Given the present situation the world is in, almost everyone has transitioned to the virtual world. Companies and businesses have shifted from the typical office-based operations to allowing work-from-home arrangements to keep their businesses going.
Schools have also adapted to the global health crisis and adopted online learning during the pandemic. When distance and online learning were implemented, a lot of homeschoolers felt good because this is something they have been doing for quite some time.
More Than Just a Trend
A parent shared that their children were homeschooled. When they decided to take this educational approach, they were met by a lot of negativity from people who refused to look at the reasons they chose to go this route.
They were accused of being bad parents and depriving their children of a lot of the things normal kids should have and experience, such as having friends, getting quality education in a reputable institution, learning how to interact with others, and all the other arguments anti-homeschool folks use.
They chose to listen to every word said and took everything bad with a grain of salt. They know these people were just concerned about our children’s welfare.
But they also gave it plenty of thought and sought a lot of people’s counsel before they made a decision.
Overall, they have found that the benefits far outnumber the disadvantages, so they pushed through with it and never regretted the decision, especially now that everyone is forced to do homeschooling in one way or another.
All of a sudden, the world looked to homeschool programs and took everything that worked in the system and made it available for everyone.
While it is true that homeschooling is not for everyone, especially parents who tend to lose their cool a lot (it takes a great amount of patience to homeschool your child), at this point in history, we all need to adapt.
Give it a try. You might find it very helpful especially given the following advantages.
Homeschool Benefits
- Homeschoolers perform better on tests
When it comes to tests, whether teacher-designed or standardized tests, research shows that homeschoolers have the capacity to outperform those who are in a traditional educational system. Homeschooled students performed 72 points higher than the national average on SATs and 22.8 points out of 36 on the ACTs where the average is 21.0.
- The children have greater freedom emotionally
Homeschooled kids don’t feel the need to fit in; therefore, taking a load of stress off their shoulders. The safe and secure environment that homeschooling provides protects them from drugs, bullying, and other social pressures one would normally get in a typical school campus.
- Very little to no homework
Because the kids are directly involved and highly engaged in the learning process, this minimizes the need for lengthy homework. One other factor that helps with the quality of education and depth of the child’s involvement is the very low teacher-student ratio which means a child is given the attention he or she needs and their special needs are well taken care of.
- They enjoy more social interaction
Contrary to what people believe, homeschooling is never a hindrance to a child’s social growth. In fact, studies show that homeschooled children are far more confident engaging in a conversation with people outside of their age group. That’s on top of their interaction with other kids from a homeschoolers’ group.
- Learning takes place at the child’s pace
Another thing that homeschooling provides for children is its personalized approach. Homeschool programs are suited for a child’s individual progress as opposed to the cookie-cutter approach educational institutions take. This allows the child to grow and progress according to his or her natural gifting, which helps build up their strengths and competencies. They are not educated to be well-rounded but instead are further sharpened to maintain their edge.
- The abundance of premium parenting time
Lastly, parents are given every opportunity to be the primary educators in their children’s lives, which is how it’s supposed to be. Homeschooling parents are heavily involved in their children’s education which is something that rarely happens with students from the traditional school set-up. Homeschooling gives parents a better understanding and more intimate knowledge of their children and how they process their thoughts. This helps strengthen the bond between parent and child which leads to a happier home.
Those who were against homeschooling before claimed that it was just a fad, a novelty, a passing phase that will never be taken seriously. Now that online education and distance learning are the new normal, the same naysayers are getting pointers from homeschool parents.
Guess this serves as a lesson to all of us to never be quick to judge and keep an open mind about things. Don’t kick it until you’ve tried it.