Earlier quoted context omitted.
I had someone (childless i might add) try to make me feel guilty for pulling my kids out of a school circling the drain and into a high performing one in the name of diversity. I told them, when the time comes, if they want to sacrifice their child on that altar then it's their decision but don't ask me to sacrifice mine.
Kind of wild and weirdly refreshing to finally see the "everyone is in it for themselves and their own" attitude on fully overt display in this article's comments. Usually it's masked behind talk of "freedom" and "individuality," but here, it's raw and out there in the open! FWIW I probably could afford to send my kid to a better private school or alternate-schooling group, withdrawing from the community and not-so-g…
Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
881–890 of 1001 posts
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#882Earlier quoted context omitted.
Lack of perfection doesn't mean you shouldn't try to be more neutral. Trying by itself (even if failing) earns the trust of voters. And if you live in an area where evolution is a controversial topic, then you should leave it up to the parents. You don't have a right to use their money to teach something that a lot of people don't want to be taught. Of course, there's some line where something is fringe enough and yo…
Okay, but there are claims like: "Dinosaurs existed over 100 million years ago, before humans existed" which are controversial enough that it's part of the "culture war". And teaching it (and carbon dating) counts as taking a side. We aren't talking about fine points of evolution, we are talking about the earth being older than mankind at all.
Parents should always have the final say in what their children are being taught, even if it’s patently unscientific. Anything else feels like an incredibly slippery slope of, “Daddy Government knows what’s best for your kids better than you do, so we’re chipping away at your parental rights until we can save your child from your non-governmentally approved ideas!”
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#883I was home-schooled until high school. Long story short, it was a disaster. I bordered on having no education at all, on top of no socialization. I'm so fortunate I got at least four years of public school. I still think I suffer to this day. For parents who are thinking of home schooling your kids: best of luck to you. If you succeed, maybe your kids will be smarter. If you fail, you could be setting your kids up fo…
I think being accountable for your work to a person who isn't in your family is actually an important thing to learn. It also turns out, parents aren't really qualified to be teachers just because they believe that they are.
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#884Earlier quoted context omitted.
Ridiculous amounts of standardized testing and curriculums designed to optimize for that was the main thing we hated. Seems to be a thing everywhere. When I was a kid teachers had a bit more freedom to decide what to teach but now you teach to the test or lose your funding.
Teachers absolutely should teach to the test. And individual teachers really shouldn't be in the business of deciding what to teach, either. Why is there an assumption that what is on the test is inherently worthless but every individual teacher is qualified to design an entire curriculum?
Teaching to the test is akin to teaching music only through sheet music; no instruments. The test is a mile wide and an inch deep and instead of helping students appreciate and understand topics and apply that knowledge creatively, we rush temporary memorization and regurgitation.
Like all measures, once they become a target, they become a poor measure.
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#885Earlier quoted context omitted.
Okay, but there are claims like: "Dinosaurs existed over 100 million years ago, before humans existed" which are controversial enough that it's part of the "culture war". And teaching it (and carbon dating) counts as taking a side. We aren't talking about fine points of evolution, we are talking about the earth being older than mankind at all.
As someone who was taught all of the silly, unscientific religious “theories” like Creationism as a child, and then had to unlearn it as an adult, my position is that it is absolutely never the governments place to tell a parent what they are allowed to teach their child. It is not the responsibility of the state, in any way, shape, or form, to dictate information to a child that the parents take issue with, even if…
What happens when the government decides to teach nonsense?
There is nothing magical about the state that makes it a better arbiter of truth than other institutions. Historically states have a pretty poor record. They tend to push ideas that benefit the people who control them, whether that’s a nobility or a majority faction in the electorate (or both).
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#886The first few (!) years were quite difficult. We didn’t seek out any homeschool group support but we did study about home schooling.
We ended up devising our own curriculum and our kid, eventually, and to some degree ..on his own, became a diligent student. Just learning how to do “school work” was a real hurdle.
The biggest outcome that requires reconsideration is that he was pretty invisible when he applied to colleges. Our demographic qualifications didn’t help. So we’re paying cash for college. He did take some community college classes during the time that would’ve been his last two years of high school.
He really liked community college. He thrived. The local (well regarded) university is an educational black box, offering little support or contact with administrators or educators. Office hours are never kept and often cancelled, for instance. Assignments aren’t managed properly in online systems and teachers can’t be reached by the deadline (it’s almost like a Google support situation — impervious and well guarded).
Still, he found a research position and got offered a job and works with an interesting and accessible professor. Socially, his university isn’t a match. He’s not that interested in college life, and I can’t find a wedge in to encourage him. He’s in a STEM field, so everyone’s pretty anti-social.
So, we’re that kind of homeschool tribe. He turned out fine. He’s very happy that he was homeschooled. Honestly, if I hadn’t been divorced (amicably) and if she hadn’t been anchored here, I would’ve seriously considered moving to another country for his education. It’s what he and I are discussing for his grad school interests. We’re both making lists of places overseas (where we’ve been expats at various times).
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#887When I moved into my current house about 10 years ago, the family next door home schooled. I'd never known any home schoolers before and definitely had some notions about how terrible it must be until I learned about it. This family was part of a home school group with other families. The kids went to different houses every day and had an instructor focus on 1 subject for half of the day, mixed in with free time, dep…
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#888Earlier quoted context omitted.
What do you do to quickly shut down an adult bully?
It really depends. If it's a peer in a more professional setting, simply calling them out generally makes you less a target, especially if calling out their behaviour is done in a group setting. It comes down to the old "stand up for yourself" rule we've all heard. Also, calm confidence tends to work with adults too. If the bullying is coming from above, time to move on. I have zero patience for it, and there's likel…
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#889Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's like people are reinventing all the same stuff schools do at scale. Can't we be more efficient as a society? Not to mention the privilege that is draped over every detail of this setup.
“I’ll intentionally disadvantage my kids in the name of the ideal of egalitarianism” said basically no parent ever.
Re: Home schooling's rise from fringe to fastest-growing form of education
#890Earlier quoted context omitted.
> The underlying problem is the completely unregulated nature. I didn't need your permission to give birth to my children, why do I need your permission when deciding how I educate them? > Only dad is allowed to talk to anyone and when he does it's extraordinarily weird. If you feel these children are legitimately being abused in some way, I'm guessing there are plenty of state resources to address that challenge. Do…
> > The underlying problem is the completely unregulated nature. > I didn't need your permission to give birth to my children, why do I need your permission when deciding how I educate them? Because your children are not your property, they are your responsibility and we as society have decided that we want to make sure that the education is to a certain standard. As a side note I find it fascinating how people who f…
I couldn’t possibly agree more! They are MY responsibility. Not yours. Not the state’s. Not society’s. I will educate them the way that I see fit. It’s not my responsibility to educate your kids, and it’s not your responsibility to educate mine, no matter how righteous and justified it may feel.