Moronic Bob Cook Doesn't Know Squat

I guess it was to much to ask that Bob Cook get his facts straight regarding homeschoolers.

Frankly I don't think athletic programs belong in the public schools in the first place. Just think if public schools didn't have to fund athletic programs (especially football) they could spend their money on things like textbooks and teacher's salaries and provide little Johnny with a top notch education, instead of giving a small minority of public school students a chance to play football.

But I digress.................According to Cook

The Home School Legal Defense Association itself shows how homeschooling organizations — still overwhelming evangelical Christian, even as homeschooling has spread beyond its population (insufferable liberals instead call it “unschooling” to separate themselves from the conservative rabble) — try to play both sides of the high school football field chain-link fence.

First off the Home $chool Legal Defense Association does NOT represent all homeschoolers. Homeschooling is NOT overwhelming evangelical Christian (80% of homeschoolers, homeschool for non-religious reasons), and Liberal Homeschoolers DO NOT call it unschooling to separate themselves from the conservative rabble. Unschooling is a homeschooling method employed by both Liberal and Conservative Christian Homeschoolers.

Yes — only the contact that homeschool families choose to have, the kind that makes up for what homeschoolers lack, without exposing them too much to bad things like cooties, street gangs, and Catholics.

Moron, plenty of Catholics homeschool.

And one can only wonder why public school parents are so opposed to homeschoolers being allowed to play on public school football teams. Are they afraid their precious little public school students can't compete with athletically gifted homeschooled and private schooled students and will wind up sitting on the bench? Do they secretly believe that private school and homeschool students are receiving a superior education but justify sending their children to public schools by telling themselves they wouldn't be able to play football otherwise?

Apparently writing one article bashing homeschoolers wasn't enough for Cook, he followed up with this.

You might not know this if you’re not a football fan or an evangelical Christian, but Tim Tebow was a home-schooled student who playing actual high school football in Florida, then won the Heisman Trophy and two national championships at the University of Florida, then became a first-round pick of the Denver Broncos. You’ll know they are evangelical Christians not just by their love, but by their “Tebow 15″ Broncos jerseys.

What is it with this guy? All homeschoolers are not evangelical Christians, all Tim Tebow fans aren't either. Next time Cook takes it into his empty little head to write about homeschoolers maybe he should try doing some research instead of sticking with the outdated stereotypes he seems hung up on.

The Great Flip-Flop

Nicholas Byron Hall while all too eager to criticize homeschooling in his post What are the disadvantages of homeschooling? can't seem to get around all the MANY advantages homeschooling offers.

While homeschooling may come with advantages, it's questionable as to whether it's worthwhile in the majority of cases.

This of course is nothing more then his uninformed opinion.

What's known as "opportunity cost" is a type of cost that occurs when someone could be using their time more beneficially. In other words, parents homeschooling their children are costing themselves an income. This income could be used in a variety of ways, including funding a private school education for the child. In many ways, it's rather suspect why parents choose homeschooling when they could work.  

There are more important things in life then money, apparently this Philosophy and Political Science major has yet to learn that. He also assumes that a private school would be available for the child to attend if the parents only had the money for tuition. In my area the only private schools are Catholic, not being Catholic I had no wish for my children to receive a Catholic education. In other areas private schools have long waiting list.

Parents are rarely qualified to teach their children; sorry, it's true. 

Nonetheless, some evidence suggests homeschooling provides a better education - with students learning at home scoring higher on standardized tests. In fact, some studies even report higher happiness in life amongst. This is arguably because the public school system fails students, but the private school system is not scoring above homeschooling either. This makes it appear that perhaps homeschooling is the best option.

Looks like he is trying to have it both ways first we aren't qualified to teach our own children, but he then fails to explain how us unqualified parents provide our children with a better education then either public or private schools.

He then goes on to blame homeschoolers for the problems in the public schools.

The problem is that people don't put the effort into their public school system. When the system fails them, they give up and take their children out of it. It's hard to blame them, but some would argue that citizens have an obligation to work together against corruption and irresponsible behavior.

