Yesterday I was visiting with some ladies or more listening to a conversation about homeschooling.
The one mother was saying how her adult children are upset at her for not grading their papers and feel they were deprived in school because of that.
Another felt she was deprived because she did not have science labs available to her.
I brought up the point that I do not know that public school would have been better…but that they would have still blamed the parents for other things.
The conversation turned to homeschoolers we know of that fail in school, because of faulty teaching.. and she wishes there was more government involvement. But the family lived in a state where there was governement involvement and still nothing was done. The children were adults, smart and could barely do third grade work.
How is that possible? They never left the farm, most of their life. They did not always attend church, one daughter went to a grocery store at the age of 18 and said “I remember one time I was in a store like this before!”
They all had to run away to get out of the house, sadly, and have severe emotional problems to deal with as well as other vices.
So, what is the answer? More cheap Christian schools? More control on homeschooling? More science labs in home and involved parents?
I don't know……maybe… and maybe not..but I wonder if it all comes back to the body of Christ functioning in more the way it should be functioning with people helping one another. One mother does not have to do it all, but the math whizzes teach math, science lovers teach science and so on…..maybe…just maybe we could help…but then again…I am sure someone will complain still.
Sure, Homeschooling like anything else CAN be abused. I personally know of 2 families that I feel abuse HSing. One, her children keep getting kicked out of every school, so she “homeschools” them. There is no school going on there. I am not just being judgemental, I know this first hand.
Another family I know, I wouldn’t say abuse HSing, but could really use some outside help. Her near adult children can hardly function academically above a third grade level. She loves her children, loves and lives for God, yet seems to struggle.
I DON’T think government involvement is the answer. I do think in a situation like the second one I mentioned, cottage type homeschooling could be a solution. For the first family mentioned, I don’t know the answer. But a family like this abuses whatever system their in. IT is a shame because families like the first, are the ones that make homeschooling look bad for us all. But there will always be those like that, sadly, it is her children who will suffer in the long run.
Don’t have any answers, but I do think about this issue alot. Thanks for a thought provoking post!
Blessings
Tara B
Community. I have a great one.
I also do not homeschool out of fear. For our family it has just been the best. We have had three in public school. Just long enough to see what the problems might be. To many kids, to few teachers.
I don’t mind testing my kids. I don’t mind people asking how they are doing. I don’t mind telling the truth when we are struggling. I don’t mind helping people who might learn from what we have struggled with.
Lenni