As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, more parents are looking at
homeschooling as a viable option. Here are the factors inquiring parents should
consider.
Don’t look now, but a revolution is currently sweeping education.
For years, students participated in an almost universal prototype:
institutionalized schooling, typified by standardized testing, controlled
curricula, regimented structures, and rigid scheduling. But now, according to
the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 55 millionstudents are
finishing the academic year after weeks of distance learning from home (or, as
some have called it “crisis schooling”).
Students had to adjust to remote education. Their everyday lives
were turned upside down. The coronavirus pandemic forced teachers to scramble
accommodations for distance learning, with two-thirds of
educators reporting that lockdown orders make it challenging for them to do
their jobs. Parents must now juggle the work of scheduling, supervising, and
instructing their children.
This situation has been referred to as “homeschooling.” Though
there are differences, it is similar to the experience of the approximately 2
million children, or 3.3 percent of American
students, whose parents have chosen to home educate.
Some have struggled with these circumstances. Some have adapted
but desire the end of a stressful season. Others have flourished. Recent
polling suggests the experience has opened the eyes of many parents to
homeschooling benefits. In one survey, about 40 percent indicated
they were in favor of homeschooling next fall. In a USA Today poll, six out of 10 parents
reported the likelihood of homeschooling.
Yet many questions remain for educators and parents alike. How
will schools open in the
fall? When (or if) they do open, will teachers return, considering one out of
five reports they
may not? Bearing in mind the measures suggested by the CDC, will
students be required to wear masks? Will class sizes be limited and desks
separated by barriers? Will cafeterias
be open? Will students be permitted to play together, or will they be forced to
stay strictly six feet apart?
Taking such questions into account, it is not surprising that many
parents want to provide long-term stability to their children’s education
by considering homeschooling.
Also to consider is the ever-persistent talk of future lockdowns
due to COVID-19. Indeed, schools in other areas of the world have reopened only
to close again. Given
all that’s going on, it makes sense that many parents who want the best for
their children wish to lay the groundwork now for what their families will face
in the fall.
Parents have much to think about. But they, not any educational
establishment or government, must be respected and applauded for carrying the
responsibility of determining what is good for their children.
For those leaning towards homeschooling, here are 10 things to
consider:
1. You are already a teacher: As a parent, you have
been teaching your children all sorts of things since they were born. According
to the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, “Families are children’s first and most important
teachers.” There’s no doubt that parents are a critical foundation of
educational success. That point should never be forgotten.
2. You have a profound relationship:Students
learn best from teachers with whom they have deep relationships.
Parents tend to know their children best. Those who homeschool their children,
therefore, often discover that their established relationship promotes
learning.
3. You are free: Freedom is precious and beneficial,
especially when it comes to education. Homeschooling allows parents to exercise
inherent liberties: the freedom to choose materials, what methods to employ,
and which ideas deserve the most focus. An inherent advantage of homeschooling
is that it also provides freedom from having such personal decisions thrust
upon children by others.
4. You have time: You do not need to simulate
institutionalized school at home. While there are valid reasons to learn how to
work at a desk, sit still, raise hands, line up, ask permission to use the
restroom, not all of these protocols are required all of the time. If they
choose, parents can spend more time living a
less rigid life and simply enjoying being together.
5. You are not chained to a building: This
freedom to select what works best for your children and your family brings with
it the ability to provide rich, tailor-made experiences. The
potential for activities expands exponentially with homeschooling. Field trips
to concerts, performances, and museums, are great options to consider when
parents want to mix things up or reward their “students” for good behavior.
6. You are not alone: There are numerous
homeschool support groups that
exist across the nation. Homeschoolers frequently connect with one another
online in cooperative learning groups. Within networks that form, social
opportunities are plentiful. The level of engagement with these resources can
also be adjusted to suit the circumstances, goals, and needs of each family.
7. Research supports homeschooling success: Data reveals
that homeschooled students do well with the large variety of curricula and
methods used by parents. Regardless of parental education and income levels,
homeschoolers tend to flourish academically and socially. Homeschool
graduates also make it into high-ranking universities like Harvard.
8. It is affordable: Private schools are
expensive. Homeschooling generally costs
less, and, between online resources and the great variety of
affordable homeschooling curricula and academic support available it can be
done at a reasonable cost. While homeschooling does require substantial
parental involvement, parents can effectively balance homeschooling with employment. Furthermore,
homeschooling students become proficient and productive self-educators, which
is part of the point of education: to promote lifelong learning and adults who
can exercise independence responsibly.
9. The trickle-down effect: When parents teach children,
they also learn. In addition, when children of different ages study together,
they augment and complement each other’s unique skill set. The younger
particularly learn from the older students, which often puts younger siblings
academically ahead. An added benefit is that the older children begin
practicing teaching others as they pass along what they are learning.
Essentially, this produces a collaborative, one-room schoolhouse environment.
10. A child is not a commodity, and neither is education: The
goal of education is not to produce a “graduate.” The goal of education is
to become educated: “To
be considered educated…students should leave school with a deep understanding
of themselves and how they fit into the world and have learned…complex
problem-solving, creativity, entrepreneurship, the ability to manage
themselves, and the ability to be lifelong learners.”
Education does not come
in a package and its sole objective is not to find employment. To be educated
is a state of being and it is the bedrock of living a full, well-rounded life
and leading it well. Homeschooling provides parents with the opportunity to do
just that.
Kate Deddens has been homeschooling for over 25 years. She has
written for the CiRCE Institute, The Imaginative Conservative, and Classical
Conversations.