Are you considering the homeschooling option for your children and want to know all the pros and cons before making your decision?
Homeschooling is an alternative educational option where parents decide to educate their children at home instead of sending them to a traditional public or private school.
There are various reasons parents choose to homeschool their children; dissatisfaction with the available educational options in schools, and a different philosophy on education.
Homeschooling Facts
Before delving into the pros and cons of homeschooling, you should first know a few facts.
- Research shows that homeschooled children are doing well, above average in self-esteem, emotional and psychological development, and family cohesion.
- Homeschooled children tend to perform better on standardized tests.
- Reports from National Household Education Surveys (NCES) show that approximately two million United States students are homeschooled.
- Homeschooling is legal in all 50 states in the U.S and several foreign countries.
- Homeschooling may be the fastest-growing form of education in the United States.
Pros and Cons of Home Schooling
Homeschooling your child creates an avenue of learning opportunities that are not available in several schools’ curriculum. As a parent, you only want what is best for your children.
Therefore, it is vital to weigh both the pros and cons of homeschooling to ensure you are making an informed decision.
Below are all the pros and cons that will extensively help in your decision on if you should start or continue your homeschooling journey.
Pros of Home Schooling
No Peer Pressure and Bullying
Negative social situations in school, such as bullying and peer pressure, which are among the leading causes of poor academic performance and low self-esteem in children, can be avoided through homeschooling.
Children are generally at less risk for violence, exposure to drugs, and several other things that can are common in schools.
Educational Freedom
By homeschooling your children, you get the opportunity to choose the knowledge you want your children to learn. You can engage your kids on the skills and activities that align with your goals and values.
Also, if your child is struggling to grasp a specific subject, you have the freedom to work with your child until they fully understand the concept.
Homeschooling allows your child to move more quickly through assignments and subjects, they understand and spend more time on challenging topics.
Parents Maintain Their Influence
Through homeschooling, you can remove the outside influence from friends and teachers. You get to influence your child’s most important values, like ethics and religion, kindness, and future educational and career choices. The more time you spend with your children, the more influence you will have on them.
Children Can Grow at Their Pace
One of the advantages of homeschooling is that students can progress according to their temperament and timetable.
Research done by the National Home Education Research Institute shows that homeschoolers had an average standardized test score in the 87th percentile. The score is higher than the average score of the 50th percentile by children in public schools.
Adaptation to Special Considerations
If your child has a learning disability, physical disability, or has attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), homeschooling is a good option. It allows you as a parent, the complete flexibility to adapt the curriculum to their child’s specific needs.
Closer Family Relationships
Homeschooling plays an important role in building family relationships. Children benefit enormously from this because they have the opportunity of developing close ties with their siblings. Also, homeschooling increases the likelihood of grandparents, aunts and uncles, and other family members participating in the children’s education.
Cons of Homeschooling
As much as there are several pros to homeschooling, you still need to consider the cons to determine if it will work out for you.
Added Responsibilities
With educational freedom comes an added responsibility for parents. You are required to be the teacher, administrator, and also, parent. These combined tasks are potential for more stress and fatigue on parents because you will be taking on both parent and teacher responsibilities.
Extra Effort in Sports
If you want your teenage child to have a sports scholarship, the chances of being noticed are higher within a school environment. Getting your child noticed can be a daunting task because most school districts do not allow homeschoolers to participate in public school sports teams.
As a parent, you will have to put extra effort into researching and paying for suitable classes to get your child recognized.
It Can Be Expensive
Homeschooling can add to your family expenses in ways you might not have considered. As a parent, you will be responsible for funding curriculums and books, educational supplies, extracurricular activities, and laboratory equipment to cover science projects.
Furthermore, you will have to consider the loss of income of the parent in charge of the children’s education.
Recordkeeping
Your teenagers will need transcripts to apply to colleges. Getting transcripts can be hard for you as the parent, especially if you do not keep records during the earlier grades.
Several homeschoolers also get around these requirements by taking enough community college classes while in high school to apply as transfer students.
It Can Be Isolating
Homeschooling can be isolating for parents, especially if they do not have a circle of friends and family to support them.
When you homeschool, you tend to spend most of your time with your kids, which can become exhausting and lonely for you.
It is always advisable to remember the reason you decided to homeschool when it feels tiring.
Lack of Motivation
One of the most negative effects of homeschooling is the lack of motivation in children. Most children need to be challenged to excel in their studies. Children who are homeschooled would not have this motivation because most of them are educated separately, and there is no competition; hence they will lack the motivation to study hard.
Conclusion
Homeschooling is not for every parent. Although it can be stressful, it is also very rewarding.
If, as a parent, you are unwilling to commit to being an effective teacher to your child, you should consider using other educational options.