For some reason these same do gooders that think homeschoolers should keep their children in public schools and waste their time and energy trying to fix them have no problem with parents sending their children to private schools. And for someone who was so concerned about the opportunity cost of homeschooling he fails to mention the "opportunity cost" to parents of spending their time trying to fix "public schools". We tried to fix our public schools and discovered there was no way to fix them for our children.  The decisions are made by our school board and not only do they serve long terms, we were only eligible to vote for one of the board members. The one board member who agreed with our position. Leaving our children in a mediocre academic environment helps no one. On the other hand giving our children the best education possible so they will be productive members of society helps everyone.

Hall also doesn't seem to realize that today many minorities and low income families choose to homeschool.

Lastly, some objections are made on the basis of religious ideology. Other arguments can be made with respect to morals, political values, etc. Parents are teaching children false things about science within the context of homeschooling, and parents have only one perspective.

First off parents are TWO separate people with their own unique views, secondly homeschoolers interact with more people then their parents. Hall also fails to realize that many homeschooling parents believe in evolution and teach it to their children.

Tiresomely Hall seems to believe all the old homeschool stereotypes.

Book Review ~ Love in a Time of Homeschooling Chapters 1 & 2

I was asked to review Love in a Time of Homeschooling by Laura Brodie. A lot of Laura's reasons for homeschooling Julia were the same reasons I had for choosing to homeschool my boys. The only difference was while Julia returned to public school  after a year we were hooked and continued homeschooling until the boys started college.

Julia reminding me so much of my youngest son. I laughed when Laura was describing Julia's exploits.

She mentions the monotonous pile of worksheets the public schools send home with the students, and the burden it created for Julia. This certainly resonated with me. When my children were in public school they were overwhelmed with  homework, usually on nights when we had somewhere to go. This lead to us having to choose between attending the event;  church, scouts, soccer practice and keeping the kids up past their bedtime so they could do their homework or missing the event in order to get the homework done. Homework that was often boring and repetitive.

"Some people imagine homeschoolig moms as ultra clingy zealots who refuse to relinquish control of their children but that's not me."

This is one of the homeschooling stereotypes that infuriates me the most, it's so not ME! In fact the whole time I was reading the book I found myself nodding in agreement with something Laura Brodie wrote. I felt as if I was meeting a kindred homeschooling spirit.

"The public schools aren't for everyone"

True! so true. My eldest son's fourth grade teacher was the one who suggested I homeschool as he was ahead of his class. 

"In our small town there are few alternatives to the public system. For most families in our area, private education means homeschooling."

That was the same situation we faced.

"The Standards of Learning are the monster that is devouring our public schools. In the end one local principal explained, the SOLs make great teachers good and good teachers bad"

I believe this too. Which is one reason I get so upset when anti-homeschoolers suggest holding homeschoolers to the same standards as the public schools.

The 1930s and 1940s witnessed a growing movement for the abolition of homework, as doctors and educators emphasized the need for healthy joyful children who spent plenty of time playing outside.

What a novel idea. I honestly believe to much pressure to preform is put on children today. I am so happy I was able to homeschool and give my children time to enjoy their childhoods.

I am really enjoying this book and encourage all parents to read it. I'll pick up my book review with Chapter 3.

Fed Up

I am rather fed up with those who lump all homeschoolers together, as if we were clones of each other.

No one would make the absurd statement that all public school students are socially awkward even though some are. But all to often we hear "homeschoolers are socially awkward" , because some idiot somewhere has meet ONE socially awkward homeschooled child. They probably know tons of well adjusted homeschooled children but because they don't fit their stereotype of a "homeschooled child" they never realized those children are homeschooled.

And then there are those who decide we are all Christian Fundamentalist who don't teach our children real Science based on some Christian Fundamentalist Homeschool Website they stumble across, where the highlight of the "Science Fair" is converting some old lady to Christ. There are many secular and inclusive homeschool groups whose members do teach Real Science but they don't fit the stereotype of the typical homeschooler so they don't garner much attention in the media or the blog world.

