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I am currently a community college student who attended public schools in Southern California. I was wondering why people home school their children.

It seems to me that parents who home school their children are either very religious or have very defined political views. I have two totally different examples to illustrate my point. A few year ago, I met a very religious and outright reactionary family who did not want their children tainted by the "evils of liberlism." Conversely, my freind told me about one of her co-workers who home schools her children; she is an extreme leftist. My freind's co-worker did not want her children poisoned by the "evils of conservatism." I realize both of these are extreme examples. I was hoping that some of you could share your reasons for home schooling your children.

Are your reasons religious and/or political? Or is it because you feel that public schools are failing? Do you have the time and resources necessary to home school your children. Is it difficult to make time? What about your jobs? Do you work and home school your children or are you a stay-at-home mother or father. Or maybe your children are home schooled by a relative who is brilliant! Your responses would be greatly appreciated.

I can honestly admit that I do not know of many people who home school their children where I live (Los Angeles area). I hope that I could learn from your experiences. Thanks again.

By Moneycrade (Moneycrade) on Friday, May 07, 2004 - 02:22 pm: Edit

I'm getting home schooled right now. I chose to get home schooled, not my parents. Infact I'm not really getting home schooled at all, I guess you would call it independent study? The benefit of doing it this way rather than going to public school is that I get to choose what to learn and in which time frame to do it in. I can move faster than public schools doing it this way.

By Justme2 (Justme2) on Saturday, May 08, 2004 - 07:40 am: Edit

Just a few quick thoughts: I homeschooled my two children. The real reason I started was I couldn't bear to send my baby away.

Seriously, my first was already reading and knew so much math that I thought kindergarden would be boring so I decided to homeschool, just for a year. Well, one year led to two and so on.

In what would be 9th grade, she asked to go to school but I thought, Why now? I finally relented in her junior year. What she did was "take classes" at the public high achool. She enrolled in Chem, Pysics, and Latin, things we couldn't do as well at home.

Our state has proficiency tests, but homeschoolers are exempt. When she started part time at the public school, they wanted her to take the tests and I had a heck of a time convincing them that she wasn't taking them. Standardized tests are one of my pet peeves. I don't think they prove anything.

She did VERY well in the public high school, getting A-A+'s. She's finishing up and and was accepted into two colleges, one a LAC, the other a large state university. She'll att4end the state school due to a better aid package. She will not have an "official" diploma, just one that I issue to say she completed the "proscribed" program. Neither college was concerned with that, nor did they ask for a GED. (I really though the state school would ask for it.)

Now that I'm basically done with homeschooling her, am I glad? I'd have to say yes. She's certainly adequately educated. She has a tremendous work ethic, which all of the public school teachers commented on, she's independent minded, and a truly nice person. I'm proud of her.

How would she have done in school? Probably just fine. On the other hand, I may have had difficulties with her, who'll ever know?

I'm a big fan of John Taylor Gatto, a former NYC teacher. If you read some of his papers, you'll get an idea where I'm coming from philosophically.
I did very well in school because I had a good memory and tested well. But, I lost my creativity. I parroted back what they wanted, but I never felt free to do what I wanted. I wanted my kids to not feel restricted; to think creatively.

By Morgantruce (Morgantruce) on Saturday, May 08, 2004 - 09:04 am: Edit

See John Taylor Gatto

but be sure to read THESE pages while on that web site.

By Justme2 (Justme2) on Sunday, May 09, 2004 - 02:18 pm: Edit

Morgantruce!

Thanks for the links. I have Gatto's Underground History of American Education. Took me weeks to digest.

Did you ever read Ivan Illich "Deschooling Society?" He's a priest and he wrote about the promotion of consumerism in schools.

My D goes to a school that has Channel One. For ten minutes each day the kids MUST watch a TV show produced by "Channel One" that masquerades as news or general interest programming. In reality, its commercial advertising. My D has to watch it during Physics. The teacher is sort of rebellious and he turns the volume very low so the kids can study for the 10 minutes. He'd probably get fired if they knew about it.

D is anxious to be done with the high school; her last day is May 25.

Now my son, the 13 year old, he has no interest in attending school. At first, I was going to encourage him to do what his sister did and go for high school, but now that I see that the D had no problem getting into college, meaning that they accepted her homeschool transcripts, I'm not so sure I'll push him to go unless he really wants to.

