Derham 1

Mark Derham

Professor Jessie B. Powell

English 102

15 November 2008

Home Schooling: Is it the Right Way to Go?

Home schooling has been debated as either right or wrong for decades.

Advocates for home schooling argue that it allows parents to teach their kids values and

knowledge that they hold as right and true. Opponents of home schooling argue that it

hinders a child’s social development, and children have the chance of being drawn into

a cult like environment where there is no escape. I argue that home schooling not only

provides a better learning environment for children, but it also provides flexibility in

course curriculum, vacations, extra curricular activities, and it gives parents the ability to

teach their kids religious values. Many families, such as those living in California where

a judge ruled home schooling to be criminal before being overturned, face an uphill

battle when it comes to teaching their children in their homes (Feeney 1). But many

others have the peace of mind that they will be allowed the right to home school their

children.

Many parents home school their kids in order to instill their religious values upon

them. Separation of church and state has become the bedrock of proponents for

schools being free from all types of religion. This has forced many to fall back on home

schooling as a means to continue to teach their kids their religious values. This is a very

important aspect for many, and to some it remains one of the sole reasons for home

schooling their children at all.

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Home schooling provides a much better learning environment than public school,

and this helps in many different aspects of a child’s education. When children are taught

at a public school, they are often times put in a classroom where the student to teacher

ratio is overly high. A recent program put into effect in Kansas found that smaller

classroom sizes helped boost graduation numbers and lower drop out rates (Education

USA). Large classrooms are not an issue for home schoolers. The parent is allowed

one on one time with their child in order to address any specific needs that they may

have with the current subject at hand. Home schooled kids also do not worry about

having their peers ridiculing them if they ask a question that is thought to be dim-witted

by others. If a topic is overwhelming and a break is needed, this is not a problem either.

There are not as many time constraints in home schooling compared to public schools

as well. This means more time can be spent on subjects that are more difficult to the

child, and when a topic is not as complicated, less time can be spent on it. All of these

things add up to an environment that is relaxed and promotes learning with little to no

pressure attached.

In the same way that home schooling offers a great learning environment, it also

offers an unmatched flexibility in the course curriculum that can be utilized. This means

that curriculum can be chosen on the needs of the child as well as the desires of the

parents. There is no set curriculum, and no one is tells parents what is best for their

children. From the author’s own personal experience, his sisters had completely

different curriculum than himself, and this was based entirely off of what was best for

them and what was best for him. The author needed a more hands on approach

curriculum, and his sisters needed a more text based approach. With there being
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flexibility in the curriculum, there can also be flexibility on the amount and the types of

field trips that the parents do with their child. This means if a topic arises that a field trip

would help explain better, this can be done on the fly with little to no planning required.

This is only possible in a home schooling situation.

This type of flexibility extends beyond course curriculum, and into a portion of

family lives that affect the parents the most; this is vacations and extra curricular

activities. When one is home schooled, it is very easy to take a break during the school

year without missing a beat. Parents do not have to wait for Christmas break or Spring

break to roll around in order to take a vacation. They can just as easily schedule a

vacation for the middle of February as they can for the middle of summer break. Extra

curricular activities are easier to plan around as well. Since there is no set time that

school is over, if a sport or any other activity begins during normal school hours, there is

no reason why the child would not be able to go. Additionally, extra curricular activities

are promoted heavily in the home school community. This is because parents want their

children to get outside and have social time with friends and others. Most home school

parents merely want to protect their kids from negative social interaction (Medlin 3).

Social interaction is highly encouraged among home schoolers; some might say it is

promoted more in home schooling than in public schools since home schoolers have to

make a concerted effort to meet up with other families and friends so as to remain

socially active.

Home schooling is not for everyone as it may appear. There are many financial

constraints that are involved as well as social implications that do not work for many

families (Lubienski 14). Home schooling also requires one parent to devote a large
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amount of their daily lives to their kids. This means that both parents cannot hold jobs.

While curriculum choices offer flexibility and freedom, it also means that the parents

have to uphold the financial burden of paying for the text books. Along with financial

constraints, many kids may not succeed in the home school setting. This is mostly

because they require social interaction at all times throughout the day as well as time

away from their parents throughout the day.

Home schooling provides a means of obtaining a quality education that is shaped

to provide the most important values and knowledge that the parents wants to impart on

their children. It allows the parents flexibility in numerous ways as well as assurance

that their child is receiving the best education possible. Home schooling provides social

interaction that is necessary through extra curricular activities that most participate in on

an almost daily basis. Although home schooling is not for everyone, it is a great way to

provide the quality education that should be strived for by every educational institution.
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Works Cited

Feeney, Tom. "California Court Declares Homeschooling Is Criminal." Human Events 17 Mar.

2008: 19+. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. APUS Online Library. 7 Nov. 2008

http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apus.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=aph&AN=31423350&site=ehost-live.

Medlin, Richard G. "Home Schooling and the Question of Socialization." PJE. Peabody Journal

of Education 75.1/2 (Jan. 2000): 107-123. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. APUS Online

Library. 7 Nov. 2008 http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apus.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=aph&AN=3331798&site=ehost-live.

Lubienski, Chris. "Whither the Common Good? A Critique of Home Schooling." PJE. Peabody

Journal of Education 75.1/2 (Jan. 2000): 207-232. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. APUS

Online Library. 7 Nov. 2008 http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apus.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=aph&AN=3331803&site=ehost-live.

"Program Finds Success In Smaller Classes, Better Teaching." Education USA (Aspen

Publishers Inc.) 43.26 (24 Dec. 2001): 12. Education Research Complete. EBSCO. APUS Online

Library. 8 Nov. 2008 http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apus.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=ehh&AN=7447900&site=ehost-live.