More parents are choosing to homeschool their children than ever before. With roughly 2.2 million homeschooled children in the United States as of 2015, one must ask what makes homeschooling such an attractive option for parents. So what is it about homeschooling that has lead 5-12% of families to adopt this controversial method of education?
Many families prefer homeschooling due to the ability to pace the curriculum according to the child’s needs and skill level, being able to take more time in subjects the student struggles with while also not having to waste extra time with subjects the child excels in. This aspect of homeschooling not only helps children who have learning disabilities, but also helps children who are of above average intelligence, both of which tend to struggle in mainstream public school systems. It has also been shown that the specific one on one care that homeschooling provides greatly benefits students. On average, homeschooled children score 15 to 30 points higher than publicly educated children on standardized academic achievement tests, including the SAT and ACT. These scores are consistent amongst all homeschooled children, regardless of parental education levels and family income levels. This leaves the question: what is it about homeschooling that leads to these results?
One answer could be the fact that homeschooling allows opportunity to build upon familial relationships and bonds, which is not only important in a students ability to learn, but also for emotional health. On this front, homeschooling also allows parents to enforce and encourage certain morals, ideals, and belief systems as well as protect children from negative influences such as drugs, alcohol, and violence. Homeschooled children also are enrolled in more extracurricular activities than publicly schooled children, and tend to score better on social development assessments. It is a widely accepted thought that a positive family life and steady emotional state is one of the most important factors when it comes to success in education.
Some say that sheltering children from the outside world hiders their ability to thrive as adults, which is a fairly reasonable assessment. How could a child grow into a fully functional adult without experiencing what some may call the most important parts of childhood and adolescence? Homeschooling has also been used commonly to hide things such as child abuse and other important issues that are caught and remedied by teachers and other school officials. Other families use homeschooling to indoctrinate children into cults or teach them harmful ideals and belief systems.
In conclusion, many parents are adopting the burden of educating their children at home, as opposed to public schools. This is due to the ability to support their children academically and emotionally, while also being able to tailor the curriculum to fit the needs of the child and the beliefs of the family. Homeschooling has been proven to have many positive effects on students socially and academically. Despite this, can we trust parents to use this unconventional method of schooling for good rather than as another tool to raise their children into clones of themselves?