Why are people so judgemental to us home schoolers.Studies show that home schoolers are actually better at socializing then public or private students,and we get better scores on SATs then public/private students.I'm 14,and have been home schooled my entire school life,and will be untill 12 grade,and I can only think of pros to homeschooling.I also have friends,both my age and adult,so,why do people not like us?
2006-09-02 12:56:35 · 21 answers · asked by thepinkbookworm 2 in Education & Reference ➔ Home Schooling
A/N:I'm not bragging about home schooling,its just that so many people think that home schoolers are locked away in the back closet all the time,and that we never make friends,or anything,and that just makes me frustrated.and people aren't mean to me directly,but they say bad things about home schooling(especially here) and I just don't get why people are so uninformed about home schooling,which is the best way to teach kids.
2006-09-03 04:55:02 · update #1
Sorry, but kids refer to Home Schoolers as being too good to be socialized in public school...being called a "preppy" or "snob" is terrible, but kids who go to public school idolize the home schooled only because they think being home schooled is sooooo much easier...it's not. It's just as hard if not harder because the person teaching you wants you to learn and not just passing you around like a hot potato.
I believe that if my older sister was home schooled she would be able to read and write and do math. Instead the public school department passed her along in her grades so they wouldn't have to deal with her. She made many notions and references to not being able to do the work like her peers but they didn't care.
Home schooled children get the most out of their teachings then the public children and it's not right. Public schools need to be more alert to the children's needs and not their own break times!
Yes I am saying that Homeschooled Children are smarter than Publicized children and it's not the children's fault it's the parents and teachers of the public school system that sucks!
2006-09-02 13:06:40 · answer #1 · answered by Amanda~Ashley 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Are you talking about people your own age or are adults actually unkind to you?
I would say that kids your own age are probably jealous.
The only problem I have ever had with homeschooling has been the safety issue, but that certainly is not a problem in your case. I would never say anything to a home schooled child or to the parents. It is the family's business. And the education can be much better.
As far as the safety: in my state there have been several cases when abusers and molesters have been homeschooling their kids, foster kids, etc. That way a teacher or other responsible person does not notice any bruises, burns, etc. on the child. Also the child has no friends and is isolated from other trusted adults. This is the ONLY problem anyone should have with homeschooling and I realize these cases are rare. It has just been in the news several times locally and it breaks my heart.
2006-09-02 13:07:05 · answer #2 · answered by Patti C 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The only problem with home schooling I can think of is that public school catches a lot of things Home schooling doesn't. There are eye check ups and in 6th grade we all had to be checked for scoliosis (turned out I had it). Kids in home school might be being abused by their parents/guardians/tutors. The last case is rare though.
But that's not a big problem. All these people are saying that home schooled children are smarter, and that's completely untrue. First of all there is no definition of what's smart and what's not. So maybe you mean higher IQs or higher scores on standardized tests, but there are a lot of things standardized tests don't cover.
Yes, there are bad public schools. There are an awful lot of them, but there are good ones too. I went to two excellent public schools. My elementary school was a Montessori school, and those are all well-regarded. (You can't have a Montessori education being home schooled) And my High school is rated number 65 (or so) in the country. That's before any other school in Ohio, public or private.
And there are things that home schoolers miss out on. Would you know how to navigate a school? Your college professors won't except that excuse for very long. And how to manage your homework along with a full school day. You don't have football games, and even if you do have home school meetings every month, you can't have the camaraderie that comes from seeing people every day. At my school there are trips to Paris and Rome and Chicago (9th graders can only go so far without parents). If you go with your family, it's not the same, and if you go with a bunch of home schoolers you rarely see it's not the same. There is a public school experience that comes from being part of a whole, from knowing so many people. There's school spirit, and everything else. I bet you have never painted your face blue and gold, or written EFFIE across your forehead. You can't feel that way about home school.
2006-09-02 15:00:09 · answer #3 · answered by millancad 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
My son does the home school thing and I deal with people all the time on this matter. People think that if they are sending their kids to public schools then that should be good enough for everyone including you. I have people tell me all the time where their kids go to school as if I home school him because I didn't know where the schools were! Some people act mean towards private school students too. You sound like you are a well adjusted kid and you will change peoples' minds about home schooling every time you meet them.
Keep up the good work!
2006-09-02 17:41:27 · answer #4 · answered by ednolb 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You should be getting higher SAT scores; after all, you had an individual tutor by your side for your entire K-12 life. In fact, you should be much, much higher, but you're not. So don't brag about that. AS for socialization, there are just too many variables involved to conclude that home schoolers are actually "better at socializing". I question this study. I want to see quantitative, experimental, documented, reproducible studies that proof this, not some "study" that gives some qualitative, value-oriented, simple answer such as "better". How could you possibly know your "better" anyway, since you have not seen socialization from the other viewpoint of public/private based schools.
