It’s the S-word again. This time from a survival and preparedness site:
Homeschooling socialization is by far the most major conflict in relation to homeschooling. The problem is that, by removing your children from the public school environment, you are depriving them of the social development offered by public schools. After all, it would be difficult for a child to develop social skills when they are not given the opportunity to interact with other children. As such, this remains as a huge homeschooling disadvantage.
All along I had been thinking it was one of the greatest advantages of homeschooling. Maybe… oh, I will let it go. It is in the rankings for Worst Headline of the week. Read it here.
Some positive thoughts on homeschooling socialization:
HEM
Helen
Tracy
mark
marynix
ann-lahrson-fisher
valerie
sandi
david
I’m transcribing most of a 1981 paper (a photocopy-PDF) by Stephen Arons that talks about this same viewpoint.
Value Conflict Between American Families and American Schools
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED210786&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED210786
(I wish it was easier to gain access to the document.)
This snippet is part of Prof. Arons’s summing up of the ‘why’ of part of the antipathy some people feel towards homeschooling. Prof. Arons is not anti-homeschooling, he’s merely explaining. Nearly thirty years have passed, and the same sentiments are still common currency.
p. 45:
“Individualist families do not accept the argument that society requires a process for creating and recreating group cohesion?”
Valerie, The need for creating and recreating group cohesion was a lesson the kids drilled into Helen and I at least weekly.
No no no no no…I hated that argument twenty something years ago and I hate it today. Most of the time only educators are saying it, and I am an educator.
I chose to home school because my son was of Kinesthetic intelligence and my daughter was terminally ill/learning disabled (tested below 60) and was put into a class room where all they did was watch videos and cook tuna helper. Not real life skills.
Unless you home school and keep those kids locked inside the whole time, or are just not a good social skill person yourself that is just a small percentage of families that I would worry about. There are alternatives for socialization. In Texas where I come from we had groups that meet twice a week, took turns teaching in our field, tutoring, music, sports, and also schools allowed kids to be involved in sports. We tested weekly, I held myself accountable for their time, and supported my household with my own business.
My daughter is diseased now, but my son is a thriving college student who took his finals for graduation through a local college in NJ and passed way above average. I am not an exception either. Given a chance more families out there understand their childrens learning style and adapt plans for their education.
I fell through the cracks also being of Kinesthetic intelligence, and poor family cohesion, and struggled with college. Thank goodness I had support from clients who were teachers and believe me they questioned my home schooling the kids, but when they saw the results they knew I did the right thing.
My occupation(s) and personality showed my ability to bring socialization into my kids life.
Okay I did not mean to go off, this is like emails I am sure, hard to tell the ‘mood’ of the writer…
There is a good amount of families that do not home school because they ‘rejecting public value’, the education and teachers wanted to put my son on meds to keep him sedate, and my daughter was not being educated, because it was believed to be a waste of time, and they honestly did not know how to handle children like mine.
I still believe that many public education systems are herding our children through school like cattle. Standardized teaching methods only work on a percentage, do we let the others fall through the cracks?
I teach now, and help students that I observe with learning disabilities. I teach life skill classes, and mentor students to reach out, no matter how long, never give up. I pray I am helping someone like myself… PS I did not home school for religious reasons. I ran from that…