Then there are the liberal do-gooders who feel compelled to tell everyone else how to raise their children (often they don't have children of their own but they are self proclaimed experts on what is best for your child). They scream that homeschooling needs to be regulated so homeschoolers will have to teach their children "real science". All the while ignoring what public school students are taught.

Revisionaries How a group of Texas conservatives is rewriting your kids’ textbooks by Mariah Blake

The jovial creationist ( Don McLeroy) sits on the Texas State Board of Education, where he is one of the leaders of an activist bloc that holds enormous sway over the body’s decisions. As the state goes through the once-in-a-decade process of rewriting the standards for its textbooks, the faction is using its clout to infuse them with ultraconservative ideals. Among other things, they aim to rehabilitate Joseph McCarthy, bring global-warming denial into science class, and downplay the contributions of the civil rights movement.

And why should we care what textbooks Texans chooses to educate the children trapped in their public schools.

(Because) the Lone Star State has outsized influence over the reading material used in classrooms nationwide, since publishers craft their standard textbooks based on the specs of the biggest buyers. As one senior industry executive told me, “Publishers will do whatever it takes to get on the Texas list.”

Living in the Bible Belt I am thankful that the state had no control over what I taught and I was free to teach my children the THEORY OF EVOLOUTION. The liberal do-gooders better be careful what they demand. They may just get the regulations they are agitating for only to see Creationism rammed down children's throats by State Boards of Education.

Other liberal do-gooders worry about homeschoolers being unvaccinated even though all states allow medical exemptions of public school students and many states allow exemptions on religious or philosophical grounds. BTW, it was my choice to have my children vaccinated, but I think all parents should be allowed to make an informed decision regarding vaccinations.

Frankly I am fed up with the stereotypes and the put downs. Instead of expanding so much energy attacking and harassing homeschoolers go fix the public schools. Then if you still have a problem with homeschooling I'll listen. But until you fix the public schools keep your nose out of homeschooling.

*In the interest of full disclosure both my boys were homeschooled. My eldest has a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and the youngest is in his first year of college.

Who does the brainwashing parents or public school teachers?

JESSE SCACCIA seems to think homeschool parents brainwash their children, these are what he feels are the risk of homeschooling and my rebuttal.

1. The “Othering” of Public School Students

Apparently it's OK for Jesse Scaccia to criticize homeschooling, homeschool parents and homeschool students but how dare we turn the tables and criticize the public schools and public school students. Apparently it never dawns on Scaccia that he is guilty of the very thing he is accusing homeschoolers of, intolerance. That said the majority of kids who attend public schools are nice kids, unfortunately it is the the trouble makers that make the headlines. Just as homeschoolers are stereotyped at geeky public school students have been stereotyped as troublemakers, sex crazed and drug users. Stereotypes that are not fair to either homeschoolers or public school students.

2. Too Much Control From One (Or Highly Limited) Information Sources

The problem with homeschooling is that the parents construct the learning environment. By so doing, they hand choose what elements of society their child is exposed to. If you don’t think this is dangerous, I don’t know what to say to you. A child taught by parents– even a group of parents– is being made privy to a paucity of the viewpoints and perspectives out there. Given that the homeschooler is likely to choose like-minded suplementary teachers (morally, ethically), this leaves the child, basically, in a position of being brainwashed.

Homeschooling isn't about control and our information sources are not limited. Just like public school students homeschoolers use the Internet, they watch TV, listen to the radio, download MP3's and chat with friends. We do not live in a vacuum.

3. It Takes A Myriad of Worldviews To Build A True Educational Environment

Even more importantly, we all agree that accepting others with different viewpoints is paramount to being a good, well-rounded person. Well, how can a child learn to accept and appreciate others if they aren’t around them?

Apparently it's impossible for Scaccia as he appears to be incapable of accepting homeschoolers, even though he is a product of the enlightened and tolerant public schools. As hard as it for Scaccia to grasp we do get out of the house. We meet people in our neighborhoods, in our community, at the grocery and at various other places.

