The definition of Homeschooling
1) Homeschooling is a legitimate educational alternative which is protected in the South African constitution. By legal definition, it is a PARENT teaching his or her OWN children in the safety and comfort of their own home (at their own expense.)
2) Homeschooling could be termed, “Purposeful Parenting” as it involves the mentoring & nurturing of your child as a whole: spirit, soul (will, intellect, emotions) and body.
The aim of Homeschooling
1) To prepare your child for LIFE (not an exam!)
2) To give your child all the skills, character traits and knowledge he needs to be a successful (successful = doing what you enjoy & were created to do), happy (happy = having good self esteem) fulfilled adult, spouse (you’re raising someone’s wife/husband), parent and citizen (with the ability to question, reason, think critically and independently.)
3) To instil a lifelong love for learning (and good books!) “Education is not the filling of a bucket, but the lighting of a fire” ~ WB Yeats
The origin of Homeschooling
1) Homeschooling has always been around; it’s not a brand new concept!!
2) In Bible times people homeschooled! See God’s instructions to Moses (Deut 22) and Hannah who took Samuel to Eli; even Jesus didn’t send his disciples to a Theological Seminary!
3) In the Medieval times people homeschooled!
4) In the Victorian times people homeschooled!
5) The early American Pioneers homeschooled and so did the South Africans!
6) Institutionalized learning started with the Industrial Revolution because it freed the parents to work in factories and it prepared the children for mindless mass labour!
7) The “powers that be” saw the benefit of institutionalized learning (it boosts the economy if both parents are economically active and it gives the state control over future generations’ thinking,) therefore it was made compulsory in a few countries!
Why Homeschooling works
“All truth passes through three levels: First it is ridiculed, Second it is violently opposed, Third it is accepted to be self-evident.” ~ Shakespeare
1) In every study on the performance of homeschoolers it has been found that they have performed at least the same as institutionalised learners, but in general substantially better. This could be ascribed to the combination of maximal parental involvement with minimal class size.
2) Curricula can be chosen (or altered) according to a child’s learning style.
3) One-to-one tutoring is far superior to 7 minutes personal classroom interaction. High parental involvement always leads to success.
4) Self-paced learning is possible. True learning takes place when a child’s interests are followed.
Why Homeschooling sometimes appears to fail
1) Parents are not in agreement (the mother carries all responsibility and has no support, only unfair expectations from her spouse)
2) God’s order is not established in the home (parents have surrendered their authority and the children are in charge)
3) Curriculum is chosen to suit a parent (to alleviate the parent’s insecurity) and not the child
4) Homeschooling is not given pre-eminence in the home (lack of investment of time and attention, mom is juggling too many balls)
5) The vision and goals are not clear
6) It is seen solely as an academic exercise at most (character building and skills development are lacking)