piseco (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} piseco) wrote, |
Sorry that I got distracted last week and hadn't answered you!
First, the "abandon ship" mentality. On the one hand, I see your point. On the other hand, if EVERYONE really did pull their kids out, then we'd all be equally motivated to provide decent, interesting, new experiences for them to share, and we'd be much closer to an ideal situation for them! Okay, I admit that won't happen because not every parent is motivated to be fully responsible for their child's education. So on an individual level... I can't justify leaving my children in a situation that is a lesser experience just to try and leave some good kids in a bad system for the system's sake. I don't think doing a minor disservice to the public schools by removing my kids is as bad than putting my kids into a mind-numbing situation for 13 years.
I also don't believe that attending a public institution really does help kids learn how to deal successfully with others. It might force them to find a way to cope with others, but there isn't actually any teaching of social skills once you're past kindergarten - and hey, maybe that got dropped in favor of NCLB too. Honestly, I think that kids who are homeschooled have a better chance to develop social skills in groups of homeschooled friends, YMCA sports, church groups, etc. When I know exactly the kinds of interactions they're dealing with and the problems they're facing, I'm in a much better position to help them, to teach them, talk with them directly and pass down to them the social skills they need. Homeschooled kids have a better chance to learn how to interact with a broader group of people (literally all ages) in actual real-life situations.
The last point is that sure, I could supplement my child's boring school hours with some interesting trips and science experiments (my parents did that for me) - but it could never be as good as actually being with him and making every day enjoyable and helping him learn new things as he becomes ready and eager to learn them.
Have you read this article by David Albert? It's very poignant for me because when I went to nerd camp I did cover a lot of math in a little time - I went through both Algebra I and Geometry in 6 weeks, and had enough time left over to do quite a bit of Trig as well. I was 12. And it's not that I'm some genius - I was motivated, the environment was exciting and engaging, and I was given a textbook and a mentor and told to work at whatever pace I felt comfortable.
So I believe the same holds true for all kids. They can learn more, better, faster, with deeper understanding, when they are in charge of deciding when to learn it. There's a popular homeschooling quote that says
Learning can only happen when a child is interested. If he's not interested it's like throwing marshmallows at his head and calling it eating.
First, the "abandon ship" mentality. On the one hand, I see your point. On the other hand, if EVERYONE really did pull their kids out, then we'd all be equally motivated to provide decent, interesting, new experiences for them to share, and we'd be much closer to an ideal situation for them! Okay, I admit that won't happen because not every parent is motivated to be fully responsible for their child's education. So on an individual level... I can't justify leaving my children in a situation that is a lesser experience just to try and leave some good kids in a bad system for the system's sake. I don't think doing a minor disservice to the public schools by removing my kids is as bad than putting my kids into a mind-numbing situation for 13 years.
I also don't believe that attending a public institution really does help kids learn how to deal successfully with others. It might force them to find a way to cope with others, but there isn't actually any teaching of social skills once you're past kindergarten - and hey, maybe that got dropped in favor of NCLB too. Honestly, I think that kids who are homeschooled have a better chance to develop social skills in groups of homeschooled friends, YMCA sports, church groups, etc. When I know exactly the kinds of interactions they're dealing with and the problems they're facing, I'm in a much better position to help them, to teach them, talk with them directly and pass down to them the social skills they need. Homeschooled kids have a better chance to learn how to interact with a broader group of people (literally all ages) in actual real-life situations.
The last point is that sure, I could supplement my child's boring school hours with some interesting trips and science experiments (my parents did that for me) - but it could never be as good as actually being with him and making every day enjoyable and helping him learn new things as he becomes ready and eager to learn them.
Have you read this article by David Albert? It's very poignant for me because when I went to nerd camp I did cover a lot of math in a little time - I went through both Algebra I and Geometry in 6 weeks, and had enough time left over to do quite a bit of Trig as well. I was 12. And it's not that I'm some genius - I was motivated, the environment was exciting and engaging, and I was given a textbook and a mentor and told to work at whatever pace I felt comfortable.
So I believe the same holds true for all kids. They can learn more, better, faster, with deeper understanding, when they are in charge of deciding when to learn it. There's a popular homeschooling quote that says
Learning can only happen when a child is interested. If he's not interested it's like throwing marshmallows at his head and calling it eating.
