Should Regulations for Home Schools Be Changed - Essay Example

Should Regulations for Home Schools be changed? Should Regulations for Home Schools be changed? The US appears as the country with most educated people to the rest of the world. But, many would be surprised to know that the US laws does not require all the parents to send their children to school. But, they require all parents to provide some type of education to their children. There are approximately 1.7 to 2 million children in the US being homeschooled by their parents (Brian, 2002). The number of homeschoolers is growing considerably by 9% every year (Mathews, 2009). Whether homeschooling should be standardized or not is an ongoing debate. Homeschooling should be a permissible option, but it should be strictly regulated, not based on academic curriculum but based on some basic skills acquired by the child for normal living. For example, occasional tests can ensure the child is exposed to alternative ideas in religion and culture. Conducting personal interviews with the child to examine its language, general knowledge and math skills are up to the mark will also help. Regulations need not target when, where and how a child should be educated as the whole point of home schooling is to teach outside the classroom. Biological facts can be learned anywhere from farms and kitchen to garden while language classes can extend to theatres and libraries. Some parents can choose to educate their children based on their interest instead of making them spend time in all regular subjects. So the curriculum and the way of teaching should be left to the parent’s choice. But, care should be taken to ensure every kid is progressing constantly in their selected field. Background of Homeschooling Before getting into the debate whether the regulations for home schooling should be changed let us see the origin of homeschooling the US. People have been training children in their homes for centuries. Modern schools started to appear widely only in the beginning of this century. However many people started to doubt the reliability of the education provided in the modern public and private schools by 1960s. Modern homeschooling movements especially religion based ones started to appear opposing the governments stand to send every child to school. Conservatives felt public and private schools have sold themselves to secularism and their children should not be forced to attend them. By early 1990 home schooling movements have won the right to educate their children in all the states. Though each state government has different laws regarding home schooling all of them permit both religion based as well as non-religious home schooling. Homeschooling is quite popular among conservative families in the Great Britain and a few selected groups in Germany. But only a few thousands are home schooled in Great Britain while nearly 200 children are homeschooled in Germany (Rhodes, 2012). The number is very high in the US only compared to any other country in the world. Though it might seem like only celebrity kids like Jaden Smith and Cheyenne Kimball are being homeschooled, the reality is much different. Students from all economic background are being homeschooled. Some are homeschooled for special needs because they are slow learners or have physical disabilities. Others are homeschooled because their parents have practical issues in commuting or ethical issues with the way the public and the private schools operate (Klicka, 2004). With security concerns in many public schools being an issue and student massacres like in Connecticut becoming very common many parents feel it safe to educate their children on their own. Differing State Laws Homeschooling parents do not have a standard regulation all through the nation. Certain states like Pennsylvania and New York have appointed various agencies to oversee the homeschooling parents. The parents have to submit everything from the academic curriculum they are choosing to the personal qualification of the tutor to the state recognition. The students should take up private tests and will be subjected to occasional visits by authorities to check their learning environment. But, this is not the case with all the states. There is no need to register or get any permission to home school children in Michigan and Indiana (Gaither, 2009). Some states like Tennessee require the parents to register with certain approved homeschooling organizations and educate the children on their own style. Setting up a Standard All the parents homeschooling their children should be required to register. Though they are free to choose their own curriculum and mode of teaching, some sort of attendance systems ensuring every child is educated for certain hours a day should be maintained. It doesn’t matter whether the class is in garden or a traditional setup. The parents can login their attendance hours through a time tracker or use relevant software online to ensure certain hours of ‘school hours’ are allotted every day. Homeschooling students should not be subjected to normal classroom tests. Social workers or allotted authorities should rate the child based on its individual skills. A homeschooler, who is an expert in music might lack behind in language skills. They cannot be labelled dumb for that reason. If the child is failing to show basic skills and minimal progress continuously the parents should be forced to bring in tutors with good qualification or agree to send the child to normal school. The tutor can be