High school homeschoolers, do you encounter this often...

[shanvan]

Again, at church, another homeschooling mom asked me how I was handling Ds's science this year (9th grade). After I responded that I was having him use Dive Biology (and explained what it is), she told me her daughter is taking Apologia at a local co-op meeting. Then she added that "It will actually give her highschool credits b/c it is being taught by a real teacher." I replied with "You do know that your Dd would get high school credits even if she did the work at home?" Her response was, I know but this is a real teacher. I guess she doesn't feel competent to teach it herself. I'll probably reach that point with later sciences. I'm outsourcing Latin so I don't have to try to keep up with it as much this year. But, I've never told anyone Ds is going to receive HS credits b/c he's taking a class with a real teacher.

 

She's not the first parent to say almost the identical words to me about many different classes. Do you encounter this? Do you think people actually believe that it is b/c of the class/teacher that their Dc are getting the credits, or are they just not thinking?

[Jean in Newcastle]

I think they think that a "real teacher" is more likely to make the class function at a high school level. Personally I've found this often works the other way. I've found that "real teachers" are often more thrown off track by the needs of individual students so that not everything is covered.

[jessicalb]

I think some people yank their kids, call it homeschooling, and have no idea what the actual laws and regulations are. :/

[Ellie]

Yes, I've encountered that. I try not to say "DUH," but boy howdy, it's hard sometimes to reply graciously!

 

I try to say something along the lines of how *I* am a "real teacher," and I give credit for whatever *I* want my dc to have credit for, and that I don't need an outside authority of any kind to validate what I'm doing. And I try to watch my tone of voice and not roll my eyes. :D

[G5052]

If I'm in a position to discourage this, I do though.

 

1. Homeschooling implies that a parent is in charge. So why is an outsider more "real" than a homeschooling parent? Even when mine take a paid class, I'm still accountable to the state and in charge. I monitor what they're doing and still have the final say.

 

2. The outside class may expect more or less than the parent. Outside isn't necessarily better ;).

[The Girls' Mom]

Yes, I have heard this a lot, especially in the area we live in now. It is partly ignorance and partly things they have been told that are incorrect.

[amy g.]

She is just ignorant.

 

I outsource many of my children's classes, and I am a real teacher.

 

I like them to get used to other teachers' expectations. I like them to be exposed to other belief systems and classroom discussions.

 

Most of all, I have a lot more years of homeschooling ahead of me, so I guard against burnout.

 

High school credit is not ever a reason I would outsource a class for my high schoolers.

[Rebel Yell]

Sometimes, when talking to casual acquaintances, I mention that Diamond took Bio w/labs at a co-op. It seems to make them happy to know that those things are available to those who want them. I ALWAYS add that co-op/outside teachers aren't required, but I rarely mention that they are almost always taught by "regular moms" often without a college/teaching degree. Just a love of the subject and an answer key. :D

 

[Mrs Mungo]

I just say, "uhhh...okay," and I let it go. You don't get anywhere with people like that.

[myfunnybunch]

It's not just homeschool parents that believe this. I volunteer on a scholarship selection committee in my state.

 

It has been an uphill battle convincing some of the other volunteers--people choosing whether students get hundreds or even thousands of dollars for college--that a high school credit given by a parent, particularly in science or math, is just as valid as a high school credit given by an outside teacher.

 

Here's what the non-homeschool world seems to believe, generally: Homeschool moms aren't able to teach rigorous high school level coursework, and just give their kids an A no matter what, so the credits are not as valid.

 

My internal response is "What-eveeeeeeer." Out loud I say that most homeschoolers are especially diligent about rigor and fairness in their high school coursework to guard against that particular prejudice. Then I try not to do this: :banghead:.

 

(Of course, the last time I said that, ten minutes later, we ran across a homeschooler's application in which the required essay directly contradicted the straight-A transcript. -----> :banghead::banghead::banghead: )

 

Cat

[justasque]

Homeschoolers are a big market now. If you can convince a mom that their child needs a "real teacher", you can make some money. Now I'd be the first to say that outsourcing to teachers ("real" or not) who have experience and training in the subjects they teach, especially for high school, can be a wonderful aspect of a homeschooling program. BUT - I hate to see folks think they *need* such things to get "credits" if they are graduating as a homeschooler.

[happi duck]

Homeschoolers are a big market now. If you can convince a mom that their child needs a "real teacher", you can make some money. Now I'd be the first to say that outsourcing to teachers ("real" or not) who have experience and training in the subjects they teach, especially for high school, can be a wonderful aspect of a homeschooling program. BUT - I hate to see folks think they *need* such things to get "credits" if they are graduating as a homeschooler.

 

:iagree:

 

and I hate the thought of people hearing a homeschool mom using the term 'real teacher'.

