|
If you're new here, you can subscribe to our RSS feed, receive e-mails and/or sign up to receive our FREE monthly newsletter, The Good Ship Mom&Pop . Welcome aboard - thanks for visiting! |
Homeschooling Pictograph; Somewhat Accurate
From Parent at the Helm's new newsletter, "The Good Ship Mom and Pop."
Found this interesting pictograph on a site that some of you might not wanted to visit (the pictograph was introduced with “we all know how lame homeschooling is”) so I took them up on their offer to place it on my own homeschooling blog.
What do you think? Good, bad, shabby, excellent? I’d love to hear what our homeschooling friends have to say about it – please share your thoughts in the comment area. Thank you for being here. I know there are lots of blogs to read, and appreciate your time and support.
Link to this page
Well, just to pick a few things, I actually chuckled aloud at schools having "more resources" and "a richer curriculum." Um, no. Even a family that only uses the computer at the library probably will end up with more computer time than many students do in many schools – and I was just reading an article the other day about the shortage of lab space and materials at schools. If I want, say, a biology lab, we can walk to the river and study crayfish, hands-on, and bring back water samples. If I want something more traditional, as in to follow a scope and sequence, I can order any materials I need very reasonably. Or, as we did for middle school chemistry last year, I can share resources used at our homeschool co-op. As for curriculum – the homeschoolers I know have "the world as our classroom" and a curriculum to match. Books, videos, field trips, library resources, museums, volunteer opportunities, science exploration, fine arts and performing arts, agriculture and life skills – it just goes on and on.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts here, Jeanne. I was pretty happy with it until I got to that part. Now, here's what I'm wondering: whoever put it together has an overall respectable understanding of homeschooling, yet still put the check marks on school's side for resources and curriculum. Are we – maybe – to the point where those are the last myths that need to be overcome? Actually, answering the question myself (doesn't everybody? [g]), I think there are many who still totally believe the whole socialization myth. Your kids are lucky to have you as mom, Ms. Jeanne! Best to all, Linda
GAWR!!! So many false assumptions! I guess I will break my frustration down into words:
"School at home has been going on for as long as humans existed" Wrong- learning at home has been going on. Schooling is fairly recent. Especially what we think of in terms of compulsory 'for the masses' schooling.
Also- the idea that homeschooling had to be 'legalized' is wrong. It has always been legal- http://www.nheld.com/20060508_article.htm
"More and more colleges admit homeschooling students." They weren't before? There may have been some resistance, but more colleges are accepting homeschool students because there are more of them!
And how is the curriculum poorer a result of the parent's skills or education? Wouldn't an uneducated parent seek out the best curriculum to make up for their lack of expertise? I didn't understand that point at all. We have a wider range of choice in curriculum and resources. The internet- it costs like $30 a month on the low end. Even if you don't have a computer- the library is free and will let you use their internet. There- problem solved.
;0)
Goblinroughrider, maybe you should come back when you're able to tell us how you really feel. [bwg] Very valid points, all. Was there anything about the graph that you felt the creator did a good job with? Just very curious. Many thanks for writing, Linda
I didn't realize I was signed in under my husband's account!
I wasn't writing to the ghostrider? Dang. 🙂
I think it was all fine until we got down to the curriculum and resources. I find that part was not researched well. I think both of those should have been checked on the homeschool side. But that is just mho.
Hi, Dianna, I've been thinking that since I read it. I wonder if they don't understand what homeschooling REALLY is. If thinking it's "school at home," they could come to the conclusion that with more funds at their disposal, schools would have more access. But that's thinking with 'school mind" instead of "education mind!" Thanks so much for reading and commenting!
Not too bad but I also took issue with the two negative marks at the bottom of the chart.
You got on, Colleen, terrific! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts – and have a GREAT weekend!
We know there actually aren't as many reliable figures on homeschoolers as this chart portrays. Many of the studies out there giving hard numbers have been funded by various institutes with political agendas to prove or disprove, often asserting that the test results of a small select sample of homeschoolers represent homeschoolers overall. And really, that's one of the delights of homeschooling. Tests and numbers can't encompass the wonderful range of all that our kids do and care about, let alone quantify much about homeschooling families.
If I had to comment with delight on one number, it would be the racial makeup of homeschooling families. It's often portrayed as very white. This chart notes "the majority of homeschoolers are white" with 77% white and 23% minorities. That's actually great news. It's pretty dang close to the overall racial population of the U.S. which is around 80% white. Yay homeschoolers!
Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts, Ms. Laura! I agree – yay, homeschoolers! As Mark Hegener says, "Anywhere you put your finger into the American pie you're going to poke a homeschooler in the eye," or something like that. LOL!
Nice graphic, but I agree with the other comments here. Shared it with our Home Education Magazine Facebook readers.
Many thanks, Helen! I'm very interested in getting as much homeschooler feedback as I can. Hope you're having a nice day!
Do they site resources for their numbers? I looked but did not see any. I also have an issue with claiming that homeschoolers "test" better than school kids in different subjects as most of the studies I know seem mostly to compare apples with oranges. Not to mention I have an issue with testing as a way of judging learning no matter what the setting.
This is a very good presentation with the exception of two points- fewer resources and poorer curriculum. As a graduated homeschooler and now a homeschooling parent I have access to far more material than is found in the average classroom. My home is well stocked in a wide variety of books on many topics. I also have access to the world wide web, two local libraries and community education classes if we choose to use them. For example we live in a rural location we have a large area within walking distance to study the natural sciences as the occur. This is something most classroom educated children can only partake in during a few one day field trips. I have taken weeks and used the outdoors as my science "class'. Poorer curriculum seems to be based on assumptions. What qualifies some one to teach on a chosen topic? The ability to sit through a university class learning group management perhaps? Or is it a deeper concept obtained by working with the natural desire of children to ask questions and then showing them that the world is full of the answers that they seek? Anyone can open a book and speak upon the contents. Feeding the drive to know with real meaningful answers is the heart of most homeschooling curriculums and methods.
Very well said, Colleen, thank you. They were interesting checks for them to place on "school" side…sometimes I wonder if they had to put SOMETHING over there. [g]