Advocating Home Schooling - Free Essay Sample

Introduction

The wave of requests to homeschool in many US States continues to rise as the global society charts into unknown territory. According to estimates from the National Homeschool Research Institute, about 2.5 million Americans were homeschooled in 2019, out of the country's 50 million schoolchildren (Ray). For instance, in North Carolina, those interested in obtaining the necessary documentation for homeschooling almost tripled those of 2019, exceeding 10,000 requests in the second State with the highest number of students at home in relation to its population: 118,000 (Stoops). The growing preference for this teaching method was also detected in the Homeschool.com portal, which has seen a 300% increase in traffic compared to the previous year. Families for Home Education in Missouri, the State's largest homeschool organization, has grown from organizing workshops attended by 250 people in 2019 to 1,400 interested parties between March and July this year (Kniggendorf).

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Teaching Remotely

As schools decide in times of pandemic whether to continue to teach remotely, resume face-to-face classes, or organize a mix of the two models, interest in homeschooling has grown exponentially in the United States. A national survey by RealClear Opinion Research revealed in May that 40% of families viewed were more likely to continue homeschooling once lockdown is over (Schultz). Parents feel that if they want to influence their children, they have to take them out of the public school system because instead of teaching them to read, the schools tell them what to think instead of teaching them to be freethinkers. In a scenario where social norms are constantly changing, questions about rights and the interpretation of who these rights apply to and how they should be enforced also continue to change, fueling the public debate. Homeschooling is an effective education model with a long history and solid constitutional backing that offers greater flexibility.

Homeschooling is a learning option that emerged in the United States and is gaining more and more followers as society adapts to the new world realities. In the modality, the family opts for a different training for their children, among other reasons, due to their disagreement with the educational system. Homeschooling also has a strong constitutional foundation. Article 14 of the US Constitution establishes that educating and teaching is a right. Article 19 ensures that no one is deprived of doing what the law does not prohibit (Eckes and Umpstead 503). On this basis, if no one or nothing prohibits homeschooling, it should be allowed.

Controversial Issue

Critics of homeschooling argue that teaching is not the same in terms of subject matter and quality; and that the lack of partners and friends with whom to interact with hinders the children from developing essential social skills (Greenwalt). Contrary to homeschooling, school education favors developing skills such as greater maturity, study discipline, taste for learning, learning strategies, solid self-esteem, and entrepreneurship. Other critics argue that making home education a priority is a demonstration of the government's lack of focus and lack of commitment to education (Puga 287). They argue that directing government efforts to a national teacher education policy would be more efficient in solving the country's educational challenges.

Homeschooling is clearly a controversial issue in the US, and the debate on its acceptance continues. Before the pandemic, the main reasons parents chose this educational model were linked to concerns about the school environment: negative interactions with peers, drugs, or general safety. In the beginning, this model was chosen mainly by religious families, particularly evangelical ones. Currently, only 16% of parents identify religion as the most important reason for choosing to homeschool. Beyond its legality and other benefits the modality presents, parents who have chosen to remove their children from public schools during the pandemic have done it to enjoy greater flexibility. Since they are the educators, they do not depend on the schedules imposed by the school, and they can adapt the classes to the free windows in their work days or when the minors are more receptive.

Conclusion

While the practice homeschooling is legal across the country, each State has its requirements for granting homeschool permits. In some territories, students are required to take standardized tests, and in others, they are not even followed. Both skeptics and advocates of homeschooling represent worldviews and diametrically opposed political views, a factor that cannot be disregarded. The point of greatest disagreement is perhaps the question of the political and societal model that arises behind the disputes between libertarians and supporters of state interference in society's various aspects of life. In any case, whether or not local laws are demanding, parents must monitor what has been taught in detail, especially if the student intends to enter higher institutions of learning.

Works Cited

Brian D. Ray. Homeschooling: The Research. Research Facts on Homeschooling, Homeschool Fast Facts (2020). https://www.nheri.org/research-facts-on-homeschooling/

Eckes, Suzanne E., and Regina Umpstead. "School Choice and Legal Issues." The Wiley Handbook of School Choice (2017): 493-506.

Greenwalt, Kyle. "Homeschooling in the United States." Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education. 2019.Kniggendorf Anne. With uncertainty over reopening schools, more parents are drawn to homeschooling (2020). https://www.thebeacon.media/stories/2020/8/31/with-uncertainty-over-reopening-schools-more-parents-are-drawn-to-homeschooling-instead

Puga, Lisa. "“Homeschooling Is Our Protest:” Educational Liberation for African American Homeschooling Families in Philadelphia, PA." Peabody Journal of Education 94.3 (2019): 281-296. DOI: 10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.407

Terry Stoops. Pandemic produces a strong increase to NC’s massive homeschool population (2020). https://www.johnlocke.org/update/pandemic-produces-a-strong-increase-to-ncs-massive-homeschool-population/

Tommy Schultz. National Poll: 40% of Families More Likely to Homeschool After Lockdowns End (2020). https://www.federationforchildren.org/national-poll-40-of-families-more-likely-to-homeschool-after-lockdowns-end/.