Home School Education Versus Public School Education in the USA - Term Paper Example

? Home school education versus public school education in U.S In the past and present times, many parents often get caught up when deciding where their children should get their education. In the U.S, education could be provided both in public schools and at homes. Parents have always been on the fix of deciding which of the two remains as the best choice for their children (Bell, 2008). In as much as by default parents take their children to schools to learn since they see other parents doing the same, but have they sat down and wondered about the advantages they could also gain from home schooling their children. Both home schooling education and public school education possess their advantages and disadvantages. Children learning in public schools often socialize a lot with others hence assisting them in their development. Part of a child’ developmental milestones involve the ability to socialize with other people. In the society, people often learn to interact with one another at different levels through socialization. In relation to home schooling, people often have the notion that children that pass through such a system often do not develop the socialization aspect well (Bell, 2008). They claim that children home school do not turn out to be smart due to lack of socialization and knowing more about their environment and people that live around them. Some times people often mistake smartness for being able to interact and socialize with other people. For many that is not the case, they believe that children in home schooling socialize a lot compared in terms of the public school setting socializing concept (Bell, 2008). Socialization in public schools often remains discouraged as most schools stick to the major goal of why they became established, to educate the children. In an attempt to make children knowledgeable in public schools, many educators have gone astray to ensure that socialization is discouraged in such institutions (Bell, 2008). Public schooling often possesses specific time tables for learning which the children must follow without rebelling. In class, it is often the interaction between teacher and children that becomes enhanced, but not between children. In a class setting, children are often expected to be quite at all times while the teacher provides them with the necessary education. Furthermore, in terms of socialization, there often some social stratification that exists in public schools hindering education of some children. Take for instance a black child going to a school full of white children. Such a child at a tender age might become a victim of racial discrimination resulting to him or her dropping out or grades falling. Another form of stratification that might exists in public schools could be on the basis of Home schooling children often turn out to be smart compared to children who have passed through public schooling since they take their time in understanding concepts which they read. In a home setting, children are not under stress to perform, but to acquire the basic education necessary to enable them pass. In public schools for instance that follow certain rules and guidelines, some children might not be able to follow them thereby being misjudged as defiant children. Once a child acquires a given bad name associated with him or her, sometimes he or she becomes the laughing stock of others and sometimes an outcast. I n addition, such children are often given special attention to problems they experience (Bell, 2008). Contrasting with a child that has undergone education via a public school, with the high population in such schools, the teachers and tutors often find a difficult time interacting at personal level with the children hence rendering some children limited to access education services. Children in a public school are often generalized and do not become treated like those children in home schools (Bell, 2008). Children in public schools often go unattended in case they have personal problems resulting in psychological problems like stress and depression. An excellent example could be of a kid that shot some of his classmates on the basis that he became disgusted with them bullying him. In such a scenario, if the teachers were personal in addressing the individual problems of their students, they could have addressed the problem in time and avoided such calamities. Therefore, one would agree that home schooling at some point could be beneficial in the upbringing of children. In addition, through public schooling, various children acquire various habits from their friends that they would not have acquired when they were under home schooling. In public schools, there often exists the element of peer pressure (Bell, 2008). Sometimes kids with morally upright parents meet with children that are immoral and acquire their habits, for example smoking, drinking, and many more. Public schools often turn out to be hot spots for children to acquire immoral behaviors giving excellent reasons for parents to take their children for home schooling. In addition, through home schooling, parents and tutors are able to put surveillance on their children hence growing up into morally up right children. In public schools, the major concern being the provision of education to the children, moral support becomes left out for the children to feign for themselves (Bell, 2008). Children that pass through public schools have been proven to gain some behaviors, which if had been home schooled, would not have acquired them. A lot of parents hence find home schooling advantageous in raising a morally upright student apart from the education the child gets. This has become a heated topic among parents as they do not only wish to raise educated children, but morally upright too. Homeschooling often provides children with extensive opportunities to interact with various people at personal level. Children at home interact with their environment and people around them in a manner that is expected in life (Bell, 2008). They try to experience life practically. Furthermore, they interact with people of all ages and backgrounds therefore making them smarter and better in handling social aspects better compared to children who learn in public schools. Public school children often remain contained in classrooms and hence do not interact well with their environment. Home school going children often participate actively in the real aspects of the world compared to public school going children (Bell, 2008). In addition, they become minimally exposed to bullying hence growing more confident about themselves in life. In accordance to some studies conducted on home educated students, some researchers found out that the home educated students often became more capable and independent of thinking. This student show respect to others and appreciate their academics at all cost. This remains the reason why colleges recruit home schooled children actively. In home schooling, the curriculum could be designed to fit the child’s academic needs. In public schools, this is not the point as it generalizes the concept of education and other assumptions often become made. A custom designed curriculum often ensures that such children become capable of working at their own pace, instead of being graded like in public schools. Some children in public schools often do not take their time to understand certain concepts in education, but rather indulge in cheating for the sake of passing (Bell, 2008). In having the grading system in public schools, often limits some students from learning. Such a custom designed curriculum for such students often serves them best as the children are able to progress at their own pace without stress of being graded. Hence, a home schooled student often turns out to become more successful since time is spent on understanding certain concepts that they did not get. A public school often follows certain programme that often becomes expected to be completed by a given time (Bell, 2008). At the end of the give time, such students are given exams and become graded on the basis of the results to indicate their level of understanding. Such tests might not be excellent in evaluating performance in such children since some cheat to pass. In conclusion, home school education appears to possess more advantages compared to public school education in terms of academic quality, socialization, moral levels, smartness and confidence (Bell, 2008). Student home schooled often turn out to be more successful compared to students from public universities due to the unique qualities that they possess. In addition, home schooled students turn out to become morally upright citizens that understand the value and importance of the education that they got. In terms of socialization, home schooled students often turn out to become better students in colleges as they socialize a lot while being at home with people of various levels and ages. Reference Bell, D. (2008). The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. New York: Thomas Nelson Inc. Read More