There seems to be much to admire about
homeschooling. I very much agree with many
ideas expressed by Eric Alan in his article
entitled Lear
ning Without Schools. I highly recommend
reading it. He puts alot of issues out
front, although I still find it a bit
antiseptic...maybe even a little too
"objective." Some of his statements can be
taken or interpreted in alternative ways than
he does. He'd probably say that his
intention wasn't to provide all
interpretations...but he still tends to
accept too much at face value...at least for
my critical bent. I'm interested in how
others might see this. Yet, again, Alan does
present some ideas for thought and discussion
in a very good way.
One of the reasons I'm particularly interested in this topic is that my wife and I have been discussing the possibility that we will homeschool our 2 year old daughter when it comes time. We are both very critical of the formal "schooling" system on all levels...including college which I have taught for the last 15 years. The authoritarian structure of social relations between teachers and students is, we believe, distructive of values we will need in order to survive in something other than a hierarchial society in the future. The status-oriented relations between students is evident to anyone spending more than a day in a "modern" school. The "memorization--regurgitation" syndrome which passes for "learning" is useless in terms of leading students to think for themselves. I could go on...but suffice to say that there is much I/we don't like about schools...all giving us reasons for considering homeschooling as an alternative for Elizabeth. So, this interest is more than academic to me. We have a 13 year old about to begin highschool and I have three older children who all went through the "system." I'm wondering if I should subject the littliest one to it, too.
There is one other major reason for our
consideration of homeschooling...the
nationalistic, capitalistic, and religious
propaganda expoused in American schools.
Along with this is the almost total lack of
critical analysis of these issues...what
passes for critical thinking in our schools
is what's loosely called "problem-solving."
But this is hardly critical thought that is
open to differences about these matters.
Most problem-solving is thinly veiled
"adjustment-theory" which helps weed out
those who can't or won't "fit in" the way
they're "suppose to" in order to get along.
Those who do "adjust" are rewarded with the
promise of success (usually financial and
status)...IF they continue to do the
necessary things to "be as others want or
need them to be." Anyway, what I'm getting
at here is that homeschooling represents an
opportunity to not have to expose Elizabeth
to this ideological and paradigmatic
propaganda. In other words, homeschooling
seems to be a chance to allow her to think
openly and for herself. Let me repeat
that...homeschooling, to
me, is an opportunity that would permit a
child to actually learn about the world AS IT
IS...instead of how the ruling class or elite
of this society wants it to seem. It
would not close off any values or ideas, but
rather, open them up to learning, scrutiny,
and analysis...with judgments or conclusions
being derived from this process. But herein
lies the rub, so to speak.
One of the major reasons given by
homeschoolers for doing it is to instill a
specific set of ideas and values in their
children. Further, this seems to include the
desire to exclude other values and ideas...to
somehow "protect" their kids from them...by
not letting them be exposed to them (or
probably to be able to present them as the
"bad" versus their own "good"). The problem
I see with this is that it is, to me, the
exact opposite of what a
developing child needs. Humanistic
psychology and sociology presents us with a
very different set of requirements for human
growth. While these fields of study are
hardly monolithic in their views, a common
thread running through them is to help a
child understand their world in all its
diversity so they can make their own critical
decisions about it and themselves. The
"shelter" perspective wants to shield kids
from the "is" because of "belief" and
"disdain." The results of the national
studies (and local ones) which show that
homeschooled kids "measure up" on many
different standards compared to "schooled"
children don't deal with "critical abilities"
as I mean them here. Yes, many can "think"
and seem well-rounded...even the
socialization issue seems moot. But can they discern ideology
from reality? A well adjusted
homeschooled kid is no different than a
well-adjusted schooled kid...to me. I've
seen too many well-adjusted college students
who can't think their way out of a wet paper
bag. Whether homeschooled or simply
schooled, their shock and surprise at
realizing they've been hoodwinked and
possibly lied to is very common. Their sense
of self is shaken...as it should be when
they've been told they "are" what others
merely want and need them to be. In short,
the "sheltering" kind of homeschooling
doesn't do anything different than the
propagandizing schools most of our kids
attend...in fact, they do the same thing.
Let me be even more direct...concerning
religious "sheltering." It seems that the
great, great majority of homeschooling
advocates do so for religious reasons. Eric
Alan says that 65% of Oregon homeschooling
parents do it for religious reasons...to
instill and protect their own religious
values in their children...by excluding any
other perspectives which might infringe on
the ability of the kids to "learn" or "know"
their parent's "truth." I'm currently trying
to find some national data on the religious
motivation for homeschooling. But for now,
lets accept the 65% as a national figure
(hey, maybe even reduce it to 50% to be
cautious). There are "christian" websites
promoting homeschooling...many not
surprisingly straightforward about protecting
or sheltering their kids from "secular
humanism." All this troubles me greatly.
This is the main reason I've always been a
bit skeptical about homeschooling. There's a
family living across the street which
homeschools for religious reasons...and one
other next door to them. They're very
private and stand-offish...adults and kids.
I see many kids come and go from their
house...apparently they "help" others shelter
their children, too. My point is I think
this is very dangerous and simply wrong when
it comes to raising a child.
There may be some of you who think I'm
being a hypocrite about this...or simply
anti-religion. But I don't think I am being
hypocritical...while at the same time trying
to be open about my doubts. I refer you back
to my position that homeschooling is about
broadening perspectives...from the narrow
ideological perspective presented in American
schools as "truth." I
don't think that religion-based homeschooling
is about broadening anything. Its about
getting kids to be like their parents...not
about letting them to grow into what they
want or can be. I want my kids to be
able to think for themselves according to
what they learn through expousure to the
world. Sheltering homeschoolers want their
kids to learn only that which fits into their
own assumed "beliefs" and values. I want my
kids to develop their own values based on
their own experiences in this hypocritical
country. The others want to promote their
own views and the expense of a fuller view of
reality.
Make no mistake...I
personally think that religious training is
the ultimate in subtle abuse of
children...but I'm as critical of
anyone homeschooling their kids when it
results in the narrowing of understanding by
those kids...whether religious based or
otherwise. Its just that the reality is that
religion seems to be the dominant reason that
homeschooling takes place...and I think its
wrong. What do you think and say?
