socialization

since this topic comes up regularly, thought I'd start a new thread, and begin with this wonderful article I found

http://www.homeschool.com/articles/Socialization/default.asp

 

Good article. I believe our younger, homeschooled children are better socialized than the ones educated in the public school system. They seem to have higher self esteem and be more confident than their older siblings did at this age and I think are less apt to be influenced by peers in negative ways.

 

* bump*

 

I'll throw in on the opposite side of the spectrum:

Every kid I've ever met who went through many years of homeschooling (especially all 12 years) had something fundamentally flawed with them.

 

those "flaws" are called individuality. Something public schools do a very good job of eliminating from the mindless horde.

 

I agree about school removing individuality. I went back to public school in the middle of 7th grade after being homeschooled from the beginning of 3rd grade. I was (and am) what most people would consider a hippy, I was a vegetarian at the time, my favorite material for clothing was cordiroy, I preffered a loose style dress and listened to the Grateful Dead all of the time and made up stories about elves during class.
I knew tons of people, all extremely "odd" and then all of the sudden I was living day to day getting up at an exact time and going to school with the inbread puerto rican ghetto kids who all dressed the same! Shit, I think I missed my point, which is that something happened to them and something happened to them, not to say my life is perfect it's far from it, but something happened through all of my years unschooling I thought for myself and worried about only my own opinion and they just sort of conformed and they all seemed the same. And that it could be possible the school system played into the minds of young kids and they got into eachothers minds and it was like a supreme force that molded togother but in multiple bodies to all do the same thing and talk with Boston/ Newbedford accents.
pardon my rambling, I've been up for nearly 50 hours.

 

Severe social retardation might be considered an original trait, but that doesn't make it something I want to have. (The only guy I "know" who went his whole life homeschooled is being charged with both sexual harassment and assault because he doesn't know how to deal with people.)

What exactly is your specific argument against public schools?

 

I'm not arguing against schools, I'm arguing for homeschool. Just read the article, and then maybe we can discuss what it says.

 

Just goes to show everyone's different.

 

Ok brothers and sisters you can not say that all public schools remove individuality because that is 100% WRONG. There are public monnessory(sp?) schools that are based on individuality. The child dictates what he/she wants to learn. If that's not encouraging individuality, then I have no clue what form of schooling would allow a child to explore who she/he is. Do not concentrate on traditional public schools because there are many other public schools that take a different route to education. I'm an education major and I'm planning on teaching at a public monnessory school.

 

And if we could all afford to send our kids to Montessori or Waldorf style schools, I'm sure that many more of us would.

But I agree - not all schools are created equal. I'm sure we can all agree on that.
love,
mom

 

There are FREE public montessori schools in some districts. Mostly, in city areas.

 

WOW!!! You are so lucky! We have nothing like that here.
love,
mom

 

My 6 y/o daughter actually technically attends public school. She in enrolled in the Interior Distance Education of Alaska (IDEA). It is a program for educating kids in bush Alaska administrated by the Galena City School District. It a way cool homeschool program that gives so many dollars to spend on whatever curriculum we want providing it is not religious based and meets the state's requirements. We have chosen a Montessori program. With this we are also given vouchers to spend on electives or PE. She takes Spanish once a week and does ballet, all paid for with state money.

 

i heard about this program. it sounds amazing.

 

I definately agree with the article. School is a conformity hell-hole....

 

*bump*


(trying to dispell some myths without derailing other threads)
just read the article.... *sigh*

 

I don't think I'll ever understand how public school gained this reputation as the great socializer.

 

Great article. I know for myself public school completely burned me out socially. When I was 15/16 I asked my mom if I could be homeschooled, she did not agree. I always felt stifled in the school environment. Because school is x amount of hours, and so heavily structured, there is not a lot of time to develop who you are socially and learn about how to socialize with other people.

Sure you socialize with your teachers and classmates, but it's very limited, it's very "in the meantime" or "while we're at it" socializing. There's too many constraints to fully discover what effective communication could be.

And then after school you have to spend the majority of your time on school stuff. I always wanted to get out into the community, meet people that didn't go to my school, see what people were living like outside of my social circle. But there was never time for that. There wasn't time for me to learn what I wanted or what I was interested in either.

And the tight socialization of school is what made me drop out for a few months when I was 16. It happened to quite a few of my friends as well. And I wasn't even picked on. It wasn't just the students, it was also the teachers. I felt crowded and yet alone socially. There was so much I could not say, and so much that I had to say and listen to.

And I don't think that all schools are like that, or that all kids react to it that way. But I would have far more social skills if I wasn't forced to interact socially in one way only, in the public school I went to.

Later I ended up going to another public school and I met a friend there who'd been homeschooled all her life but decided to go to public school as part of the arts program. She had all the social skills that had been squeeze out of me. She was nice, well articulated, fun, expressive etc. etc.

Another friend of mine who dropped out because of the same reason I did, was allowed to homeschool and she didn't lose one ounce of her social skills and she immediately did a lot better with her school work and did not have a problem with motivation which had been a problem for her while she was in public school. She was also able to get a job, take up a couple hobbies, and meet older people who shared with her things about their lives when they were younger, and it helped her to start acting more responsibly and value her life and stop being reckless.

So those are the things that influence my liking towards homeschooling. Mostly social.

 

i'm more than a little surprised that that article indicates that a home schooled child will have access to people of all different ages, backgrounds, and races - that is one really well balanced socialization scheme! i know that when i was growing up and say, took art lessons in the community college or took sport lessons outside of school, i was generally only exposed to people like me - white, middle class, not really a varied background in the bunch. but in my public school classes, there was amazing diversity - just like in the outside-school world.

has it honestly been the experience of many of you homeschooling parents that your kids interact daily with people of different races, backgrounds (as in, children whose parents range from people working minimum wage or being on welfare up to parents with Ph.D.s) and ages?

now i'm sure one could say that home schooled children see people of different backgrounds when they go to the grocery store or shopping or something like that, but that's not really what i mean. i am talking about forming friendships, interacting and having to live and make decisions with people of various backgrounds and etc.