The goal of education should be to teach one to think for themselves. Not as Scaccia believes to ram beliefs down a student's throat. Scaccia's real problem with homeschooling seems to be that he will miss the opportunity to "brainwash" some students who are lucky enough not to wind up in his classroom because they were homeschooled.

The Case for Homeschooling

Public school teachers must be really worried about their job security if they have to stoop to writing post criticizing homeschooling The case against homeschooling By JESSE SCACCIA. HT: Principled Discovery Do homeschoolers care too much?

Here are my (JESSE SCACCIA) top ten reasons why homeschooling parents are doing the wrong thing:

10. “You were totally home schooled” is an insult college kids use when mocking the geeky kid in the dorm (whether or not the offender was home schooled or not). And… say what you will… but it doesn’t feel nice to be considered an outsider, a natural outcropping of being homeschooled.

This reeks of desperation. I mean ADULTS are suppose to make educational choices for their children based on insults college kids use. Am I to infer that Jesse Scaccia would advocate removing children from public schools if college kids were to start using the phrase "You were totally public schooled" as an insult. And while Jesse Scaccia may view homeschoolers as "outsiders" others do not.

9. Call me old-fashioned, but a students’ classroom shouldn’t also be where they eat Fruit Loops and meat loaf (not at the same time I hope). It also shouldn’t be where the family gathers to watch American Idol or to play Wii. Students–from little ones to teens–deserve a learning-focused place to study. In modern society, we call them schools.

I like to think the world is our classroom.

8. Homeschooling is selfish. According to this article in USA Today, students who get homeschooled are increasingly from wealthy and well-educated families. To take these (I’m assuming) high achieving students out of our schools is a disservice to our less fortunate public school kids. Poorer students with less literate parents are more reliant on peer support and motivation, and they greatly benefit from the focus and commitment of their richer and higher achieving classmates.

As a parent I am responsible for making sure MY CHLDREN get the best education possible. No one has a problem with wealthy parents sending their children to the best colleges or the best private schools, so why are homeschoolers accused of being selfish for providing their children with the best education available to them. Jesse Scaccia argument smacks of socialism. I suppose Scaccia thinks we should all live in public housing because not everyone can afford a nice house.

7. God hates homeschooling. The study, done by the National Center for Education Statistics, notes that the most common reason parents gave as the most important was a desire to provide religious or moral instruction. To the homeschooling Believers out there, didn’t God say “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations”? Didn’t he command, “Ye shall be witnesses unto me”? From my side, to take your faithful children out of schools is to miss an opportunity to spread the grace, power and beauty of the Lord to the common people. (Personally I’m agnostic, but I’m just saying…)

Well personally I could care less how God feels about homeschooling, apparently Jesse Scaccia is one of those people who believe those stupid homeschool stereotypes. Memo: ALL HOMESCHOOLERS ARE NOT CHRISTIAN FUNDEMENTALIST. In fact there are agnostic homeschoolers.

6. Homeschooling parent/teachers are arrogant to the point of lunacy. For real! My qualifications to teach English include a double major in English and education, two master’s degrees (education and journalism), a student teaching semester and multiple internship terms, real world experience as a writer, and years in the classroom dealing with different learning styles. So, first of all, homeschooling parent, you think you can teach English as well as me? Well, maybe you can. I’ll give you that. But there’s no way that you can teach English as well as me, and biology as well as a trained professional, and history… and Spanish… and art… and counsel for college as well as a school’s guidance counselor… and… and…

And we all know ALL public school teachers are as well educated as Jesse Scaccia (LOL). The beauty of homeschooling is PARENTS DO NOT HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING THEMSELVES. We join homeschool co-ops where parents teach classes that they are proficient in, we hire tutors, we enroll our children in college classes for dual credit, we take advantage of classes offered by museums for homeschool students. The list of resources available to homeschoolers is endless.

5. As a teacher, homeschooling kind of pisses me off. (That’s good enough for
#5.)

As a homeschooler Jesse Scaccia attitude toward homeschooling pisses me off. # 5 is a poor reason on Jesse Scaccia's part, apparently Scaccia was grasping at straws to find a #5. I know many public school teachers who are supportive of homeschooling. In fact I know some public school teachers who have "retired" in order to homeschool their own children.

