Why is there such an emphasis put against homeschooling because of lack of sports teams, cheerleading, etc.?

Question

I grew up in a small town in the northern boonies where we had very little in terms of sports teams, certainly no football team, no tennis teams or anything like that. There were only 2 high schools and the nearest high school outside of town was an 8-hour drive. We had cheerleaders for the hockey team (yes, believe it or not) and that was it. There wasn't much in terms of clubs and most people didn't participate in any of this. I certainly didn't.

There are tons of people who grew up and are currently growing up in similar situations. If the supposed lack of teams and clubs is a valid reason to say that people shouldn't homeschool, then logic would dictate that nobody should live in a small town, especially not in the boonies, nor should they live in any city around the world where these things might not be available.

Are those putting down homeschoolers because of the lack of team sports also willing to put down those who choose to live in places where there are no team sports?

mand, you've missed the point.

Look through the answers--there are people who's only negative comments about homeschooling are that your kid can't be on sports teams and such. As I said, if that's the case, then nobody should grow up in a small town. Especially not out in the boonies. Nobody should go to any school that does not have a football team. And so on.

mike c, go back to the last part of my question. If you are going to criticize homeschooling for the supposed lack of choices and opportunities (I say supposed because I know homeschooled kids who are in national level competitive sports), then you have to also criticize parents who choose to live in small towns or out in the boonies where those choices don't exist. The only kids I knew growing up who made it to high level sports competitions were swimmers--and that had nothing to do with school.

mike c, parents are not taking choices away, at least not at an age where kids are actually developmentally ready to make the bigger choices. The parents I know give their teen kids, and some even younger, the choice to homeschool or not. Sure, there are some parents who are horribly limiting and protective. But none of the homeschoolers I know are like that. I've come to know more and more jr. high and high school homeschooled students over the past 5 years and they ALL have the choice to be at home or in school. (Ok, except for one prissy girl who had been pulled out of school in jr. high and was, a year later, still embarrassed to have others know she was homeschooled--even if those around her were homeschooled; I applaud that mother for pulling her daughter out and hope she'll succeed in changing the girl's outlook.)

Answer 1

I agree with your point, but that's the problem. Those that argue AGAINST homeschooling, do not do the research to back up their standpoint, and that is ignorant. Someone on here said that they sit in a classroom and aren't distracted?! Was my school the only one in the world who's students passed notes back and forth when the teacher's backs were turned, were obsessed with who was dating who, who dumped who, what was going on that weekend... instead of paying attention in class? For the record, when you're working with your child one on one, you don't NEED six hours of school a day. 2-3 is adequate enough. How can you get distracted with only 2-3 hours of school a day? Even if you're having a sick day you can manage to work 2-3 hours, no problem. Do the research before you talk. I never participated in school sports, thought they were retarded. I didn't like team activities, because unless you're really good at it, you get harassed by the ones who do... they're the ones with the attitudes. And, imagine that... I never participated in sports, never went to dances,etc. where all the drama was, yet I was able to be successful in every job I had and be a team player. Hmmm, maybe maturity has more to do with being a team player than being on a sports team. Stupid analogy for a teacher, you think you'd come up with something better than that. If my children decide they want to compete, there are plenty of city sports, karate classes, dance classes, all that compete and often go to other areas to do it, competing nationally. Also, some schools work with homeschoolers instead of against them and allow the students to go to school just for p.e. and sports. There are more opportunities when you're homeschooled than in a public school. Yes, I went to a 'normal' school growing up, and that's what made me decide on homeschooling. If 'normal' means backstabbing each other, lying, stealing, cheating, being self-centered, slacking off responsibility, and being constantly in a popularity contest, I don't want anything to do with it, and I certainly don't want my kids being 'normal' in that respect. Because that is not a representation of real life when they graduate. You act like that on a job and you won't have a job anymore. School is nothing like the work force. We all get to pick what jobs we do, where we work, IF we work. You don't get those options in school, you're stuck. At home, as long as the kids get the work done it really doesn't matter what hours they're doing it. If they have a bad day (my child is autistic, bad days happen and it's pointless to work on them), nobody is going to give him a bad mark because they're mad that they didn't get paid for him to be there, he simply picks it up the next day. There's much more choices for homeschooled kids then public, or even private. Do the research or don't bother to answer the questions.

Answer 2

True, it's not necessarily required, but you should also look into your state laws. In our state homeschoolers are allowed to play sports and cheerleading along with all the public school kids, so they have all the same opportunities as public school kids to be good at sports or whatever. For example right now, the starting quarterback at FSU is a former homeschooler and the substitute quarterback at University of Florida is another former homeschooler. They played in public high school and now in college.

Of course, nowadays there are so many homeschoolers also that there are also separate sports for homeschoolers. We live in a small town, but even so they have a homeschool soccer league and homeschool tennis every week. So we can choose to have sports with public school and/or homeschooled kids. I imagine in large towns there are dozens of sports to choose from. There are also YMCA and city league sports and the private companies (Warner Sports and others of course). We have a huge local gymnastics and swimming facility that offers lessons almost 24/7. Sports are huge now, and if you are interested, it is definitely possible to get your children involved!

