's viewpoints, people who homeschool because the public school system has failed their kids, people who homeschool because it just happens to fit their lifestyle. Those are all very different motivations. Likewise, there a…

There is a single opinion that is valid of all those different forms together: it (home schooling) will increase inequality in society in terms of amplitude, spread and flavors.

Seconding the request to elaborate. There may be good and valid arguments against homeschooling but increase of inequality sounds.. weird.

Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education

#310

Post by dgunay »

Ignoring the education/socialization arguments, I'm surprised to see that no one has mentioned the ostensibly reduced risk of your homeschooled child becoming the victim of a school shooting.

Go on and tell me how statistically the risk is negligible. It makes me feel a bit anxious whenever someone I love is doing _anything_ with a tail risk of instant death that society has somehow normalized, even just driving. I'm not a parent but I imagine that kind of thing could really affect some parents' peace of mind.

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