4. Homeschooling could breed intolerance, and maybe even racism. Unless the student is being homeschooled at the MTV Real World house, there’s probably only one race/sexuality/background in the room. How can a young person learn to appreciate other cultures if he or she doesn’t live among them?

Jesse Scaccia displays a remarkable lack of tolerance for homeschoolers. Could it be because he is a product of PUBLIC SCHOOLS????? This criticism is so OUTDATED. Scaccia please keep up with the times, homeschoolers are a diverse bunch (more on homeschool diversity here) and there are INCLUSIVE Homeschool Groups.

3. And don’t give me this “they still participate in activities with public school kids” garbage. Socialization in our grand multi-cultural experiment we call America is a process that takes more than an hour a day, a few times a week. Homeschooling, undoubtedly, leaves the child unprepared socially.

Really that explains why the "Soccer Mom" didn't realize there were four homeschooled kids on her sons soccer team, see my post But They Are So Normal.

2. Homeschooling parents are arrogant, Part 2. According to Henry Cate, who runs the Why Homeschool blog, many highly educated, high-income parents are “probably people who are a little bit more comfortable in taking risks” in choosing a college or line of work. “The attributes that facilitate that might also facilitate them being more comfortable with home-schooling.

”More comfortable taking risks with their child’s education? Gamble on, I don’t know, the Superbowl, not your child’s future.

I don't think homeschooling is gambling with your child's future. It was very rewarding for us. My eldest son started college at 16. This is his senior year and he will graduate with a BS Degree in Computer Science. My youngest son starts college this fall.

1. And finally… have you met someone homeschooled? Not to hate, but
they do tend to be pretty geeky***.

Nice if you can't come up with a good reason insult them. I attended public school there were "geeky kids" , "weird kids" and other "social misfits" in my public school classrooms. Even though they had attended public school their whole life they never really fit in. If you attend public school be honest; you know some too.

Reflections on Homeschooling Part II ~The Annoyance Factor

Amy Platon's ranting about a Home School Epidemic? on her blog Scribble Ink Cafe and in the Orlando Sentinel My Word: Amy Platon: Home-schoolers, don't quit system is a prime example of those annoying people homeschoolers will have to deal with. ( See Dana Hanley's charming rebuttal Should homeschoolers stick with the system? at Principled Discovery). She's typical of those who know nothing about homeschooling but feel their ill formed opinion about homeschooling is worthy of broadcasting, thus perpetrating those infuriating homeschool stereotypes (more of my post on homeschool stereotypes can be found here).

As an involved parent, I have elected the public school route. I could never home school my child because I personally don’t think it’s fair to him. He would have to put up with me all day, and as much as we love each other, that would be too much of a good thing. Also, I don’t think I’m qualified. I pay professionals to do lots of things in my life, and when we are talking about my child’s education, I feel I’m better as a support. Then there is the social factor. I know my boy would never forgive me if I told him he couldn’t go to school. He’s made too many great friends there.

There in nothing unfair about choosing to homeschool your child. I would never question another parents decision to send their child to public school and find it highly offensive that Ms. Platon chooses to question my decision to homeschool. I am not sure what planet Ms. Platon lives on but the majority of homeschool parents do not stay home alone all day "putting up with their kids". We join homeschool co-ops, homeschool groups, go on field trips and sign our children up for recreational sports leagues, Boy/Girl Scouts and a whole host of other activities.

Some people choose to engage professionals for a host of things that other individuals choose to tackle on their own. I have been blessed with a husband who can do a multitude of task; plumbing, wiring, fixing computers, laying tile, painting, building greenhouses and working on our vehicles that others choose to pay professionals to do. Just because you choose to engage a professional doesn't mean that another family should have too.

Then Ms. Platon brings up the socialization issue (more post on socialization here). Did her son not have friends until he started school? Homeschooled children play with the children in their neighborhood, with other homeschooled children at park days and other homeschool get togethers, and the children who participate in the various other activities they participate in. As they grow older they keep in touch with their friends via cell phones and the Internet. Socialization is so not a issue.

