Lately there has been a lot of discussion about the issue of homeschooling versus more traditional methods of schooling. Proponents of homeschooling point to statistics saying that home-schooled children tend to be more well adjusted than traditionally schooled children. Also, the point to the statistic that children who received a home education generally outperform "at least 70 to 80 their conventionally scored peers" on standardized tests (Gathercole). Opponents of homeschooling, however, generally say that homeschoolers generally fall into three categories: "left-wing unschoolers and right-wing religious fundamentalists"or "middle-of-the-road suburbanites"(Reich). Both sides can agree that there is an incorrect stereotype of home-schooled children being socially inept, undereducated, and unprepared for the real world.
So what are the key issues associated with homeschooling? The most important issues include quality of education and the social implications of homeschooling. Why the former of these issues is important is obvious; parents want the best possible education for their child no matter what medium of education they choose. the implications here vary on a case-by-case basis. There are some parents out there who are more than qualified to teach their children and may do so if they wish, but there are always those who are under-qualified to teach theirs or anybody else's children. It's these parents, these stay-a-home moms with all the free time in the world who insist that their little Johnny is too smart for public school who think that teaching is only a glorified babysitting job, who are the ones that are really going to screw their kid up.
The social implications of homeschooling are the second key issue to be considered. Parents can provide positive, reinforcing social interactions with other local homeschoolers (assuming there are any) and set little Jimmy or Sally up for a large self-confidence boost and sunshine and rainbows everywhere they look, but seriously, is this kind of control over your child's interactions such a good thing? What happens when he or she meets his very first jerk? His or her first idiot? How will they handle it when they're thrown into a world filled with the worst and best kind of people when all they've experienced before is what their parents wanted them to experience. As Mary Elizabeth says in her article "Cons of Homeschooling" on the website educationbug.org, homeschooling simply cannot "provide the diversity of social contacts that a public or private school does." I just personally can't see homeschooling as a feasible option, though everybody else is entitled to their own opinions.