Answer 3

I believe that people who are against homeschooling are mostly against it because they believe that homeschooled kids aren't getting a complete education. At home, kids are distracted by their toys, TV, food, etc. They may have a hard time paying attention during their studies and may end up taking more 'breaks' in between tutoring if their tutor or parents are lenient.
At school, kids are forced to sit in class and pay attention, because there are no distractions or anything else to do. If they don't pay attention, they may get punished or embarassed in front of the class, whereas parents may not think it necessary to punish their kids for not paying attention. Of course, some parents or hired tutors are even more strict than a typical teacher, but a lot of parents homeschool kids without any previous educational experience.
Also, most parents believe that kids, especially in their earlier years, need to be in school so they can learn social skills, learn to interact with peers, and make friends. I know that when I was young, 99% of my friends were people I'd met in a class or school program. Many homeschooled kids seem secluded to their family and a few local children, unless they join some sort of club.

I've never heard anybody against homeschooling who complained about the need for teams or sports.

Answer 4

They use those things as illustrations of the lack of socialization with others the same age. Its not so much what they do as having the opportunity to do them. If they are interested in those things, of course, that is a consideration.

Here some only homeschool through 8th grade (oh, here is Kansas). Some have made homeschool coops where they do actually have intramural sports.

As far as socialization, if your church has a strong youth group that can certainly mitigate some of the disadvantages of not being around peers their age.

Answer 5

Its no secret I have a very low opinion of home schooling. My opinion is formed on my experiences teaching both regular school kids and home schoolers , in post secondary technical school.
Team sports are nice, students learn to interact on a team, how to win and lose as a group. Teams give people an identity
Certainly, lots of student never participate in team sports,and that is fine
One of the many things about HS that seems very wrong to me is that the parents take away so many decisions away from their child/student
By being HS, the kid cannot choose to be part of a basketball team or football team that competes in the most competitive forum (I am aware there are YMCA basketball leagues, but that's not the same level of competition or attention)
It is GREAT that a HS student gets all the attention but that's not at all like the attention they get at university or in most careers
I will admit I am judging the situation from my own standards. I went to a regular school. To me, that is normal. I cannot conceive Home Schooling could begin to approach my experiences (good, bad, or otherwise) that I had in school. Even though I did not take Home Ec, Auto Shop, Music Theory, Drama, Art, German, or ROTC, I was free to associate with people, very much like me, who did. I could see they were as normal as I was.
Well, since you added 2 comments. . The HS students that were in my classes performed very poorly in teams. They were over controlling leaders, they were over critical of themselves and their team members when they were the leader,.they were frustrated as team members, they would make their asssigned contribution and stop and wait for directions, they did not voluntarily help their other team members achieve the shared goal. This is a generality and ancedotal and limited to my personal interactions so its not a criticism of your kid. This is not unique to HS students, I see this in students who are only children also. Oddly enough, when ever I found a student who was a good leader, they were almost always the oldest of their siblings. I don't know if the HS kids had a superioirity complex or they could not grasp the idea of TEAM success but they seemed to have a hard time knowing their role.
Kids are very different people in front of their parents and when their parents are gone, they do behave differently. Listening to a parent who is a the teacher is different than listening to a stranger who is the teacher.

Answer 6

teams sport are a joke,I play in high school so I got a chance to play,but now daddy with the money,get their kid to play,I work at a church that once a month the homeschooler would met,thy nice kids,Their was one that graduate with honers At Ohio State,there nothing wrong with home school

Answer 7

Golly gee willakers, once again, I guess we have a situation where a homeschool parent has no idea what they are doing, nor what they are talking about nor how to look at life objectively. LOL!!!!!!
I appreciate your question, but honestly, those that seriously need to be answering it are not missing the point, they are choosing to ignore it.
That has been called by some as being dumb on purpose. (disclaimer, I'm not calling anyone dumb here)
Legitimate argument.
I, too, grew up in the country, and we had absolutely nothing.
I am not going to address the "socialization card"
It has been discussed to death.
But, in the state I live in, we have homeschool sports leagues. They compete against private schools, and are recognized by the NCAA as qualifying for sports scholarships just like publicschool kids.
So, our kids can learn,
our kids can go to college
our kids can socialize
our kids can play sports
our kids can earn scholarships, both academic and sport (not to mention every other type of scholarship)
our kids can get real jobs
our kids can thrive in the world.
So, what's the problem?
Why do people still criticize?
why do people still think it is their business?
Why do people still refuse to look at the facts?
Why do people choose to be dumb on purpose concerning home education?

Answer 8

Way to go glurpy! I'm so glad someone finally said something!
Home schoolers don't need school sports, I know home schoolers that are involved in sports, that take place at community centers!

Answer 9

You've missed the point.
Its not the lack of sports teams, its the lack of social skills learned by socializing with other children of the same age group.
Homeschooling can work great, if the child is in other activities where he or she socializes with other children on a regular basis.