Socialization: Socialization & Homeschooling - The Connection & The Critics
One of the most popular words used by those who are critical of homeschool is "socialization." As in, "aren't you concerned that your child won't be able to socialize normally with other children?" They are implying, of course, that homeschool is some sort of convent or monastery where children are allowed interaction only with their parents and their siblings, with no influence from the outside world.
Anyone who has any experience with homeschool at all knows that this vision of isolation is as far from the actual facts as it can possibly be. If anything, a homeschool student's field of socialization widens considerably when taken outside of the confines of public and private schools. Children of all ages interact with each other when in homeschool. Homeschool children have the option of taking classes in the community during the school day where they will have a chance to meet seniors and older students. Adults are no longer placed in "us and them" categories. Everyone is equal; an individual and a child who are homeschooled learn to not judge people based on age, gender, or race.
How is the critic's concept of socialization measured? Is it through the standardized tests that are meant to break down each child into their common denominators and create a rating system that even the creators admit does not work? Homeschool children have access to these, if that is the case. However, classes in homeschool are not so large that the teacher really needs a standardized test in order to discern whether or not the child is learning.
Is it the violence in the schools, such as gangs, that continue to be present despite the high mortality rate through peer-pressured socialization? Perhaps socialization is judged by students who felt so ostracized by their peer communities because they listened to different music or dressed differently. Perhaps they brought shotguns to school to demonstrate their socializing abilities. Maybe the suicide rate of teens is how socialization is judged. If so, then yes, it is true: homeschool children rarely exhibit the typical socialization of gang violence, mass shootings, and suicide.
It seems strange that in the face of overcrowding, budget cuts, and violence, that anyone would be critical of a parent choosing to take the situation into his or her own hands and homeschool. Socialization? Yes, certainly the social situation is different in homeschool as opposed to public school. This, somehow, doesn't seem to be much of a problem.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mimi Rothschild is a homeschooling parent, author, children's rights advocate, and Founder and C.E.O. of Learning by Grace, Inc. She and her husband of almost 3 decades reside with their 8 children in suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Rothschild co-founded Learning By Grace, Inc. because "our current system of education has broken its promise..." Learning By Grace, Inc. delivers Internet-based multimedia education to PreK-12 children in the United States and throughout the world.
Rothschild has authored a number of books about education published by McGraw Hill and others. Her Home Education News Blog contains feature stories on alternatives in education.
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