I think it may have been good for HER because she had to see for herself what the "other side" was like. My son is less concerned with that.

By Flipflops (Flipflops) on Monday, May 10, 2004 - 04:09 pm: Edit

Hello I'm Flipflops.
My mom started to home school me first because in kindergarten I was sent to the hospital a few times for getting sick. Well now I'm 14, still home schooled, but not for the same reasons.
Although my family is christian, it wasn't really to 'protect' me that my parents chose home schooling. Yes, my school work was based on christian curriculums, and that was important, but they knew it's important that I know both sides of everything, and make my own descisions.
But that isn't all there is to home schooling.
Some of my friends go to public schools, and one big complaint is that there is too much to remember at one time. With so much information, regulations, and tests, it isn't long before it all sounds the same: Uninteresting.
Now, I know I'm not an expert at this, haha, I'm 14! But despite that, I do think this is accurate to at least SOME. I know public school can be very rewarding. I've thought about going myself.
But I'm glad my first years were spent at home.
I read real books instead of textbooks, (I grew up loving it that way) like 'Jonny Tremain' and 'Augustine came to Kent'.
I have the time, energy, and curiosity to explore subjects that interest me as a career,
And, I spend allot more time with my family.
Honestly, I doubt I would like doing these things as much as if I had gone to public school.
Yeah, I know I put it quaintly. Well very, very simply, but I hope it explains some things.

By Homeskulmom (Homeskulmom) on Saturday, May 15, 2004 - 10:37 am: Edit

I wonder why people send their children to public school. Is it because they have researched all of the options and have chosen the local, neighborhood school as the best academic and social choice? Or is it because it's easy and automatic and right there?

Why do people send their children to far away boarding shcools? Or private prep schools? Are their religious and political views suspect?

Why is my choice to homeschool subject to question when other parents' choices of educational option are not?

By Flipflops (Flipflops) on Wednesday, May 19, 2004 - 06:58 pm: Edit

Yeah, what is with boarding schools? They always remind me of those sad movies with lonely kids....
But, really I think public school is questioned less (or not at all) because "geez, well everybody does it!" As simply as that may sound, Home schooling may still be regarded as a weird invention that no one dares to try. 'xept us! And if your curious, it works.

By Nemom (Nemom) on Monday, August 16, 2004 - 08:49 pm: Edit

Homeskulmom -
It should be obvious why your choice (or to be more precise, the general choice of homeschooling) is questioned here - this is a list for questions about homeschooling. On other lists and in other places, you will find discusssions about the pros and cons of other choices.
Why do people send their children to public school - sometimes because they have researched the options, sometimes because they have no other solid choice, sometimes because it's easy, sometimes because they have tried other options which have failed, sometimes because they can't go to private schools. I could go on - but the answer is - there are many answers.

Boarding schools - there's a lot going on there. I've known some adults who went to them - most loved it, although some did not. Boarding school comes largely from English roots - and existed historically because it was just not feasible in the 1800/early 1900s for the upper crust to go to local schools of good caliber and because boarding was thought to be good per se. And, if your 'brightest and best' are going to be posted to India and other colonies for years, learning to live independently is perhaps a very good thing.
As for considering those who send their kids to private schools (boarding or not) - there is plenty of negative reaction there too from various quarters.

By Elizabeth22 (Elizabeth22) on Tuesday, August 17, 2004 - 09:50 pm: Edit

My parents pulled me out of Middle School after 7th grade to homeschool me for my 8th grade year. They didn't feel that I was being sufficiently challenged, and that my intellegence was overlooked by too many teachers. I didn't like my Junior High- it was too big, the kids were too unfocused, the classes were too short, and we didn't get much done. Religion really wasn't a factor for us. It was a great choice for me to be out for a year. We had no formal schooling at all. I read what I wanted to when I wanted to, and for us it worked really well. I was motivated, and I was able to figure out what interested me and learn about things in greater depth than public school would have allowed. I played the piano, went to the beach, and spent a fair number of hours watching Little House on the Prairie. It was certainly an unorthodox way of learning, but I learned a lot from that year, and when I returned to school in 9th grade, I was at the head of the pack, academically.