Introduction
This essay will explore whether homeschooling is a better option for parents and their children compared with classroom establishment. The essay will concentrate on homeschooling as a whole including educational perceptions and family matters arising from the debate. This topic is highly fascinating especially when the issues that arise from the debate like the teenage aspect of the debate are taken into consideration.
Homeschooling was at first considered a highly abstract idea but it is now gaining prominence. On one hand, parents are tempted by the desire of choosing a curriculum that fits the needs of their children and provides an opportunity for their children to progress faster and to explore new additional subjects. On the other hand, some parents oppose the idea since it will isolate their children from their contemporaries in elementary schools and also miss an opportunity to explore other extracurricular activities that are only practical in the traditional school environment. I think that homeschooling is the not best option for both parents and children because it requires a lot of sacrifices.
Solution
I am opposing the idea of homeschooling since it calls for a big sacrifice physically, emotionally, socially, and financially. Though there are several advantages associated with homeschooling, homeschooling can have several negative effects on both the child and the parent. These effects include; issues of time management, additional cost, limited socialization, inadequacy, lack of freedom, feeling of denial, and lack of extra curriculum activities.
Discussion
Homeschooling was only reserved for those children who suffered from a certain medical condition that hindered them from attending regular schooling. But in recent times several parents have opted for homeschooling since they consider it beneficial and a better alternative. Those arguing in favor of homeschooling credit it for its individualized manner due to the one on one interaction with the teacher which enhances learning quality.
A lot of time and commitment is required. This is because you need time to prepare for the classes, time to prepare for outside activities and field trips. This means that additional hours are needed to cater to these.
This individualized learning is also costly in terms of money, time and energy in both sides of the teacher and parent thus making its execution hard, and since individualized learning can be achieved in traditional schooling based on the teacher-student ratio this could be very expensive and this means that it might not be a great advantage. It should also be noted that school taxes to home scholars are not exempted.
The issue of flexibility and freedom regarding learning is also an argument in favor of homeschooling. This is particularly in the aspect of the curriculum and educational needs. This argument however contradicts the fact that it is the government that has the responsibility to define the school curriculum and education system. This renders homeschooling ineffective since it may not conform to the government’s policy.
Bringing to fore the notion that schooling is about acquiring knowledge which is all rounded, there are other aspects of education that are not found in homeschooling, for instance, social life and extra curriculum activities since children tend to be isolated from their peers. However, modern information and communication technology has made homeschooling a reality since learning resources can be obtained online.
The other issue is the quality of learning in homeschooling. Though it is argued that homeschooled children come out as academically excellent, this can not be qualified since they lack important parameters for accessing excellent performance like competition and universal examination which are missing in homeschooling.
Limited socialization can also be experienced due to a lack of everyday socialization skills. In some cases, a child may become shy since he or she is not used to be around other kids. However, some parents argue that they have more control over the social contacts that the child makes with other people. This is very true but as time goes by they may not be able to control them and the children may have the feeling that they are being denied their rights.
Inadequacy issues can also occur. Some parents may have problems with some subjects or some topics and therefore will struggle to teach their children the same topic. Alternatively, the parents may opt to hire skilled teachers which could however be very expensive. In isolated learning, as noted above, there are some facts and lessons which may not be learned. This can readily apply for the cases of issues that touch on social aspects such as learning of teamwork skills (Earle 33).
Lack of freedom due to a full-time commitment may be experienced by parents in homeschooling. This is because they are with the child throughout the day and the week. Some parents see this as a good opportunity to build better relationships with their children. However, everyone needs some time alone; even the child needs some time alone or time to play with others.
A homeschooling child may lack to participate fully in extra curriculum activities. This is because a home may not be equipped with extracurricular implements as much as schools. Besides, some activities like dancing, football among other activities require the participation of teamwork and thus it may not be possible in a home setting. Though some parents argue that they can pick on those activities that are suitable to be played at home, the joy of participation and success that comes with the achievement may not be the same.
In some cases, a child may view the decision of homeschooling to be unfair. The kid might not understand and they may feel that the parents are denying him or her a chance to learn with friends and other age mates and these could develop into some physiological problems (Hagenbach 27). Those in favor of homeschooling argue that they can convince their children to accept but in cases where the child fails to understand this can be a problem. In some cases, the child might agree but after some time due to negative comments or peer influence by friends and relatives they might change their minds about the issue.
Conclusion
Since education forms the cultural aspect of government that generates identity, the government should discourage all cases of homeschooling. The responsibility of the government is to ensure universal education for all and this universal and conventional education should be guarded to ensure that all children undergo the right system of education to give the country an identity. The points forwarded by the proponents of homeschooling like flexibility, excellent performance, and individualized learning should be disregarded since they are not in conformity with the government’s policy on education.
Works Cited
Earle, Chris. How to Coach Children in sport. New York, NY: Cengage Learning, 2005. Print.
Hagenbach, Sandy. Teaching Children Responsible Behavior: A Complete Toolkit. New York, NY: Prentice Hall, 2010. Print.