Hs'ing into the Future: Predict Changes and Trends

[HS Mom in NC]

The terms "pioneers", "settlers" and "refugees" in reference to homeschoolers, have been around for at least a decade, maybe two.

[The Girls' Mom]

I was actually thinking about this on my drive home from school today.  I think/hope more cottage/day schools will pop up.  People want to abandon PS, but don't even know where to start.  

I was thinking of opening something up that was similar to our co-op, but with more guidance for the parents on what to do at home.  A tutor based school?  Something where students can gather a day or two a week for things like language instruction, labs, group projects, etc. But guide the parents on how and when to teach at home with classes for the parents too.  Pipe dreams I'm sure.

I do know that what is coming OUT of the school system right now is horrific.  The kids I'm going to school with can't even pass "College Math" which is basically stuff they should have all learned in 8th grade.  They have zero work ethic, and get mad if they are expected to actually..you know...study.  

 

Add in the political mess that is our government, it looks grim out there folks.  

[regentrude]

I didn't make up the pioneer vs. refugee thing.  If you want the original article look here.  It really does fit what's happening in my opinion.  People who homeschool intentionally vs. people who homeschool because there was no better choice and they needed to "escape" the public school.  I'm seeing the surge of people being of the second category.  

 

I agree that there are these different  kinds of homeschoolers.

I dislike the tone of the article that seems to suggest that some motivations for homeschooling are more valuable than others.

 

[HS Mom in NC]

I think there is an increase in fear to do with everything involving parenting, and maybe even involving everything in general.

 

 

 

I completely agree with this being the case both in and out of the homeschooling community.   The culture, as a whole, seems to be shifting away from choosing something because they considered their options and think the one they picked a good choice.  Instead increasing numbers seem to be settling for something because it's the least of the evils or because they're more afraid of the other choices that the one they picked. That’s a big difference psychologically and culturally.  It's very difficult for people in those two different camps to relate to each other.

[HS Mom in NC]

I was actually thinking about this on my drive home from school today.  I think/hope more cottage/day schools will pop up.  People want to abandon PS, but don't even know where to start.  

 

I was thinking of opening something up that was similar to our co-op, but with more guidance for the parents on what to do at home.  A tutor based school?  Something where students can gather a day or two a week for things like language instruction, labs, group projects, etc. But guide the parents on how and when to teach at home with classes for the parents too.  Pipe dreams I'm sure.

 

I do know that what is coming OUT of the school system right now is horrific.  The kids I'm going to school with can't even pass "College Math" which is basically stuff they should have all learned in 8th grade.  They have zero work ethic, and get mad if they are expected to actually..you know...study.  

 

Add in the political mess that is our government, it looks grim out there folks. 

 

 

There is (or maybe was)  a community school here.  Teachers do the curriculum selection and teach at the school 2 or 3 days a week.  The kids do all the assignments at home, under parental supervision, on the other days. Tuition is cheaper than full time private school.  I think it's a great option lots of people would choose if they had access to it.

[VorLady]

My husband and I are second-generation homeschoolers. It's so very different with my daughter than what I remember growing up.

 

I remember the nosey grocery store ladies asking "Why aren't you in school?" to follow that up with "Is that legal?"

My daughter proudly announces she's homeschooled and they smile and say, of course you are, look at how helpful you are

 

I remember my mother being attacked by church acquaintances for what she was "doing to us" and us kids having to justify ourselves to our peers

Now, when I mention homeschooling, the immediate response is a justification for why whoever I'm speaking to can't homeschool, like they all think homeschooling is the superior choice (and I don't go out of my way to present it like that!)

 

The curriculum is amazing. We were "pick and choose" homeschoolers. I don't think my mother had much of a philosophy of homeschooling, if she did, it was Mary Pride not Charlotte Mason. It was "do Abeka/Bob Jones math until your kid's old enough for Saxon", "Pick between KONOS or some homebrew science" "Abeka or [i don't remember the other choice] for history"

 

Now? I get to mix and match, guided by a well-articulated philosophy (classical), exactly what will work best and I have been seriously impressed. There were so many math choices when I had to pick something last year for my daughter's kindergarten year. Some was easy to rule out, but everything I rejected, I saw how it would work brilliantly with another kid. RightStart math - I'm an engineer (and add me to the list of work-from-home homeschool moms) - and I find this approach seriously brilliant. I thought you got a choice between "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" or using McGuffy readers. Only to discover that there are all these different amazing options out there.

 

Put me in the optimist column. But... since I believe in being prepared? The biggest homeschool purchase we made last year was our lifetime HSLDA membership.

[SparklyUnicorn]

That's very cool that you and your husband are second generation homeschoolers. 

