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Nicoleta Moroianu

Jordan Duke

ESL 109

October 7th, 2018

Public Education and Homeschooling

Were you a homeschooled child who always wondered how it would have been to go to a

public school like all the other kids in your neighborhood? If you went to a public school, did

you know that there were children schooled in their own houses?

The idea of homeschooling came at the same time with the formation of United States of

America. Children were being educated at home for a long time until the institutional system of

education was put in place. Despite the fact that the features of modern homeschooling differ

from the original “home-based education” (Murphy), the phenomenon has the same core ideas.

“Although estimates vary widely, and the question has been debated by many, the number of

children being home educated in the United States has clearly risen” (Ray, 1). According to Ray,

there were almost two million homeschooled students in the spring of 2010.

There are similarities and differences between public education and homeschooling from

the perspective of cost, time management and opportunity to socialize.

Talking about the cost of school, we can all agree that there are expenses implied in both

systems. Some charges they have in common are school supplies, extracurricular lessons, field

trips. The cost can vary in both systems depending upon each family circumstances. What

differentiates the public school from the homeschool is the way the expenses are covered and the

extent of the expenditure. The public school is covered by a mix of local, state and federal

funding while the homeschool is covered fully by the parents. At the same time, public school
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spends much more being that the system needs buildings, school busses, and wages for teachers

and the administrators of the school. Although public school is considered free for students, there

are certain things not covered like extracurriculars, field trips, uniforms, special occasions,

college preparation, transportation. Homeschooling consumes less money because the system

uses the unpaid work of the parents, the house as building meets the needs of both, school and

family living, and there is no money spent on commuting.

From the standpoint of time distribution, both systems of education have clear schedule

for all steps of the process and due dates for all assignments. Obviously, the parents can adopt

the same strict schedule at home when it comes to teaching. They can even have the same

timetable for studying as the school has. A student going to public school will spend some time

with getting to school and then back home. Because there are several children in a class, they

share the teacher’s attention and time for answering questions and feedback. Unlike the public

school student, the homeschooler doesn’t have to spend any time on commuting and gets the

attention of the teacher the whole length of the class.

As Professor Dr. Mecham mentioned, socialization is a difficult concept because it

“means different things to different people. Almost all definitions address one or both of the

following tenets: 1) socialization refers to acquiring knowledge about, and accepting as one’s

own, social norms and values; and 2) socialization develops skills that allow an individual to

function effectively in that society” (2) (Damon pp. 3-10, Souza pp. 48, 91-108). Looking from

this perspective, we can remark that both types of students get in contact with other people and

find themselves in situations that help them learn manners and proper conduct. In both systems

children learn to behave with people their age and with adults with authority. Both meet people

through their extracurricular activities. While students socialize in public schools mainly with
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their classmates, the children educated at home have their network of people who share their

views on education and maybe even about life in general. They meet each other and exchange

ideas and experiences.

There are similarities and differences between public education and homeschooling.

Whatever the different aspects of the cost, time organizing, or interactions, these two schemes

are valuable paths to reach the same noble goals. Students can become successful professionals

from any of these two methods of education. What will make the difference will be the way

distinct factors are mixed in each student’s life experience. No matter what approach is preferred,

“child-centered learning” is the key to shape valuable citizens for our society (Guterson, 1993).
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Works cited

Ray, Brian D., Ph.D., National Home Education Research Institute, January 3, 2011, p. 1

equipeducation.org/Downloads/HomeschoolPopulationReport2010.pdf

Murphy, Joseph. “Homeschooling in America: Capturing and Assessing the Movement.” New

York: Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., 2014

Guterson, David. “Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense.” First Harvest edition,

San Diego, California, Harcourt, Brace & Co., 1993

Mecham, Neil. ” The Socialization of Home-Schooled Children in Rural Utah.” All Graduate

Thesis and Dissertations, 2004, p. 2, digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/2572