September 15, 2003
Home is no place for school?
I ran across a letter in USA Today last week titled, "Home is no place for school." The title interested me, as you can imagine.
The author of the letter, Dennis L. Evans, makes some very valid points. While I don't agree with all of them, I did find some to be quite accurate. For instance, he says "The popularity of home schooling...is attracting growing attention from the media." Okay. I can agree with that.
He also said "Good teaching is a complex act that involves more than simply loving children." Sure. I'll agree with that as well.
Additionally, he said, "Research on student achievement overwhelmingly supports the "common-sense" logic that the most important factor affecting student learning is teacher competency." With this statement he is bordering on extremism, but okay, I'll bite. Although I think it would be more accurate to say "one of the most important factors...is teacher competency."
Let's see. What else is there in his article I could support? Hmmm. I think that's it. The rest of his article constitutes a serious deficiency of facts concerning both home schooling as well as institutional schooling.
Mr. Evans suffers from several assumptions:
He seems to be under the assumption that home school teachers/parents believe that merely loving a child is education enough. Although a positive, loving environment where everyone gives and receives respect is most conducive to learning, there is much more that goes on in a home school. Likewise, the level of respect among peers and toward those in authority is generally seriously deficient in public schools.
He also seems to be assuming that home school parents are incapable of teaching higher level courses, and as such, are not giving their children an adequate education. Of all the home school parents I know, not one would sacrifice their children's education because they were not equipped or were ill-equipped to teach a particular topic. As a result, there are many home school co-op groups that share in the teaching of these higher-level courses. Likewise, there are always resources available that are more than adequate for teaching what parents are unable to facilitate. All the home school parents I know want the very best education for their children, and they are willing to make the commitment and the sacrifices necessary to reach that end. Public school teachers, on the other hand, have their "hands tied" in so many ways, even when it comes to ensuring each student they pass to the next grade level has adequately mastered the required skills.
Mr. Evans also seems to believe that home school parents isolate their children, hiding them under proverbial rocks, far away from outside social interaction. Nothing could be further from the truth! We, as home school parents, encourage our children to be involved in various outside activities in which they are placed in social situations both with other children their ages and with people of all ages. A partial list of our favorite social activities include, but are not limited to: piano lessons, Tang Soo Do (martial arts) lessons, ballet, tap and jazz lessons, children's choir, children's drama, youth group activities at church, hands-on ministry opportunities (like taking Valentines to a local nursing home and taking gifts to the children in state custody), not to mention normal church activities, and activities with other home school families. As a result, our children are well-rounded individuals who are capable of carrying on intelligent conversations with people of all ages and walks of life.
Likewise, Mr. Evans seems to view public or institutional education in an equally unrealistic manner. He states, very naively, that "Schools, particularly public schools, are the one place where 'all the children of all of the people come together.'" He continues, asking the question: "Can there be anything more important to each child and thus to our democratic society than to develop virtues and values such as respect for others, the ability to communicate and collaborate and an openness to diversity and new ideas?" I would ask Mr. Evans if he has been in a public school in the past 20 years? It seems to me the virtues and values that are learned in most public schools are, among other things, learning which kids are dangerous and how to stay away from them; learning, as a sixth grader, they are of less value simply because there are two grades of students above them in middle school; learning about all the cliques and knowing their place (or social standing) in relation to these cliques, etc. Likewise, many public schools (at the encouragement of the NEA) have taken upon themselves the responsibility of teaching children moral issues such as the acceptability of homosexuality as a lifestyle (via books like "It's Perfectly Normal" by Robie Harris), while also teaching them that a fetus is a blob of tissue, that abortion is an acceptable method of birth control, or that condoms and birth control pills are effective means of birth control and can be readily obtained without their parents' knowledge or consent. This practice likewise teaches children not only to disregard their parents' authority, beliefs, and morals, but how to bypass them. Meanwhile, many students are graduating public high schools without knowing how to think for themselves, and reports show that an alarming number are illiterate!
Another question for Mr. Evans might be, "When in life are we ever segregated with others of our same age except in institutional schools?" Further, isn't the only reason children in public schools are segregated by age because that is what is easiest for the school? Were it truly an effective institution, children would be placed in classes according to their academic level not their birthdate.
And finally, if memory serves me well, in an institutional school it is the teacher that teaches the lesson and assigns the homework, but isn't it the parent who then assists the student with that same homework at the end of the day? I seem to remember plenty of times when my parents did just that--even once I got into the high school years!
I would invite Mr. Evans to investigate more thoroughly that which he condemns. I would invite him to attend the next National Spelling Bee, which has been won several years by home schooled children. I would invite him to observe home schooled children both within their families and within social situations.
I have to admit it has been my experience that home schooled children do indeed stand out when mixed with students who are institutionally schooled. Home schooled children are the ones who are recognized as being well behaved, polite, respectful, and pleasant to have around. They are generally well liked by their peers, make friendships easily, and are appreciated by other adults. Further, home schooled students have, over the years, tested higher on standardized tests than their peers from public schools.
The truth of the matter is that no school is perfect! Whether an institutional school or a home school, whether the class has twenty students or two, there will be problems and draw-backs. However, it has been my experience that our students do better both academically and socially as a result of being schooled at home.
Another significant difference between Mr. Evans and myself is that while I would never tell someone else in what school environment they should place their children, he would not hesitate to do so. It is this behavior, perhaps, that disturbs me the most: when one person--an educated one at that!--determines what is best for my children; children he has never met, much less assessed.
The proof, as they say, is in the pudding, and I'm afraid Mr. Evans has proven the point that institutional education is sorely lacking. Not only is he a product of it, but he is also apparently in the business of perpetuating it. Too bad he didn't do his homework!
Posted by at September 15, 2003 02:05 PM
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Comments
Good Morning! I found your site while doing a Google for "teaching older children KONOS"; instead I have found your blogs and already mailed several friends the link.
WONDERFUL!! I really enjoy reading what you have written, what a pleasure. And, Thank you for making it available on the web!
I had my 13-yo son read your son's bit on jr. high; it encouraged him too.
Thank you!
Do you ever come out to San Diego? We have a great Zoo and I am a good tourguide!
In His Service,
Caryl
Homeschooling 9 years, mostly with KONOS, 2 children 13 and 9. Boy and girl.
Posted by: Caryl Lipnick | October 22, 2003 12:29 PM
Hi Caryl, thanks so much for your comment! I'm glad you are enjoying our site.
We were in the San Diego area a few years ago, and yes, we did visit your awesome zoo!
I love KONOS, though I'm not using it as much this year. The thing about it is that once you've used it for an extended period of time, you get into that mindset and it spills over into whatever curriculum you use. And I just don't think you can go wrong using a "hands-on" approach when it comes to learning. :-)
Thanks again for visiting HSU, and for passing our URL on to others.
Blessings in Him,
Mary Comm
Posted by: Mary Comm | October 22, 2003 10:56 PM