Introduction
Homeschooling can be considered as a progressive movement around the country and the world in general, where parents choose to have their children educated at home rather sending them to the traditional private or public schools. Families that prefer home schooling do so due to various reasons. Such reasons include having different religious beliefs or educational philosophy, dissatisfaction with traditional schooling options available and issues like the belief that children are not progressing well enough within the confines of traditional school setting (Ray, p 50).
History of home schooling
For many centuries, homeschooling was actually the only available option for most people to access education. Actually for the case of the United States, before the government got into the educational business, homeschooling was the only option and was quite common. The parents were solely responsible for the task of upbringing and educating their children. The children were to be taught either by their very determined parents, private tutors, or taught in small groups by a parent or a hired tutor, or a combination of all these options. The education system was extremely efficient. By the time of the American Revolution, literacy was already at nearly 97%. The public got most of their information through local publications of newspaper publications. The discussions in the public about some of the public issues raised in the Federalist papers were an indication of a literate nation (Wichers, p 145).
Education and socialization of children around those eras were among the two major driving forces that pushed the Pilgrims to make the difficult decision to move away from Holland. The Pilgrims had religious freedom in Holland but were quickly losing their children to the secular Dutch society. The Pilgrims cognizant of those facts made the dangerous and arduous journey in the Mayflower in order to create a situation where they could direct their children education and socialization. This is a classic example of homeschooling practiced in the earliest times in history. From those period until the mid-1800s parents in the U.S decided, when, where and how their children were to be educated (D'Escoto, p 18).
The history of homeschooling today is viewed with both skepticism and hope. Some of the questions that arise from the skeptics is about the legitimacy of this form of education. However, going by the statistics the indication that homeschooled students outperformed those who attended structured schools in a number of areas is quite evident. Looking at the history some of the greatest men to ever live were homeschooled at some point in their lives. Alexander the Great is the first known case of home schooling that is way back in the 350BC, Abraham Lincoln received 18 months in the 1830s. In year around 1900s, majority of states in the U.S begin adopting a compulsory education system. The mid 1960s the homeschooling movements emerged. By around 1980s about half America had legalized homeschooling and by the year 1993 homeschooling was legal in every state (D'Escoto, p 22).
The history of modern homeschooling is one that can be traced back to the year 1970s when an educational theorist and ardent supporter rigorous educational reform, John Holt began the argument that formal schooling in the traditional sense focused on rote learning which in turn created an oppressive classroom environment that is especially tailored to make the good children compliant employees. The educational theorist, Holt called for parents to liberate their children from the yokes of formal classroom and instead embrace a method that is known as “unschooling” in today’s sense. The early Holt “children liberation movement” followers kept in touch through John Holt’s newsletter popularly referred to as ‘Growing Without Schooling which was founded in the year 1977 (Pearl, p 23).
Methodologies and Approaches
Homeschools adopt a number of methods and styles of teaching. Many of the homeschooling programs adopt a combination of the methods after discovering what works best, how, when and with whom. They use community resources. This is a methodology employed in the homeschooling where parents use community like public libraries, museums and so forth to create cooperative homeschooling community (Linsenbach, p 28). Another commonly employed methodology is unschooling and natural learning. Parents on this method pay focus on the “learning moments” in their children’s daily activities. This involves paying particular attention to children and teaching them based on what is happening at the moment instead of bombarding them with tons of information unnecessarily. Another method is known as autonomous learning. This is where homeschooled students decide what and which projects they wish to tackle at the moment and or what projects are of particular interest to them for them to pursue. Another method is called the unit studies, this is where parents use multiple subjects like science, history, geography and such to teach their students about one topic like movement of animals (Bauer, p 25). Another method is the all in one curricula. This form of homeschooling technique is similar or in a way identical to the formal conventional school’s curricula. The other method is student paced learning. This is a form of homeschooling where a student is allowed to progress at their own pace. Finally, the other homeschooling technique is online education. This is where homeschoolers can access specialized teachers and special materials online. While the methods and styles of homeschooling are numerous because of the freedom given to the parent to experiment from what would seem like an endless array of educational styles (Duvall et al.). The five main approaches to home schooling in alphabetical order are discussed below.
Charlotte Mason. This approach of homeschooling is centered around the idea that children have the right and deserve to be respected and let to learn from real life situations and first-hand accounts of events. The inventor of this method of learning Mason, believed that the knowledge of God as contained in the Bible is the most important to impact to a child. This approach is divided into three philosophical spheres that of “atmosphere” Discipline” and “life”. It is a philosophy whose intention is educating the student as whole instead of the mind alone (Kunzman, p 76).
