Home Schooling – Just My Opinion

Let me start by saying that I am totally against home schooling.  For me.  For Cucidati.  I am more than qualified to teach my children (if I had any) at home.  I hold multiple degrees and a certification.  I know my fair share about child psychology.  Afterall, in the classroom, you sometimes have to think like a parent.  Does this mean that if you are a parent and you have that down pat that you are qualified to teach your kids at home?

My first reason against home schooling is lack of credentials.  Some states actually require you be certified to teach in the home.  Why is that such an atrocity?  I was in a local dollar store and a woman ahead of me commented on the cheapness of school supplies and classroom decorations or some such nonsense.  Being that I really hate talking in long lines, I had no choice but to engage her.  The minute I opened my mouth to agree that it was wonderful that there was a low cost alternative to classroom decoration, she laid it on me.  She began preaching the wonders and joys of home schooling.  This came completely out of left field.  She asked what I was certified in and I told her.  She then said “You should consider a certification in home schooling!”  In my head I am thinking that she is a total whack job looking to force her views on anyone willing to listen.  I scramble for a response.  ”I really rather prefer teaching in schools.  Beside that, I have no children at the moment and if I did, I would send them to public/private school.”  She lunged back in a pleasant but forceful way.  ”My daughter had to move to Virginia because Pennsylvania wouldn’t allow her to home school without a certification.  Can you believe that?”  Again, in my head and then right out of my mouth comes the following line.  ”I think it’s in the best interest of the students that a parent is qualified to teach a subject.”  There is much more that goes into teaching than behavior management and ABC’s.  There is lesson planning, unofficial lesson planning that comes with teaching social norms to children, and a whole host of state guidelines that must be met.  She kindly paid for her things, wished me luck, and went on her way.  The remaining shoppers and cashier all agreed that home schooling wasn’t an option they would be choosing.

Social development is another hot button issue.  How can you teach a child about social interaction when it is just you and him?  How does he learn proper behavior with children and with adults?  Add in a few more siblings and yes, he has interaction but not with anyone in the real world.  Particularly “religious” people choose this life for their children because they think they are protecting them [the children] from the evils of the world.  Case in point:  The Duggars.  The only social interaction their children get (besides each other) are friends from church or other Christian families.  It is their [Jim Bob and Michelle] right to decide how to raise their children.  I also get that there are certain things that you don’t want your children exposed to.  You don’t want them to see kids who may be different than they are, spiritually.  You might fear their departure from your control could lead to “bad things.”  I get it, I really do.

So what happens to kids who only see one view of the world?  I know several such “kids” who are adults now and it’s a crap shoot.  One girl was literally bound to the home for 18 years.  The minute she was “allowed” to go to trade school she went wild.  She wasn’t even allowed to attend college.  Now I say allowed.  Allowed in this case is all about still allowing your parents to control your life well after you have been granted legal adult status.  It wasn’t like she said “Mom, Dad, I want to run off and join a biker gang, tat myself up, and practice Santeria!”  She wanted to go to college.  Again, this brings me back to another topic of purity balls and oppressive male figures.  Another time.  The boy did fairly well.  He maintained his spirituality, went to college and was well adjusted.  Then again, he is a male.  Surely he could take care of himself!  Allegedly.  Keep in mind, two different people, two different families, both home schooled.

I don’t think it’s necessarily an evil thing to do to your children.  If your basis is that they aren’t getting a good education, I then come back to my original point.  A teacher does not a parent make.  Neither would I claim to know how to parent your child the way only you can.  Unless you are coming from a state with extremely low requirements for teachers, this argument does not hold water.