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There's been a rising epidemic in the US. No, it's not obesity. It's not smoking. It's not our failing economy. It's homeschooling. Homeschooling, on paper, seems like a great idea, but let me tell you that in action homeschooling is anything but an ideal curriculum.

First and foremost, is the issue of socialization. Blind parents that home school often deny this; but you simply can't. With the job my father is in, I interact with tons of children that are homeschooled, and while they are all nice and respectful, I know that if they spent even a day in a real school, they would be torn apart. They simply lack the social skills needed to make it through life. While homeschooling does allow the parents to shield their children from temptations and potentially poor decisions, it also doesn't give the homeschooled child a mind of his or her own. The homeschooled child doesn't know how to deal with situations when they come up.

I distinctly remember one time I was with a homeschooled child about my age. We were just a little ways off from our parents; far enough that no one could tell we were affiliated with them, but close enough so they could see us. A group of skaters took a quick stop near us, and loudly and rudely began a conversation filled with cussing. Cussing is an obstacle in my day to day life. My personal friends cuss. But it's life, and while you can hint them on that you don't think cussing is cool, there certainly are wrong ways to handle the situation. The homeschooled child, having never seen a scenario like this, quickly walked over to them and condemned them, telling them not to say those words and how evil they were. Needless to say, I quickly dragged him away and into the relative safety near our parents, where the skaters were staring at us. I strongly believe that if I hadn't been there, he would have been beat up.

It's not that homeschooled impolite or shy. No, it's just the opposite. It's just that they've never had a chance to truly interact with others on a day to day basis; to truly be a kid. Thus, they can't relate to other children. Maybe other homeschooled children who lack that same social skills, but that's it. As they grow up in this solitary lifestyle, they'll never develop the maturity and understand the unspoken laws of society. They'll be shielded too much from society; I've seen it happen over and over. And when they finally head off to a public high school or college, they are torn apart. It's because their parents did a great

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