Classical. This approach of homeschooling help creating learning opportunities around three issues learning and thinking main focus of this stage is facts absorption, analytical stage building arguments and learning logic and critical thinking and finally abstract stage where the student is taught who to be independent and meticulous in thinking and communicating (Bauer, p 15).
Eclectic. This approach to home schooling is basically what we would call hodge-podge of several different learning styles. This approach is at times referred to as “Relaxed Homeschooling”. This approach is typically based on what the parents decide based on various homeschooling ideas. It is an approach that gives one a ley way to start an educational foundation based on own views on what constitutes a well-educated person and then building on that foundation (Pearl, p 19).
The fifth approach is Unschooling. This approach is also known as “Child Led Learning” or simply natural learning this approach does not employ use of any curriculum or any scheduled or formal lessons structure. The approach founded by the educational theorist John Holt is based on a philosophy that a child will best learn arithmetic, language, art, science and such in the same way and manner they learn how to talk and walk. The unschoolers are at all times encouraged to pursue their interests and passion, employing learning as their curiosity is piqued through daily events and experiences (Rivero, p 29).
Homeschooling maybe the fastest growing form of education not only in the United States but also in many other nations including Australia, France, Hungary, Russia, Thailand, China, Canada, The U.K, Japan and South Korea. Looking at the demographics of people that are homeschooled in include Christians, atheists, conservatives, liberals, low income and high income families alike. In the United States according to a report released 2015 “Digest of Educational Statistics” by the National Center for Educational Statistics, the 940-page comprehensive report detailing the recent educational trends and data, indicates that in the year 2012 there were about 1.77 million students who were homeschooled. This is a whopping 61.8% increase from the number of homeschooled students in 2003 (Webmaster).
The upsurge in the number of parents and students opting for homeschooled form of education has been nothing short of dramatic. In a research conducted in 1999 the NCES estimated that only 850, 000 students were homeschooled in the united states representing only 1.7% of the U.S student population. According to the 2015 NCES report 3.4% of the total student population are homeschooled. This is an equivalent of 108.6% increase from the 1999 estimates. The report also provides interesting facts and statistics about homeschooled families. One interesting finding is over 54% of homeschooled students come from families with three or more siblings compared to 40% of the non-homeschooled population. The report also indicates that common or accepted across different socioeconomic backgrounds; it notes that about 35% of homeschooled student hail from households with less than $50, 000, 26% from those between $50,000 and $75,000 and 39% from households with above $75,000. While in the midst of this finding one very clear finding is that home schooling is more popular than ever before (Webmaster).
Homeschooling is becoming a one of the most popular forms of education and homeschooled parents especially mothers are very excited about the opportunity to school their kids at home. It can only be hoped that the trend of home schooling will continue to help improve education across the continent in whole.
Works Cited
Ray, Brian D. “Customization Through Homeschooling.” Educational Leadership 59.7 (2002): 50. Print.
Bauer, S W, and Jessie Wise. The Well-Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home. New York: W.W. Norton & Co, 2004. Print.
Duvall, Steven F., Joseph C. Delquadri, and Lawrence Ward D. “A Preliminary Investigation of the Effectiveness of Homeschool Instructional Environments for Students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.” Questia, n.d. Web. 4 Apr. 2016.
Blumenfeld, Samuel L. Homeschooling: A Parent’s Guide to Teaching Children. Secaucus, N.J: Carol Pub. Group, 1999. Print.
Wichers, Michelle. “Homeschooling: Adventitious or Detrimental For Proficiency in Higher Education.” Education 122. 1 (2001): 145. Print.
Kunzman, Robert. Education, Schooling, and Children's Rights: The Complexity of Homeschooling. Educational Theory, 62. 1 (2012): 75–89. Print.
D'Escoto, David, and Kim D'Escoto. The Little Book of Big Reasons to Homeschool. Nashville, Tenn: B & H Pub. Group, 2007. Print.
Linsenbach, Sherri. The Everything Homeschooling Book: All You Need to Create the Best Curriculum and Learning Environment for Your Child. Avon, Mass: Adams Media Corp, 2010. Internet resource.
Pearl, Debi. The Big Book of Homeschooling. Pleasantville, TN: No Greater Joy Ministries, 2014. Print.
Rivero, Lisa. Creative Home Schooling for Gifted Children: A Resource Guide. Scottsdale, AZ: Great Potential Press, 2002. Print.
Webmaster, THSC. "New Report Reveals Explosive Growth of Home Schooling Across United States". Texas Home School Coalition - THSC. N.p., 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.
