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March-April 2009 Selected Content
Taking Charge - Larry and Susan Kaseman
How Homeschooling Empowers Families in Tough Times
In these tough economic times, we can increase our confidence and reduce our worries by considering the resources we have. We homeschoolers are aware of the many advantages of homeschooling, but we may not have thought of them as part of our non-material wealth and as assets for tough times. Reviewing them now may also help us respond to questions from others (and perhaps ourselves) about whether we're going to give up homeschooling so we have more time to work for pay.
But what does this have to do with maintaining homeschooling freedoms, the focus of these Taking Charge columns? When we look at examples of how homeschooling strengthens us, we discover that many are based on differences between homeschools and conventional schools. We have to maintain our freedom to homeschool in our own way, according to our principles and beliefs, rather than being required to follow the standards, approaches, or models of conventional schools.
Note: Some families are being hit much harder than others by the economic crisis and may be forced to make compromises and choices they don't want to make, including temporarily sending their children to public schools, to meet basic needs. This column focuses on families who may have to make financial sacrifices to homeschool but who have some choice.
Here are some qualities or assets that many families develop from homeschooling that are especially valuable as we deal with economic challenges, partly because what money can't buy becomes even more important when there is less money.
Ability to think for ourselves, ask serious questions, and choose alternative answers that work for us: Asking questions is at the heart of homeschooling. What if we traded the risks of conventional schools for the risks and possibilities of homeschooling? We also often ask questions about other areas of our lives. What options do we have for responding to reduced income, savings, job security, customers for our small business, or financial opportunities? Does it make more sense to increase the number of hours we parents work for pay or decrease the amount of money we spend? What resources are available that we haven't tapped yet?
We aren't afraid to find answers that differ from those in the dominant culture. Our most important investment is in our families.
Conventional schools send a strong message that there's one right answer and you better agree with it. Think of the advantages we have as homeschoolers. We can think for ourselves and make our own decisions that may be counter to a materialistic society that values people based on their wealth and possessions rather than on who they are or what they contribute to their families and communities. In addition, some homeschoolers are concerned about the ways in which conventional schools play a role in turning children into consumers for the benefit of corporations.
Ability to do things ourselves: Some of us start homeschooling, discover how well it works, and then begin taking on more responsibility for other aspects of our lives. We do the mundane (cutting our own hair), the relatively common (baking bread), the ambitious (growing much of our food), and the serious (taking more responsibility for our health).
Others of us were "do-it-yourselfers" before we started homeschooling. When our children reached compulsory school attendance age, we decided we could educate them more effectively than an institution could.
Whichever way we've developed our "do-it-ourselves" abilities, they are invaluable during an economic crisis. Because we feel more confident and in control of much of our lives, we're less likely to feel like hopeless victims of national and global economic developments. We know we have choices; there are things we can do. We can ask, "What could we do without, reduce, or do less expensively ourselves?" We can find inventive ways to begin immediately. If it's too early to plant a garden, we can grow sprouts while we study seed catalogs and gardening books.
Conventional schools discourage doing things oneself. With so many kids to manage, teachers can't afford to encourage them to do their own things. Even if they could, how would they grade such a wide array of activities? How could teachers and school officials hang on to the authority they need to maintain order?
Increased confidence: The ability to think for ourselves, learn what we need to know, and be self-reliant increases our confidence. We know these are solid, secure credentials that will serve us well, whether times are good or tough. They are stronger than credentials people get from conventional schools. School credentials are based on grades, test results (often misleading and inaccurate), time on task ("You must spend 43 minutes a day on math, regardless of whether you already understand the concepts or need more time to figure them out."), and diplomas. By emphasizing and granting such externally awarded credentials, conventional schools often drain students' self-confidence, self-reliance, and ability to learn in their own way. Then if someone isn't telling them what to do, how to do it, and paying them to do it, they are lost. By contrast, self-confident, self-reliant people are better prepared to deal with life's inevitable challenges.
Strong families: Homeschooling families learn to live together 24 hours a day. (Considering the history of humanity, this isn't all that unnatural, but it is for many people in our society today.) Several very positive things result.
• Families learn to work as a team, each person making contributions based on their talents and strengths. Skills, time, and work are shared, reducing what each person has to do.
• Being together during times that are happy, sad, uplifting, distressing, funny, and so on builds strong family bonds that are particularly important in challenging times.
• Families can move gradually from having dependent children to interdependence, leading to life-long support and help for everyone in the family. Opportunities arise for welcoming and encouraging adult children to be continue to be part of the family in ways that can be very helpful, especially in tough times.
Of course, homeschoolers aren't the only ones who have strong families, but it's easier to become and stay a strong family if you're homeschooling.
Families as economic units: A family that can function as an economic unit is in a better position to handle economic challenges. Sharing resources saves a lot, whether it's owning fewer cars, buying food in bulk, sharing appliances like sewing machines, or other approaches. People with particular skills (such as fixing things, cooking, gardening, and sewing) can help others. It's great to work together on a big task, like planting a garden or painting the house. But perhaps most important is the security and peace of mind that come from knowing that whatever happens, other people will be there to understand, support, and help.
