Topic : 11/24 Great School Debate

I just went into a local convenience store near us the other day and had a conversation with a clerk who just graduated from the local public high school. She is enrolled in a nursing program, RN, which is going to take her three years to finish rather than the regular two.  She found out that she has to take remedial classes, not just math but others, because she didn't come out with the necessary credits for her choice of program at the college level. My homeschooled children will have what they need to go into any program they choose. I am making sure of that.

Hello,

 

My first son is flourishing and his special needs are working for him( I have four...Em 10 1/2, Frankie 8, Dan 6 1/2, Tim 4 1/2).  We have found curriculum and support in the HS community just for him.  I don't believe that the grammar schools are getting the job done.  I do believe that life skills are best taught at the grammar ages and they lay a firm foundation for the later years so that they can truly excel in all areas of their life. 

 

I myself survived and I was fortunate to have a parochial education for twelve years.  I completed my undergraduate degree and have a few years toward counseling and special education masters degrees.

 

I believe that homeschooling is perfect for everyone.  I have found curriculum that I can understand to teach and it allows me to make the most of teaching my kids how to benefit from the successful coping skills I have learned because I needed to survive not because I had someone who wanted to teach me how to use my special needs to  my  advantage!  My kids will have that help and more...there is so much good stuff ...

 

Get support and get educated.  Visit  a homeschool conference, google information, join a home school special ed yahoo group( Joyce Herzog's group is wonderful), find a local homeschool group that will allow you to learn without reinventing the wheel and afford you the support you need!

 

 

Blessings!

 

Speaking for myself, homeschoolers and unschoolers are not exempt from the law.  We are legally accountable to the board of education for what our children are doing and how they are thriving in a non-mainstream, unofficial environment.

To the previous poster as well, unschooling does not mean a child is not learning mathematics.  Many of the skills my children are seeking to develop require a working, functioning numeracy and literacy.  Numbers are worked with routinely as they are a part of a functioning life. 

The reverse is true, too!  That is why mathematics is taught in school (isn't it part of intrinsically preparing them "for life"?).  I know for me it would be difficult for me if I were taught something when I was 12 and couldn't use it until I reached 18.

Unschoolers encourage and foster literacy and numeracy, just like all parents.  The fundamental difference is the means by which such information is obtained.

     I went to public and private school and i wouldn't trade that experience for the world. i didn't always want to be there but i learned a lot. I even learned from some of the bad experiences. I learned how to act and react to people and i met one of my best friends in middle school. We bonded and became best friends because we shared some of the same experiences in school and we helped each other through those things plus we had things to talk about.

     Although i think those parents that home school and unschool really have their children's best interest at heart maybe there should be a balance. The one thing it seems the unschool parents are saying is they want their children to have freedom. Children are children and they don't know what's best for them. I am not a parent but i was once a child like everyone else and i wanted my parent to be my parent and not my friend. i have friends. My parents have my best interest at heart and they will do what's best for me even if i don't want them to do it. Don't get me wrong, i can talk to my mother and i can depend on her but she's still my parent. She made decisions for me that i may have resented but i appreciate now that i'm older.

     I applaud those parents in a sense because at least they are taking an interest in their children's well being. I just hope at some point they let their children experience traditiional schooling. That way the children will know what it's like to be in environment away from home and parents. They can learn how to behave in a social setting that's not home and maybe experience some things that will prepare them for a life in the world.

     Did any of the parents talk about how they are preparing their children for college or is that just not an option. What will happen if the children decide to go to college and they have no experience in a classroom? Like you said, what about meeting deadlines and working with other children. I had projects in high school where i had to work in a group.

Most school districts regulate homeschoolers.  When I was being homeschooled, the school district I was in required a yearly portfolio and a meeting with a registered school teacher, who would assess how and what I was learning.  I would always pass with flying colors!

Hey ya'll

i'm 15 years old, and have been homeschooled since 2nd grade. I love homeschooling! I get a great education, plus, i get to spend time with my parents that other kids don't! Sometimes I do wonder what public school is like, but who doesn't? Im glad that i do not have to worry about bully's, teachers who don't like me, trying to be accepted,etc.  Im involved with so many activities, i think my head will blow off! I am on a soccer rec team, i go to church functions, where more than half of my youth group are homeschooled teens. I babysit, go to parties, and im in a homeschool group, where i will have a senior prom and graduation. i do so much more, i cannot even begin to list it all. In all my years being homeschooled, my report cards have had a's and b's,plus  i do not have homework(unless i have a paper to write). Homeschooling is very much like school, because i do use books, i take tests, i have to write papers, and i have to study. I think homeschooling is so great, i do not feel like an outcast or anything, and i want to continue with homeschooling up to college. I already know which college I want to attend, and what I want to do with my life, and many children/teens who go to public school, do not, or not the ones i've asked. So if you're considering homeschooling, i'd say go for it! There are homeschool support groups everywhere!

The parents on your show who homeschooled or unschooled their children seemed like fairly intelligent, somewhat eductated people.  My problem with homeschooling is that many parents who choose to do this are not educated or intelligent.  This adds to the already too-high illiteracy rates we have in our country. 

 

We have a high unemployment rate in our area and many parents claim that they are homeschooling, but in reality are using it as an excuse not to have to get up and get their children out the door to school.  Even though, in our state, homeschooled children and their parents are required to meet with a licensed educator who is supposed to act as a mentor, it is very difficult to monitor this to ensure that it is actually happening.  Many children do not get the necessary reading, writing, and math skills and often fall through the cracks. 

 

I also have grave concerns about special needs children.  It is difficult enough to teach "normal" children, but what about those children who have specific learning disabilities, like dyslexia, that untrained professionals don't know how to educate or even identify. 

My children who are homeschooled in the traditional homeschool manner are hardly home doing nothing. They are very smart; in fact, they know to capitalize their "I's" a the beginning of a sentence.

 I really don't think you can assess their social skills from the short time they appeared on your television.

How would you or I have responded to a question that disarmed us, in front of a crowd of people on national television?  I am really not sure. 

I was home-schooled until high school and then I went to a private school. I am not against public schools or people who prefer public education. However, I personally feel that being home-schooled was the best thing for me and my siblings. I do not agree with the idea that all home-schooled children are lacking in social skills and will having trouble in the real world. Yes, home-schooling is not for everyone, but parents should have the option of home-schooling open to them without ridicule. I feel that my siblings and I are closer than most families because we were home-schooled. We may have had an added plus due to fact that my mother was a teacher before she was married. My parents only really considered home-schooling after my older siblings had been in school for a year or two. They made ever effort to see that we got the best education possible. We had numerous "classes" and lessons outside of the house. I feel that I was better equipped to related to child and adults of all ages. Many public school children seem to have trouble outside of their own peer group. If fact, a public school teacher told my mother that he was surprised at how much more personable we were than the kids in the public school. I realize that this is not true of all home-schooled children. Just as it is true that not all public schools are equal. Some provide a much better education and atmosphere than others. My parents chose to home-school because they felt that the schools in our area were not up to parr. They also wanted to give us a solid base in values that they felt were not being taught in the schools. Having said all that I also have to say that I do feel that after a child has shown him or herself to be a well grounded and responsible adolescent that he/she should be allowed to choose. Every child is different and has different needs. For example, when my older brother started high school he let it be know that he really didn't want to be home-schooled any more. So, my parents gave him another option. Because I was the next in line they gave me the same option. So, I graduated from a "real" high school. So, I guess I agree with the idea that the parents should decide what is best for their child. I'm sure that if Dr. Phil wanted to he could have found a 26 year old that went to a public school and hated every minute of it.