I've always found it really interesting how obsessed some people are with what high school they went to. As if that matters at all if you move away from your hometown or when you are thirty-six. Seriously, when was the last time someone asked you what high school you went to? Mine was four and half years ago when one of my new co-workers found out I grew up in the same town and wanted to know what school I went to. I told her I was homeschooled, but what school district I was in and the conversation moved on quickly. No one cares. Also, contrary to what they tell you in high school and college, as an adult no one cares about your GPA either.
But when it comes to homeschooling, people have some super strong opinions about it. Almost all of those people are rather ignorant on the subject. Their opinions usually start with, "Well...I have a friend whose nephew is being homeschooled and they are super weird" OR "I knew a girl once who was homeschooled and she didn't know how to talk to people". And this is then followed by, "Kids need socialization, because this anecdotal experience I have is proof that homeschooling spawns socially inept losers." I have heard a lot of this talk because once again, people don't really ask what school I attended growing up and they have a stereotype in their head of what a homeschooler looks like. Here are the stereotypes that are true to some degree: 64% of homeschoolers are doing so for a religious reason with the number being a little higher for providing a more general "moral instruction" 91% are concerned about the school environment My sister-in-law certainly fits into both of these. Religious and very very worried about her children being shot at a public school. But homeschooling itself is quite a mixed bag depending on where you live, your parent's educational levels, the child, social structures, family dynamics, drive, disabilities, etc. I grew up in a city where there was a very active homeschooling organization. There were "enrichment days" once a week that consisted of either bowling, skating, or ice skating. A very active teen club that met and volunteered twice a month. Field trips were set up and went to Farms, factories, museums, and concerts. Classes were offered in which another homeschooling mom/dad who had an actual degree in a certain field would teach a small class of students in a subject that other parents struggled with. Among the courses currently being offered right now: Art, Shakespeare, Spanish, Local History, Robotics and Coding, Algebra, Debate, British Literature, Chemistry, Civics, Research Writing, Photography, SAT Prep, Orchestra, Intro to Investing and Budgeting, Food & Nutrition, Economics. This ensures that a student whose homeschooling parent sucks at Writing and Literature has a place they can go to for those classes. I took Science courses with them as science equipment is expensive. Here's the thing though, if you live out in the country or there isn't an active homeschool organization near you, things to get tougher. It's also harder on the child if their parent is a homebody and doesn't take them to these places to meet people. It does not mean the child is socially inept. What does this have to do with unbelief? Those who homeschool are overwhelmingly concerned about their child's moral well-being. I understand this. There is this misconception from outsiders that if a child is homeschooled, even for religious reasons, that the indoctrination becomes too ingrained. That they are destined to become religious fundamentalists. Or that the child always agrees with their parent's decisions. If you go visit the r/exchristian subreddit, you will find several homeschooled teenagers that are just trying to make it to graduation and college, who disagree with how their parents have raised them, and are socially deprived not socially inept. Four of my nephews and nieces are being homeschooled. They have had absolutely no say in the matter I was a senior in high school when I realized that there were some things about what I was taught that I didn't agree with.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorThis is a personal, but secret, blog archiving my deconversion from a Christian to a non-believer. Archives
December 2020
Categories |