The part of this growing home-school trend that worries me, is that we will end up with adults who have learned that if the system is not good enough, then leave it. If the work’s not good enough, do it yourself. If you fear it, quit.

Does she really expect parents to keep their children in an inferior system if there is something better available just because it's what the majority of parents choose to do? Would she really put up with a shoddy job by a professional IF she could do it better? And does she really think parents should put their children in harms way?

Ms. Platon's attitude is indicative of the morass that has lead to the economic woes Americans are currently embroiled in. Our grandparents generation and to some extent our parents generation had a "can do" attitude that is sadly lacking in most of today's generation. Once most people performed most of their own home and automotive maintenance, a man/woman who was handy around the house was admired. Today being able to "hire someone" to do the work is viewed as a mark of success and the handy man is held in disdain by the Ms. Platon's of the world.

Home-schooled children are kept all to themselves, and others like them, unable to influence the kids who really need it. If you are a good parent, then be a good parent and send your child out into the world so he can make a difference. I will speak for my son, we (the future society) need you to be check in with the rest of us. We need to grow together. We need to learn from each other.

Oh please, homeschoolers are a very diverse group (more post on homeschool diversity here), and homeschooled children are NOT kept all to themselves. Why is it that non-homeschoolers believe homeschoolers live in some sort of bubble? Homeschoolers are involved in their communities and are involved in volunteer work, believe me homeschoolers do make a difference and we don't need the sanctimonious public school Mom Amy Platon to tell us the importance of being engaged involved citizens.

So that said, I’ll tell you how I settle my personal fears, with the public school what-ifs. I volunteer in my child’s class. I help the teacher where she needs it, and I get to know the other kids in the class. I encourage play dates with his classmates, so I can get to know other parents. I go to all the birthday parties we are invited to.

Her naivety is amusing I wonder what she is going to do when her child is older and she is no longer welcome in the classroom.

I help my child with areas where he needs improvement at home. I help him excel in key areas at home and over the summer.

Jeez I wonder if she realizes how contradictory that statement is, she does not think she is qualified to homeschool but works with her child in key areas after school and over the summer.

And finally, I've turned off the news! I Avoid it at all costs!

Well there is an intelligent attitude ignore the news, yep I am sure that if she ignores all the bad things that happen in her child's public school and the rest of the world they will just go away.

If this post reaches even one parent confused about this issue, I hope I have inspired you to stay involved in your community by participating in the public school system.

You don't have to participate in the public school system to be involved in your community. Unfortunately if some confused parent did read her post all they came away with was erroneous homeschool stereotypes and misinformation.

Written by a former homeschool parent whose children are now in college.

Homeschooling Concerns Baseless

VJACK's post Atheist Homeschooling listed some of his concerns about homeschooling in general and atheist (really anyone who isn't part of the Fundamentalist Christian Homeschooling community) homeschoolers in particular. This is my response.

First I don't believe imparting your moral values is a "wrong reason" to homeschool. This is my response to VJACK's post Homeschooling is About Indoctrination. Public schools also indoctrinate children often with views that are different then, even hostile to their parents world view. Unfortunately no matter who is doing the teaching be it a public school teacher or a parent their biases will be part of the lesson. Parents have every right to impart their "moral values" to their children. And while I am pro-choice anti-choice parents have every right to teach their children their beliefs. I am very disturbed by VJACK's desire to indoctrinate children through the public school system with his beliefs in opposition to their parents beliefs.

I suppose the thing I would most worry about if I were an atheist parent considering homeschooling would be the issue of academic equivalency.

I have no doubt that my children received a superior education compared to what they would have received in the public schools. My eldest son started college at 16, he is in his fourth year of a computer science degree. He is also paying his own tuition with a scholarship and the money he earns at his part time job. He will graduate debt free. My youngest son is in his senior year of high school and is taking a course at the local community college for dual credit, he has an A in the class. Parents who choose to homeschool invest time and money in their children's education we are highly motivated to see that our children are well prepared for college and life. VJACK basis his concern on this

As someone who teaches college, I have found that the homeschooled children who end up there are often seriously unprepared to succeed.