made to teach single or a group of students online or directly for particular hours every day. The curriculum followed by the parents should have ‘value pluralism’ (Reich, 2005). Parents should not be allowed to train their children to believe what they think is right. The child should have basic knowledge about alternate religions, sexuality and various cultures. The parents should not be forced to submit their curriculum to the state. But, if the child does not show knowledge about alternate ideas in its evaluation, the parents should agree to include recommended topics in their curriculum. There are several advantages in following such regulations. The main advantage is that proper attendance and testing based on individual skills will give the parents more control over the homeschooling method. At the same time, it will make them recognize their responsibility too. Like any education system homeschooling has its own pros and cons. Most of the parents teach their kids basic subjects like, arts, music and language well. But, they struggle when it comes to advanced technological education or teaching mathematics. Robert Kunzman who did extensive research on the topic lists three main issues related to the system. Homeschooled children face a dilemma when their parents especially the one in control of their education separate. The children are made to explore many things on their own including complex formulas. It is not a problem during primary education. But a relevant teacher is required to explain these things in spite of ample online material in higher standards (Kunzman, 2009). If the homeschooling children’s parents choose to work for economical reasons, they find it very hard to coach their students well. Following attendance system will ensure the child gets regular education everyday from the parent or the assigned tutor. This will help them continue with their studies without interruption even if their parents separate or choose to pursue a career. The parents will be forced to arrange an alternate for the fear of missing on required attendance to coach their students. Bringing in recognized tutors if the child does not show progress will result in the homeschooled children getting professional help if they lag behind in studies. It does not force them to go to school giving certain control on their education to their parents still. The professional help will be valuable for them in understanding advanced concepts. Study shows that at least one parent stays back to coach the children in most of the homeschooling houses. The economic conditions of the homeschooling parents also mirror the economic conditions of children studying in the public schools. Certain communities like the African Americans and the Islamists home school their children because the public schools treat them partially. Parents who do not want their children to get hurt by social disparities can make the best use of the above mentioned regulations like attendance, value pluralistic curriculum and individual assistance. National African-American Homeschoolers Alliance, which was started in 2003 reported enrolling more than 3000 homeschoolers within three years. Many African American students who do badly in public schools do quite well when they are homeschooling. Individual assessments and flexible timings for learning are the main things which attract the students and the parents to this organization. These regulations will also ensure the children are not abused by the parents or surrogate parents and denied education in the name of homeschooling. Conclusion Homeschooling was once seen a costly option reserved for kids involved in sports, modelling and acting. It was stamped just as religious education and as “unschooling” for many years. But, the public opinion have changed widely now. Most of the parents, who were ridiculed and tortured in high schools, prefer to give a better environment to learn for their children. Home schooling is the best option for such people. Amending the laws related to home schooling slightly will help the parents manage time better from the very beginning of home teaching. Individual assessments and curriculum with value pluralism will ensure every child gets the right to education in a safe and loving environment free from the threats and pressures of the outer world. The government and the parents should work together to draw norms applicable to both the side in this issue. References 1. Brian D. Ray. (2002). A quick reference worldwide guide to homeschooling: Facts and stats on the benefits of home school. TN: Broadman & Holman. 2. Gaither, M. (2009). Home Schooling Goes Mainstream. Education Next. Retrieved February 15th, 2013 from http://educationnext.org/home-schooling-goes-mainstream/ 3. Kunzman, R. (2009).Write These Laws On Your Children: Inside the World of Conservative Christian Homeschooling. Beacon Press. 4. Klicka, C. (2004). Home Schooling in the United States: A Legal Analysis. Purcerville, VA: HSLDA. 5. Mathews, J. (2009). Three Smart Rules for Home School Regulation. Class Struggle. Retrieved February 15th, 2013 from The Washington Post http://voices.washingtonpost.com/class-struggle/2009/08/three_smart_rules_for_home_sch.html 6. Reich, R. (2005). Why Homeschooling Should Be Regulated. Stanford University. 7. Rhodes, A. (2012). Debates. This House Supports Home Schooling. Retrieved February 15th, 2013 from idea International Debate Education Association http://idebate.org/debatabase/debates/education/house-believes-home-schooling Read More