 

My husband and I are second-generation homeschoolers. It's so very different with my daughter than what I remember growing up.

 

I remember the nosey grocery store ladies asking "Why aren't you in school?" to follow that up with "Is that legal?"

My daughter proudly announces she's homeschooled and they smile and say, of course you are, look at how helpful you are

 

I remember my mother being attacked by church acquaintances for what she was "doing to us" and us kids having to justify ourselves to our peers

Now, when I mention homeschooling, the immediate response is a justification for why whoever I'm speaking to can't homeschool, like they all think homeschooling is the superior choice (and I don't go out of my way to present it like that!)

 

The curriculum is amazing. We were "pick and choose" homeschoolers. I don't think my mother had much of a philosophy of homeschooling, if she did, it was Mary Pride not Charlotte Mason. It was "do Abeka/Bob Jones math until your kid's old enough for Saxon", "Pick between KONOS or some homebrew science" "Abeka or [i don't remember the other choice] for history"

 

Now? I get to mix and match, guided by a well-articulated philosophy (classical), exactly what will work best and I have been seriously impressed. There were so many math choices when I had to pick something last year for my daughter's kindergarten year. Some was easy to rule out, but everything I rejected, I saw how it would work brilliantly with another kid. RightStart math - I'm an engineer (and add me to the list of work-from-home homeschool moms) - and I find this approach seriously brilliant. I thought you got a choice between "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" or using McGuffy readers. Only to discover that there are all these different amazing options out there.

 

Put me in the optimist column. But... since I believe in being prepared? The biggest homeschool purchase we made last year was our lifetime HSLDA membership.

 

[Farrar]

I didn't make up the pioneer vs. refugee thing.  If you want the original article look here.  It really does fit what's happening in my opinion.  People who homeschool intentionally vs. people who homeschool because there was no better choice and they needed to "escape" the public school.  I'm seeing the surge of people being of the second category.  

 

This is one of the more traditional academic divisions for homeschoolers, but I feel like it's starting to break down to some extent. When homeschooling is so in the ether, so acceptable, so mainstream that choosing it positively requires a lot less of the pioneer spirit that we've been talking about, then I think the line between who's choosing because they want to vs. feel like they must seems a lot thinner.

[LucyStoner]

When I think back on the truly pioneer hs'ing families I knew in the 80s, none of them were like us in Type A intensity, but they were solid people who got things done. Learning wasn't optional. Sloth was unthinkable. This radical unschooling, sleep until noon, it doesn't matter if my 12yo can't read and my 14yo isn't ready for algebra, play video games all day long mentality was unknown to them.

 

They were up and doing, with focus and curiosity, whether they chased down rigorous homeschooling curriculum or not. Which they didn't, because it didn't exist. But they were at the library, working through a math textbook, building something in the garage, running a vegetable stand, working on a turf farm after finishing lessons, that sort of thing. Truly John Holt style, I thought.

 

 

I started high school in 1994 Tibbie. Among my class at hippie high school there were a lot of former homeschool students who went to my very unconventional high school as an extension of that. They did not all have the experience you describe and some were from full on educational neglect situations. I really respect you but your posts on this thread seem to be through rose colored glasses. Homeschoolers have long had a wide diversity of experiences.

[LucyStoner]

I agree that there are these different kinds of homeschoolers.

I dislike the tone of the article that seems to suggest that some motivations for homeschooling are more valuable than others.

 

Exactly.

 

Personally I am quite happy to be someone who cares about my child's education first, before any homeschooling fervor.

 

Like a growing number of families with 2e kids we initially explored homeschooling because the schools don't work for that need set very well. We stayed homeschooling him and decided to homeschool our younger son because we found that it works for us, and most importantly works for both of our kids. If I had a kid it didn't work for, I'd find something else. Perhaps this makes me a refugee homeschooler. Personally I think it makes me a demonstrably competent parent.

 

Homeschooling is not my vocation. It is not my reason for breathing. It is what works best for my kids and my family. I am perfectly fine to not be in a movement. I can appreciate those who stormed in and normalized homeschooling but don't regret that homeschooling has evolved to be a means to an end for many different types of families. The pioneers don't own the country.

 

For those who are philosophically opposed to anything but homeschooling for your kids, much respect but you don't own homeschooling.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

I started high school in 1994 Tibbie. Among my class at hippie high school there were a lot of former homeschool students who went to my very unconventional high school as an extension of that. They did not all have the experience you describe and some were from full on educational neglect situations. I really respect you but your posts on this thread seem to be through rose colored glasses. Homeschoolers have long had a wide diversity of experiences.

