What is your view on homeschoolers?

Question

Mind you, I'm talking about homeschoolers, not homeschooling.

Answer 1

I am a homeschooler, and have many, many friends that are homeschoolers as well. I would say the average homeschooler, based on all the homeschoolers I know combined, have many or all of these traits for the most part; very intelligent, hard working, great self discipline, drive to learn and excel, creative, clean languaged, not flirty, but comfortable having friends with both genders. Not into the whole boyfriend-girlfriend thing at thirteen. Healthy, happy, dresses modestly.

NOT anti social. Well, a few are, but no more than there are in public schools.

Homeschoolers get a great education, and they are not socially deprived! I'm a homeschooler, and have about twenty great friends and acquaintances I could name right off the bat right now if I was asked to do so! If we were extremly socially deprived somehow, according to the stereo-type people stick on our backs, how would've we ever managed o meet each other and become such good friends?

Answer 2

I have always hs'ed my kids, who are in grades 7 and 8 now. We used to live in a place where there was a large hs group, and had lots of activities there. We moved a few years ago to a place with no organized hs activities. We still do a lot, but most of the kids we are involved with are public school kids.

This has really reinforced our decision to hs. The other junior high kids we know can BARELY read. I'd say they read on maybe a first or second semester second grade level. They know math facts but cannot apply them to real-life situations. Their knowledge of science is poor, and their knowledge of history is nearly non-existent. They cannot reason. They cannot assimilate new material. In short, they have not gotten a good education to this point, and it is unlikely they will be able to catch up before graduation.

So let's talk social skills, since that seems to be the Big Deal with homeschooling on this forum. There is one boy we know who can behave appropriately when the situation demands it, but the rest do not know how to act. They do not realize what is appropriate behavior, or if they do, they have not developed the inner discipline to police their own behavior. They do not deal well with teasing and bullying. And as for the value of group learning being that you get such wonderful ideas from peers - these kids are conformists - they are not able to think creatively enough to add ANYTHING to discussions.

Well, I could go on an on but won't. You get the idea.

Answer 3

I myself am a lifelong homeschooler, and I know a large number of other homeschoolers through various organizations. I have heard a lot of arguments over the years about why homeschoolers are inferior to public schoolers. I do not believe this to be true for the following reasons.

First, homeschoolers are not socially deprived. Most of the homeschoolers I know (me included) participate in a large number of activities. These activities range from speech club to horseback riding, triathlon to Governor's Program on Abstinence, value debate to paintball. We most definitely have contact with the outside world, and many of us have acquaintances in public schools as well.

Second, we are not all geeks and nerds. I personally know the girl that posted this question, and she's one of the coolest people I've ever known. ;) And there are many, many others that I've known over the years that give a very good impression.

Thirdly, I believe that homeschoolers are educated better than many people would believe. It has been statistically proven that homeschoolers do better than public schoolers on standardized tests. I have had contact with homeschoolers throughout the country, and the vast majority of them are above average intelligence. The number of homeschoolers going to the National Spelling Bee (one of the most well-known academic competitions in America) is rising. All of these testify to the fact that homeschooling does present a very good learning environment and produces well-educated young people.

All in all, it is my opinion that homeschoolers are generally well-rounded students.

Answer 4

I like nearly all the homeschoolers I know. They're intelligent, can hold a conversation about more than American Idol or their clothes, and are very friendly, helpful and outgoing.

It helps that I actually KNOW homeschoolers instead of running off of stereotypes that have been placed by crappy TV shows in an attempt to mock and humiliate yet another group outside the social norm.

It also helps that I know more than ONE homeschooler, and don't base my judgement on a single example (or none at all) of homeschoolers. There is this one family...i cannot stand. They were in my son's scout group, and it was all about being better than everyone else.

But like someone pointed out, saying 'view on homeschoolers' is like saying 'view on public schoolers'. There are enough that you cannot generalize your viewpoint based on any type of family. You can't say all public schoolers are stupid, you can't say they are all smart. You cannot say that all homeschoolers are unsocialized. I know enough to prove your theory wrong. You can't even say that MOST are unsocialized, because at that point you'd have to know at least 750,000 (half of all homeschoolers) and to know them well enough to proclaim them unsocial. Anything else is poor logic, and logic is yet another victim to the social education system...

Answer 5

Well, I'd be willing to bet that most home schoolers would be able to spell the word "experience", for starters.

I don't know all home schoolers, so I can't really make a blanket statement about them. The ones I do know are bright, ahead of their peers academically, interested in learning and interesting to talk to, and stand up to peer pressure admirably. My cousin's boy, for example, befriended an outcast kid and defended him from being picked on by kids bigger than himself.

edit: Skullery, that's not necessarily so. I'm a secular, atheist homeschooler. There are many compelling reasons for homeschooling that transcend religious differences.

Answer 6

Homeschoolers, public schoolers, private schoolers.......they really don't have a choice...your parents are basically choosing for you....

But my family like was typically homeschooling....I have never seen my siblings be more smarter, educated, outgoing, and friendly in my life....there are just far more issues that you are more likely to face in a big school with lots of different kids is proness.

I think that whether kids are homeschooled, public schooled, private schooled, or train schooled.....it depends on how you recieve your education and what you are willing to do to be the best you can be...

Answer 7

I think that there is a stereotype to homeschoolers. I don't agree that all homeschoolers fall into this stereotype but I do believe that there is one out there. I think they are thought to be unsocialized (so far from the truth with most), unfashionable (I have to admit that some are) and very intelligent (again some are but I know of several that are "average joes").

Answer 8

Homeschooling is not bad. It has the advantage of making sure you are involved with your children's education. So many people cite that the child is missing out on socialization. I say poppycock. There is no reason that a child cannot get as good an education as they would at school.
If the child and parent are able to correctly get through the curriculum they should be able to enjoy the benefits.
Good in good out. Junk in junk out.
GOOD LUCK!!!
www.tagurit.net

Answer 9

That's like asking, "What's your view on Canadians?" "What's your view on nurses?" "What's your view of blacks?" To have a single view of homeschoolers is to be sticking to some stereotype or prejudice.

Homeschoolers are a varied bunch, from the geeky to the 'normal' to the eccentric, from the very social to the very introverted, from the very religious to the non-religious, from extreme unschooling to rigourously academic...

ADDED:
Just from seeing some of the answers already, I feel like asking, "What's your view of non-homeschoolers?" Some of these people haven't a clue what homeschooling is about. "Homeschoolers are afraid to step out into the real world"? Give me a break. "Children are very unsocial." Whatever. You go tell that to the various parents I see at least once a week whose kids are busy playing with other kids or doing things with the adults present. The unsocial ones at these activities are the ones who were in public school!! (No joke.)

Answer 10

I think it should be regulated and that they should be qualified (maybe tested to see if their educated enough to be teaching their children) and checked in on (to make sure they are doing their job, it is a responsibility, if the homeschooler fails so does the child teachers are held accountable and so should homeschoolers), I think it should be mandatory to have the homeschoolers agree to a certain amount of time with the child in social situations (rec centers, play dates etc)