by Jimmy Flatbush

Created on: July 26, 2010

At one time perceived as a quickly passing fad, homeschooling is now considered a popular alternative to conventional education models. According to Department of Education estimates, 1.5 American students were homeschooled during the 2008-09 academic year. The National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI) research team concludes the number of homeschooled students is higher than government estimates, perhaps topping two million students during the same time frame. Instead of embracing the growing homeschooling trend, education leaders have increased their anti-homeschooling rhetoric in hope of containing the flight from traditional education institutions.

A number of factors play into the burgeoning homeschooling trend. First, the quality of American public education has dramatically decreased over the past twenty years. The reasons for the decline include lack of resources, poor teacher training, and the dilution of challenging curriculum. Second, public education has gotten on board the political correctness movement that started on Ivy League campuses back in the late 1980s. The propaganda disseminated by educators appalls many parents, and thus they pull their children out of traditional education venues in order to teach what they believe should be the building blocks of a quality education. Finally parents with children who have learning problems understand their children perform better in a focused one-on-one environment.

If your child has a condition that hinders education advancement, then you should carefully consider the benefits of homeschooling. For years, children diagnosed with ADD/ADHD were pumped full of psycho stimulants and forced to endure classroom lectures, while they squirmed in their seats, eyes fixed on extraneous stimuli. Once homeschooling became a viable option, parents began pulling their ADD/ADHD children out of classroom throughout the country. Homeschooling is really for you if your child has a learning impediment such as ADD/ADHD.

Here are three additional criteria to consider before deciding if homeschooling is really for you:

Resources

Homeschooling requires a substantial financial investment. Textbook costs alone can deter a parent from homeschooling their child, but additional finance draining costs include teaching supplements, student supplies, and extracurricular expenses. Remember that homeschooling does not exempt you from paying property taxes that fund public education, so you face the same financial dilemma

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>