 

Thanks! I respect you, too. :) FWIW, I've been wondering a little about my rose colored glasses through the whole thread. I'm aware of this blind spot but it's not one I can seem to shake at the moment...why do I need past hs'ers to be better than hs'ers of today? Why do I only see the end of hs'ing when others are seeing broader opportunity to hs? No idea. I should see a mental health professional.

 

The other blind spot I'm dealing with right now is an almost uncontrollable urge to enroll some of my dc in ps in the fall even though the school is so poor that even the guidance counselors at the high school told me not to do it.

 

Missing Objectivity,

Tibbie

[Barb_]

I'm going to predict that in a hundred years homeschooling will be the norm, but it'll be like in "The Fun They Had."

 

Just kidding. Mostly.

Farrar! You have no idea what you just did! I've been trying to remember this story for over a decade. I read this story with my first grade reading group in 1976. Which, incidentally blows my mind now that I read it again. I though my catholic education sucked, lol. At the time, the story made a huge impression on me, but not for the reason the you'd assume. I remember being fascinated by the idea of doing school on television! Oh my gosh, what I would have given to do school at home, work ahead, ace those silly geography tests, read all one million books on the teleprompter, and have a teacher that adjusted to my pace. Oh joy! I knew that that the playground full of laughing, screaming children was noisy and confusing and scary a lot of the time and there was never enough time to think. Thanks to that story, I began dreaming of homeschooling long before I had a name for it.

[LucyStoner]

Thanks! I respect you, too. :) FWIW, I've been wondering a little about my rose colored glasses through the whole thread. I'm aware of this blind spot but it's not one I can seem to shake at the moment...why do I need past hs'ers to be better than hs'ers of today? Why do I only see the end of hs'ing when others are seeing broader opportunity to hs? No idea. I should see a mental health professional.

 

The other blind spot I'm dealing with right now is an almost uncontrollable urge to enroll some of my dc in ps in the fall even though the school is so poor that even the guidance counselors at the high school told me not to do it.

 

Missing Objectivity,

Tibbie

Before you take yourself to expensive counseling, just remember that it's human nature.

 

Clearly my era was better than you younguns era now.

 

I remain convinced the current students of my alma matter suck compared to my day. :P. We were clearly better than all that came before or after, right?!

[Barb_]

Thanks! I respect you, too. :) FWIW, I've been wondering a little about my rose colored glasses through the whole thread. I'm aware of this blind spot but it's not one I can seem to shake at the moment...why do I need past hs'ers to be better than hs'ers of today? Why do I only see the end of hs'ing when others are seeing broader opportunity to hs? No idea. I should see a mental health professional.

 

The other blind spot I'm dealing with right now is an almost uncontrollable urge to enroll some of my dc in ps in the fall even though the school is so poor that even the guidance counselors at the high school told me not to do it.

 

Missing Objectivity,

Tibbie

Hugs, tiggle (lol, that was an autocorrect but it makes me giggle so I'm leaving it).

 

Maybe you just have a little "back in my day" syndrome. Or a midlife crisis. All I know is, I remember my first couple of homeschooling years when I was AWFUL at it. I made tons of mistakes with my oldest but we muddled through together. I think that more often than not, it works out.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

Tiggle!! LOL!!

 

I'll take midlife crisis for $100, Alex. If it weren't for one very dear little boy who very much wants, deserves, and legitimately needs to be homeschooled, I probably would enroll the middle two teens in high school and get a full time JOB. I'm just tired of financial issues, mainly. I'm at that homeschool mama crossroads when you look at your eldest who is graduated and know you did a good job, you look at the upcoming teens and realize they're nearly grown and just fine, you don't really have to homeschool them any longer...so you'd stop now and pursue your own interests except for an upcoming little one or two that really do need you...

 

Anyway. Sorry for the thread derail! My OP was sincere -- not trying to convince or convert anybody to my way of thinking, but genuinely asking, "What do you see from where you stand?" And it's been a great conversation. Lots of diversity of experience and perspective.

[Guest]

Barb, my first grade reading group was in '72, but other than that I could have written your post. ;)

 

Did you watch John Holt on Phil Donahue when you were a kid too?

 

I hesitate to call myself a "second generation homeschooler" because my mother had so little support and was such a refugee that all she did was essentially write a check to University of Nebraska-Lincoln to cover the legalities and hand me the box of books when the postman came.

 

 

 

[G5052]

Wow, I don't know a single homeschool mom that works in our group of close to 150 families.....  A few sell things like sensy candles and stuff like that or might make things to sell, but nothing like what you describe....

 

Maybe because I live in one of the most expensive areas of the country, but one time I was at meeting for Classical Conversations leaders, and ALL of us had other paid work.  And the whole range: college professors, substitute teachers, nurses, organic farmers, photographers, etc.  