I wonder how many of the public school students who end up in his classroom are also unprepared to succeed? I also wonder how many well prepared homeschooled students are in his classroom that he never realizes were homeschooled because they don't fit into his stereotypes of homeschooling?

According to Associated Content

A common homeschool myth is the one that assumes children who attend a homeschool will not be prepared for college. However, many college recruiters disagree with this myth, and in fact, some even prefer homeschooled students. Why? Many students who homeschool have advanced studying skills, such as the knowledge of various resources, as well as the ability to work well independently. Homeschoolers can also possess exceptional teamwork and social skills, which are very essential to many college courses. In addition to the above qualities, many homeschooled children begin taking college level courses before they are finished with their K-12 education, due to the flexibility of their schedules and the opportunity to advance at one's own pace.

The second concern involves the social development of the homeschooled child. In many respects, the social aspects of the school experience as as important as the academic ones. Christians who homeschool are probably going to have an easier time finding others homeschooling through their church than atheist parents can find through some alternative. How does the atheist parent attend to social development and prevent his or her child from being woefully unprepared to form positive peer relations?

The simple answer to this is you form your own homeschool groups or find inclusive and secular ones. There are also recreational sports teams/drama clubs/chess clubs etc. your children can join.

While I do not see this as a major barrier, I also wonder if it could be argued that an atheist parent who homeschools might be doing his or her children a disservice by depriving them of the opportunity to learn how to navigate the challenges of living as an atheist among a largely religious populace.

Funnily enough the opposite argument (it could be argued that a CHRISTIAN parent who homeschools might be doing his or her children a disservice by depriving them of the opportunity to learn how to navigate the challenges of living as an CHRISTIAN among a largely secular/materalistic populace) is often made in reference to religious homeschoolers who feel the public schools are a cesspool of secular humanism. Homeschoolers do not live in splendid isolation. We meet all sorts of people from various backgrounds merely by going about our daily lives. It's also ironic that VJACK assumes that his children will share his atheist beliefs, but then I suppose he intends to brainwash or indoctrinate them with his beliefs.

And before I start getting a lot of hostile comments for that bit of snark let me elaborate. All parents have the desire to pass their beliefs or values on to their offspring. We all believe our beliefs are the "right/correct" ones. But for some reason when Christians share their beliefs with their own children atheist often decry it as brainwashing/indoctrination. Ironically they are guilty of the same thing with their children but they don't consider it brainwashing or indoctrination because they are certain their beliefs are the only sane rational way to live. In a truly tolerant and diverse society both the Christians and the Atheist would respect each others beliefs and respect their right to pass their beliefs on to their own children.

You are invited to a homeschool mixer

Cherish at Faraday's Cage is where you put Schroedinger's Cat has a cool idea.


Homeschool stereotypes and how we don't fit into them...
Jun. 12th, 2008 at 4:36 PM


Now prepare yourselves for the insanity, but I think it would be cool to start a "homeschool mixer" of sorts (online, of course). I know a couple people who read this blog homeschool...so perhaps you can tell me if this is crazy or not. I just had the notion that if people could learn more about the complexities of homeschooling (rather than some of the stereotypes), it might help people realize that maybe homeschoolers can't always be pigeon-holed so easily. It also may help people to see that there are some people who don't fit into their preconceived notions. And yeah, I know this entirely unscientific...and simply won't work for some people. If you feel interested in being involved (as a homeschooler), all you need to do is answer some questions by responding to this post with a comment (with as much or little detail as possible). If you are interested in finding out about (other) homeschoolers, you can ask questions (politely, of course).So, some questions I think are relevant:

So, some questions I think are relevant:

