Parents: Making the Right Education Decisions - Essay Sample

Introduction

When making education decisions for children, parents always have the option to choose from. To make the right education decisions require parents to know all the facts which surround the possibilities they create. They also require to have the full knowledge of all the outcomes and implications that the decision made has. The two options available to choose from are either homeschooling or non- homeschooling options. The obvious is that there are positive views for both, but research reveals that homeschooling outperforms non- homeschooling students. The aim of this paper will be to explore the difference in academic outcomes of homeschooled vs. non-homeschooled students.

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Differences

Firstly, research indicates that the GPA for students who are homeschooled in college is higher than that of non-homeschoolers (Davis 29). The number of credits that students get in their first year in college, together with ACT test scores, is greater for homeschoolers than non-homeschoolers (Green-Hennessy 445). The reason for the disparity is, there is an increased number of students that are homeschooled, which has been attested by more assistance by providers for students to be able to process the required paperwork. They're also more changes as the homeschoolers can take their tests at a public-school which attribute to their performance.

When it comes to the learning environment, the homeschoolers enjoy a calm and safe environment, which makes them thrive better as they are familiar with it (Ray 180). The proponents prefer a homeschooling environment because the child will not have to deal with the negativity of peer pressure or to try to fit in within the popular cliques, as in the case of the non-homeschoolers. As a result, the child can "be," which gives him or her an opportunity of focusing on the lessons being taught as well as the educational expectations required from him or her. As a result, their learning outcomes are an exemplar as compared to non-homeschoolers (Medlin 250).

Besides, the homeschoolers have nothing to worry about when it comes to wearing the right clothes, shoes, or shopping, or even playing the right games (Long 50). The fact that there are no other children around the homeschooled students, they are then enjoying a relatively calm and peaceful environment and, more important, enjoy the opportunity of learning and working at their own pace as well as their own style, without having to keep or compete with maybe more advanced students (Howell 356). The non- homeschoolers are not able to enjoy these benefits since they are in public learning settings that are influenced by many other factors.

The other difference is attributed to the home curriculum vs. school curriculum. The homeschooling students tend to learn from the experience of an individual, and probably that could be the best of the child (Muldowney 234). On the other hand, non-homeschooling students tend to learn through relationships, and apparently, that could be what the child needs. For the most part, all the necessary skills of reading, writing, and solving some fundamental math problems are learned. However, unlike in non-homeschooling, it is possible to customize the education of your child in homeschooling.

The home curriculum offers an opportunity of teaching the child based on a parent's passion regarding the natural curiosity of the child (Kunzman 75). For example, most homeschooled students get some religious instruction while at home, since the majority of parents believe that spirituality is supposed to be incorporated into the child's education. However, the non-homeschooling is different, as most of the curriculum is based on the state standards through some geared lessons for the student. The time for covering the in-depth information in public schools is not enough, although students have a bigger exposer towards broader ranges of concepts and ideas. That means, home curriculum chooses fewer concepts and dig deeper while in non-homeschooling curriculum generally take more ideas and concepts and attempts to connect them to give students a bigger picture.

Besides, in homeschooling, the children are safer in the hands of their parent's care. The parents also have a greater influence on the friendships that they may make, and the opportunities to interact with adults is a bit higher (Powell 230). The parents are also at liberty of controlling the learning time of the child to align with natural rhythms of the day like traveling and can teach the children at the time they deem best, by taking their interests and preferences (Topor 185). They also combine their parenting instincts of love and care to teach their children, which helps the students to appreciate the learning experience (Ice 340). On the other hand, non-homeschooling the student is under the care of someone else as the education is sorely overseen by the professionals that are trained and have undergone background checks. Unlike parents in homeschooling, some of these teachers and professionals in non-homeschooling have no passion, talent, proper genuine care, or empathy towards the child.

Conclusion

From the discussion above, homeschooling is an effective option for schooling. The option allows the parents to adequately spend time with their kids while learning by using the best learning style that suits them. The test scores are high for the homeschoolers as compared to non-homeschoolers, homeschooling has a greater advantage than public schools. The homeschooling students have the advantage of safer and calm learning environments as compared to other counterparts. The home curriculum for homeschoolers can be customized, unlike that of non-homeschooling, which is set at the state standards.

Works Cited

Davis, Aislin. "Evolution of homeschooling." Distance learning 8.2 (2011): 29.

Green-Hennessy, Sharon. "Homeschooled adolescents in the United States: Developmental outcomes." Journal of Adolescence 37.4 (2014): 441-449. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140197114000438

Howell, Charles. "Hostility or indifference? The marginalization of homeschooling in the education profession." Peabody Journal of Education 88.3 (2013): 355-364. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/0161956X.2013.798510

Ice, Christa L., and Kathleen V. Hoover-Dempsey. "Linking parental motivations for involvement and student proximal achievement outcomes in homeschooling and public schooling settings." Education and Urban Society 43.3 (2011): 339-369. Retrieved from http://iowaascd.org/files/8413/2598/4961/Linking_Parental_Motivations_for_Involvement.pdf

Kunzman, Robert. "Education, schooling, and children's rights: The complexity of homeschooling." Educational Theory 62.1 (2012): 75-89. Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1741-5446.2011.00436.x

Long, Douglas E. et al. "The assessment of physical activity and nutrition in homeschooled versus public schooled children." Pediatric Exercise Science 22.1 (2010): 44-59.

Medlin, Richard G. "Homeschooling and the question of socialization revisited." Peabody Journal of Education 88.3 (2013): 284-297. Retrieved from https://www.stetson.edu/artsci/psychology/media/medlin-socialization-2013.pdf

Muldowney, Hanna Maria. The operation of cooperative education for homeschooled children: The quality homeschools cooperative as a case study. Texas A&M University, 2011.

Powell, Douglas R., et al. "Parent-school relationships and children's academic and social outcomes in public school pre-kindergarten." Journal of School Psychology 48.4 (2010): 269-292.

Ray, Brian D. "Research Facts on Homeschooling." National home education research institute (2015). Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED556234.pdf

Topor, David R., et al. "Parent involvement and student academic performance: A multiple mediational analysis." Journal of prevention & intervention in the community 38.3 (2010): 183-197.