I don't judge the kids that are home-schooled, but I definately question the parents motives for doing so. And I suspect, but am not sure, that religion has a lot to do with it.
You'll never know what great things you have missed, but good luck anyway.
2006-09-02 22:20:35 · answer #5 · answered by MrZ 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Home schooling is not the norm and people have a way of deriding what they don't understand. They see it as freakish. I did not know anything about home schooling and had a rather low view of it until I went to a college that had many former home schoolers. They were vastly superior students and outperformed me in a variety of ways. I went to a very expensive, well known prep school and these kids put me in my place. So now, I have a very high view of home schooling. But I do not expect the general stigma of it to go away soon. The public and private school systems have an interest in making sure people are educated with them rather than at home. But I would seriously consider home schooling my kids.
2006-09-02 13:25:28 · answer #6 · answered by Easy B 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hello mam. Well'' I think I can shed some light on this subject...you see,I was once homeschooled myself for 3 years. I am now private schooled. They are basically the same thing. The reason behind all of the ridicule and blasphemy toward homeschoolers,is that there is none. You see,the public school system stays in operation by means of students' money. The more students,the larger the profit. They are also in the state of thinking that all students learn the same way.But this is very incorrect. Individuals do not learn the same way. The public schools fear difference. They fear individuals that are different from them. They are also disturbed by the fact that homeschoolers are not paying the public school system money,because they are'nt registered with them. These are some of the reasons why homeschoolers are receiving a judgmentally formed label. I've went through all of this,I know how angry and emotionally violated homeschoolers feel. Don't give in to it. Stand strong in your faith,and your individuality...
P.S....People fear what they do not understand....
2006-09-02 17:31:12 · answer #7 · answered by Smooth Operator 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Well... the reality for us is that people are not mean. Nobody that knows us ever treats us badly. And for that matter neither do strangers. In person there has never been a problem.
The only mean things I have ever heard about home-schooling have been on this Yahoo! Answers forum.
I'm thinking that some of the antagonism that is built up in this forum is because of the impersonal aspect of writing to strangers. It is easy for home-school "defenders" to sound puffed-up and arrogant when in fact most are only trying to support our choice of education.
When one writes about getting better scores, being better at socializing, etc.... It comes across as bragging and nobody likes to hear bragging. Besides, NOT all home schoolers get better scores or are good at socializing. Averages mean that some are more and some are less. It's really no different than the general population --- hmmmmm. ... actually we are ALL a part of the general population.
Remember: Your friends like you. People your age that KNOW you like you. And adults that KNOW you like you. It is nigh unto impossible to cause a stranger to like you whether or not he/she knows you.
Instead of arguing the cause of homeschooling it might be better to just state the facts about it and move on.
To even say; "I have lots of friends" will not change the mind of someone that cannot see your friends and it may sound like......."nenner nenner nenner... I have more than you -ooh.!"
Home schoolers are not a sub-culture. We are not victims. Nor are we better than anyone else. We are normal people that have a different method of education than some of our neighbors. It's okay for them to choose the education they want and it should be okay for us to make our choice too.
My favorite neighbors have often been the public school teachers! They love us and treat us well. We love them too.
Some of our favorite friends are in public school. They are all nice to us and we like them a lot.
Home schooling shouldn't divide friends. I don't think it does.
2006-09-02 14:16:26 · answer #8 · answered by Barb 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
*APPLAUSE*
I was homeschooled from 4th to 12th grade. I understand totally where you're coming from. This is probably my top pet peeve, stereotyping of homeschoolers. Every time they found out I was homeschooled they would ask me next "Well, do you have ANY friends?" Makes you a little ticked off after awhile.
To answer your question, I think people just have to question and put down the things they don't understand. If they don't know about it, it must be shady, right? If there is one thing homeschooling taught me (which it taught me a lot) it's that you shouldn't categorize people. It still makes me mad when people do this. I graduated last year so thankfully I don't have to deal with repeating the same speech over and over again ("I was homeschooled, yes I had friends, yes I had a good education, yada yada...") until they ask me where I went to high school.
Good luck. I hope you've opened some minds with this question. It definitely needed to be asked and I gave it a thumbs-up rating.
And don't listen to the person who told you you were a bigoted Christian. She is a perfect example of what she's speaking against!
Where do people get these ideas?!!!
2006-09-02 16:31:57 · answer #9 · answered by Wild Cherry 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋
I think that people who are mean to home schoolers are jealous of them, because they have to get up early and go to school when they would much rather stay home. Seriously, I don't think there are too many people open enough to except the fact that there are different ways of gaining an education - the traditional is not always best for everyone!
2006-09-02 13:05:19 · answer #10 · answered by kelee 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