• Why do you homeschool? We started off homeschooling because of the mandatory public school uniform policy with no opt out the Jackson County School Board implemented over the objections of many parents. There was even a law suit. My eldest son's 4th grade teacher had also stated that I should consider homeschooling him because he already knew all the material being covered by his class and the school board would not allow her to promote him to the next grade, because they didn't want to lose state funding for him any sooner then they had to. Then there was his 5th grade teacher, second semester, a total screw up. He had a wonderful teacher 1st semester. Unfortunately teachers in public schools are on the bottom of the pay rung, the best and brightest teachers leave to become guidance counselors and principals. He left to become a guidance counselor at the same school, because he needed the higher pay, and they hired Ms. Winn fresh out of college and with a brand spanking new teaching certificate. She couldn't do algebra (she wanted to teach kindergarten you see, and you don't need algebra for that), she couldn't maintain discipline in the classroom, she couldn't spell or string together grammatically correct sentences, as a 5th grade teacher she was a total loser. So between being upset about the mandatory school uniforms and Ms. Winn the decision to homeschool was an easy one for us.


• What technique or curriculum do you use? I use different things. This is what we did Fall 2007 - Spring 2008.


• Do your kids work above or below grade level (or both!)? Above. But when we started it was some of both, as my eldest son was a semester behind in Math thanks to his 5th grade public school teacher, Ms. Winn. We were able to catch up to his correct grade level and then get ahead. By the way my eldest son started college at 16, he is in his third year of a Computer Science Degree.


• What is your educational level? Both my husband and myself are college graduates.


• Do you feel this has an effect on your teaching (both limits and abilities)? Since my husband has a college degree he has a well paying job which has allowed me to homeschool full time. Being a full time stay at home Mom and able to devote myself full time to homeschooling is certainly a big plus. I also think my having a college degree helped me prepare my boys for college.


• What does your daily schedule look like? Our schedule varies day to day. That is one of the things I love about homeschooling the ability to be flexible and take advantage of field trips, community events ect. as they are available to us.
  
• Are your kids always polite and ready to learn? (*snicker*) I wish, but with teenagers I have discovered giving them choices makes a huge difference in their willingness to cooperate.


• Do the kids (or you!) get frustrated? Sometimes, we are human. Everyone gets frustrated sometimes. But being able to take a break when we need it helps keep the frustration levels low.


• How has this affected your parenting? It hasn't really.


• How much free time do they have? That varies too, both have jobs and are involved in different organizations and activities.


• What do they do during their free time? Read, play video games, visit the beach.


• What hobbies do they have? My youngest son is involved in Team Fusion 364, both boys were involved in soccer. My eldest son maintains a Digimon Website.


• What difficulties and challenges do you have with homeschooling? The attitude of the anti homeschoolers


• What makes homeschooling enjoyable? Having the chance to learn new things and see my children's enthusiasm for learning.


• How do you get involved in the community? We belong to the Civic Association in our community. Our kids played on recreational soccer teams and were involved in scouts, my husband and myself were involved in leadership positions with both groups.


• When do you have opportunities to interact with public or privately schooled children? All the time. One of the things I love about Team Fusion is that it is composed of public, private and homeshooled kids and they all get along great. But we are very active in our community so we interact with people from different backgrounds all the time.


• Would you like more of these opportunities? Yes.


• How can they be created? By public schools being more willing to include homeschoolers in their after school activities.


• What is your least favorite homeschool stereotype? :-) That we are with our kids 24/7.

Lonely Girl 15

Her You Tube profile states Bree is home-schooled . Viewers are led to believe she is the daughter of strictly religious parents. But somehow Bree is able to find the time and technology to upload video blogs of her innermost thoughts, without her parents knowledge. Too bad they can't come up with anything more original then the typical homeschool stereotypes.

You see it's a hoax. Bree is played by actress Jessica Rose, a 20-ish resident of New Zealand and Los Angeles and a graduate of the New York Film Academy. The whole project appears to be the early serialized version of what eventually will become a movie.

It certainly doesn't portray homeschoolers in the best light. Considering the public generally has a lot of misconceptions about homeschoolers this is one hoax that needs to be brought to light sooner rather then later. If you want to do a fictionalized story about homeschoolers fine, but make sure everyone knows it's fiction.

Related Tags: YouTube, Lonelygirl15, Bree, hoax, homeschool, strict religious parents