A family moves toward becoming an economic unit when it involves children in decisions about spending money soon as they are old enough. It's sometimes surprising at what a young age children can understand the idea that money is limited, so what's spent for one thing can't be spent for something else, and the family has many blessings more important than anything money can buy. Older children can be involved in planning ways to save money, thinking of things the family can do without, and helping by doing things the family might otherwise pay money for, like cooking special meals at home instead of eating out and having a games night at home instead of paying for entertainment. Sometimes needing to reduce spending strengthens families with a sense of "We're all in this together and we can manage if we all pitch in."
Teens and young adults often contribute to the family economy by earning money and sharing resources like contributing to the expense of the family car instead of owning their own. Some families become communities of adults so that young adults can continue to live there after they're 18 and still have responsibilities and independence appropriate to their age. Then everyone saves on rent or mortgage payments, car expenses, shared appliances, household work, and more, not to mention the advantages of spending time together as adults and supporting each other. Some families cooperate on a family business.
Value of time with kids rather than a second income: In response to the economic crisis, many non-homeschoolers assume that homeschooling parents will increase the number of hours they work for pay, even if this means sending the kids to a conventional school. At first glance, this may sound like a logical approach. Some homeschooling families consider it, and some decide it's what they have to do.
Studies of non-homeschooling families have shown that when the second parent begins working, the family only gets a small fraction of their income. The rest of the money they earn goes to taxes, transportation, work clothes, increased food costs (needing to buy meals at work, buying more prepared foods or eating out more often because there's less time to cook, etc.), day care for young children, guilt gifts, and other expenses. Calculators are available on the Internet that give a rough idea of how much of a second parent's salary a family actually ends up with. (Do a search for something like: cost second income.)
Homeschooling families may find the costs are even greater. Needing to pay others to do things the family has been doing, such as cooking meals from scratch, gardening, doing household repairs, etc.
Some families focus even more on the non-monetary costs of parents spending increased time working for pay. These include reduced family time, increased stress on all family members (including the stress associated with separation from parents, especially for young children), parents' fatigue, etc.
In short, what might seem like a straightforward solution to the economic crisis, that is, having a second parent working (assuming they can find a job in this time of rising unemployment), is actually very complicated with perhaps unexpected costs, monetary and non-monetary. There are times when families have no choice but to increase the amount of time parents work for pay, but the decision is not as simple as it may appear at first glance. Many families appreciate the tremendous advantages of having parents at home, even though their income is less.
Reduced cost of living: Homeschooling saves money in a variety of ways. Here are a few examples:
• People who identify themselves as members of strong families, homeschoolers, do-it-yourselfers, etc. often are often less likely to look to clothes, cars, house, and other materials possessions for their identity. Choosing our family's own style of dress, interior decoration, cars, etc. almost always costs less than following the mainstream crowd. It's often easier to be content at home.
• Experience thinking for oneself makes people less likely to be influenced by advertising.
• We can choose activities that require less money or even save money, like gardening and cooking and inventing our own entertainment, which also offer hands-on learning opportunities, build confidence, and more.
• Homeschooling often reduces stress, leads to more relaxed schedules and activity, creates calmer families, and perhaps reduces stress-related illnesses.
Be Alert For Ways Tough Economic Times May Affect Homeschoolers
Finally, two observations about the effects tough economic times might have on state regulation of homeschooling.
First, as tax revenues decline and public school budgets face possible cuts, school officials are likely to increase pressure on homeschoolers to enroll in their programs. As previous columns discussed, public school programs for homeschoolers increase the risk that homeschoolers will be required to comply with increased regulation by public schools and the state. Therefore, many homeschoolers who are concerned about maintaining their homeschooling freedoms avoid enrolling in such public school programs.
Second, in tough economic times, schools may be more inclined to look for scapegoats to blame their problems on. Sometimes homeschoolers are seen as a convenient target. We can minimize this by being alert for signs that we are being singled out. We can be prepared to explain, if necessary, that our decision not to enroll in the public schools is not the source of their problems. Homeschoolers represent only about 2% of the school age population. In many areas of the country, the growth of homeschooling has leveled off or is declining, so it's unreasonable to assume that homeschooling will suddenly increase enough to become a threat to public school enrollment and budgets or that forcing homeschoolers into public schools will solve their budget problems.
Conclusion
Money can't buy the most important things in life, which become even more valuable and appreciated in tough times. Many homeschoolers think of wealth as family connections and support, a strong sense of confidence, and the ability to do things themselves rather than paying others. We are better prepared for life in general, and especially for tough times, when we work to maintain our homeschooling freedoms so we can continue to have the strengths we gain from homeschooling.
© 2009, Larry and Susan Kaseman
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