 

:tongue_smilie:

[shanvan]

:iagree:

 

and I hate the thought of people hearing a homeschool mom using the term 'real teacher'.

 

:tongue_smilie:

 

Yup, this is what bothers me about it. I think it helps perpetuate the idea that homeschooling moms can't give their kids high school credits.

 

The real irony of the conversation is that she was saying all of this to me--an accredited teacher for both k-8 and highschool English, but I don't think that necessarily makes me a better teacher than a committed (to teaching, to their children, not an asylum :lol:) homeschooling mom.

[shanvan]

It's not just homeschool parents that believe this. I volunteer on a scholarship selection committee in my state.

 

It has been an uphill battle convincing some of the other volunteers--people choosing whether students get hundreds or even thousands of dollars for college--that a high school credit given by a parent, particularly in science or math, is just as valid as a high school credit given by an outside teacher.

 

Here's what the non-homeschool world seems to believe, generally: Homeschool moms aren't able to teach rigorous high school level coursework, and just give their kids an A no matter what, so the credits are not as valid.

 

My internal response is "What-eveeeeeeer." Out loud I say that most homeschoolers are especially diligent about rigor and fairness in their high school coursework to guard against that particular prejudice. Then I try not to do this: :banghead:.

 

(Of course, the last time I said that, ten minutes later, we ran across a homeschooler's application in which the required essay directly contradicted the straight-A transcript. -----> :banghead::banghead::banghead: )

 

Cat

 

Yikes! I suspected this. Somehow, I'd rather not know it for sure.

[mom2scouts]

Yes, I've encountered that. I try not to say "DUH," but boy howdy, it's hard sometimes to reply graciously!

 

I try to say something along the lines of how *I* am a "real teacher," and I give credit for whatever *I* want my dc to have credit for, and that I don't need an outside authority of any kind to validate what I'm doing. And I try to watch my tone of voice and not roll my eyes. :D

:iagree::lol::lol:

[Sun]

I get the frustration with hearing this, but I can also understand what makes some people say it. Over the years, it's become very clear to me that my idea of rigorous and someone else's idea of rigorous may be completely different. We here all understand that outside ("real" :lol:) teachers also vary in how rigorous their courses are, but it's easy for people to forget that part. Still, hearing a homeschooling mom say that would drive me batty!

[justasque]

A piece of it, too, is the idea that when someone says "mom", that puts an image in the listener's mind as someone who is probably good at things like cooking and cleaning and wiping stuffy noses. It's easy to forget that "mom" can also refer to someone who has significant education and/or experience in a specific field. Many of the homeschooling moms I know either have a teaching degree, or an advanced degree in a technical field, or a law degree, or whatever. In the homeschool world, even the GED moms I know are well-read and excellent writers. So when you hear someone assume a "mom" isn't qualified to do something, it's always a good idea to remind yourself not to fall into the stereotype yourself, and to call other people on it when they (inadvertently) do so.

[shanvan]

A piece of it, too, is the idea that when someone says "mom", that puts an image in the listener's mind as someone who is probably good at things like cooking and cleaning and wiping stuffy noses. It's easy to forget that "mom" can also refer to someone who has significant education and/or experience in a specific field. Many of the homeschooling moms I know either have a teaching degree, or an advanced degree in a technical field, or a law degree, or whatever. In the homeschool world, even the GED moms I know are well-read and excellent writers. So when you hear someone assume a "mom" isn't qualified to do something, it's always a good idea to remind yourself not to fall into the stereotype yourself, and to call other people on it when they (inadvertently) do so.

 

Well, I finally did this time. She's made the comment to me many times, and I just inwardly roll my eyes. Dh was home sick on Sun. He thinks I'm wasting my time, but I just couldn't help it.

[Anne in CA]

It is amazing how often I am mistaken by TEACHERS as a teacher. It happens pretty frequently. I was not an education major though, I didn't finish college but I wanted to be an English major. However I guess I have been a home school mom for so long that I give off the "teacher vibe".

 

I totally get that people who know little about school would think that an education degree is the same thing as a law degree or a medical degree. Teacher's unions swear that it is exactly the same sort of thing and that a home school mother will ruin her children the same way a mother deciding to take out her child's appendix would kill them. I am sympathetic to people outside the home schooling world who think this and I am patient with them.

 

But a mother who has been home schooling a long time thinking that a "real teacher" somehow has magic to impart knowledge is scary to me. I learned when my oldest went to "real" high school that very little learning is signified by a letter grade from a "real teacher." My son who never attended "real high school" is doing VERY well in community college without ever having had one "real teacher".

 

The difference between a "real teacher" and myself is that I am willing to admit what I don't know and make sure to find resources that impart what I don't know to my kids and I use the help of professionals, when I need tutors. None of those professionals has been a "real teacher" though, I use people who make a living with the knowledge being imparted. That is what I consider to be real.