 

In my area outsourcing for at least some of high school is also the norm.  Maybe because they have the income, and Mom needs to delegate some because of her crazy schedule?

 

The pioneers I know almost universally used A Beka or BJUP video classes for high school, but they didn't work outside the home.

[Farrar]

Farrar! You have no idea what you just did! I've been trying to remember this story for over a decade. I read this story with my first grade reading group in 1976. Which, incidentally blows my mind now that I read it again. I though my catholic education sucked, lol. At the time, the story made a huge impression on me, but not for the reason the you'd assume. I remember being fascinated by the idea of doing school on television! Oh my gosh, what I would have given to do school at home, work ahead, ace those silly geography tests, read all one million books on the teleprompter, and have a teacher that adjusted to my pace. Oh joy! I knew that that the playground full of laughing, screaming children was noisy and confusing and scary a lot of the time and there was never enough time to think. Thanks to that story, I began dreaming of homeschooling long before I had a name for it.

 

Oh cool! We read it this year as our first short story in our one short story a month routine. The kids thought it was so weird. They were like, um, this is nothing like homeschooling!

[HS Mom in NC]

One of the reasons it's important to remember what the pioneers did (not quite as important as why they did it) is because it's something that still needs doing, but to a different degree.  Homeschoolers who don't realize how legislation and regulation can affect some of those choosing different homeschooling options can pose a possible threat.  Some refugees (certainly not all) came out of a heavily regulated environment so it's normalized to them.  Many might not have any idea how different homeschooling approaches, other than the ones they chose, would be affected by regular or occasional standardized testing because tests dictate content and content varies dramatically between homeschoolers, how mandatory numbers of school days aren't necessary for many homeschooling approaches, how learning can be measured different ways, etc. If we have sizeable numbers of people in the homeschooling movement that aren't aware of these differences within the movement, they're going to be less conscientious about what's burdensome or unnecessary to the group as a whole when it comes to homeschooling laws.  Pioneers and settlers spent time working to relieve the burdens on future homeschoolers by decreasing, and in some states eliminating, regulation so all homeschoolers would have a wider variety of options to choose from-options that aren't very compatible with more regulation and testing.

 

It's not unusual for reluctant refugees to homeschool in a more "school at home" way so that when a school option they truly prefer comes along in the future, the transition back is smoother.  That's fine. It makes perfect sense.  But if they think it’s no big deal to allow more regulations about things that seem to not interfere with their approach and say so to legislators and they forget, or worse, are completely unaware that it would be a problem for other people who chose differently, then there's a problem. They shouldn't come in and unwittingly undo what took a lot of effort to get done.  So, I really recommend people coming into homeschooling for whatever reason make themselves aware of what's going on around here. It's a different culture in general and there are subcultures with in it.  It's never a good idea to go into another culture long term without some basic cultural awareness.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

If someone had have told me to 'get some cultural awareness' before homeschooling, I would have looked at them in a very puzzled manner. Cultural awareness is what develops through homeschooling.

 

Nobody owns it. There is no History of Homeschooling 101 that must be mastered to be a 'real' homeschooler.

 

I agree. In the final analysis homeschooling is one family at a time. In the abuse/neglect threads we've established that we cannot possibly be responsible for other families with whom we have nothing in common and no acquaintanceship. Ergo, homeschooling is not a club to be joined. We have no accountability to each other (although if we're nice we won't destroy the reputation of hs'ers out in public), and we have no right to require anything of each other.

 

My state's hs org wants all the newbies to get caught up on Christian hs'ing in our state and to become firmly entrenched in the political religious right. As a homeschooler in this state I have an entirely different agenda that really doesn't extend to anybody outside my home.

[HS Mom in NC]

If someone had have told me to 'get some cultural awareness' before homeschooling, I would have looked at them in a very puzzled manner. Cultural awareness is what develops through homeschooling.

 

Nobody owns it. There is no History of Homeschooling 101 that must be mastered to be a 'real' homeschooler.

 

 

You're overstating it and missing the point.  I pointed out the necessity of awareness of what got people the right to homeschool to begin with so they could avoid losing it through lack of awareness.  It's about the torch being passed on to someone who can carry it where it needs to go, not about who qualifies as a homeschooler.

[Guest]

I wonder how many parents decide to homeschool because they realize they are spending so much time on (inane) homework for their first graders and all-day kindergarteners that they might as well just quit b&m school to homeschool.

 

I don't see the load-em-up homework, one-recess-a-day, never-ending testing philosophy going out of style any time soon.

This is why my mom started homeschooling me in the mid 80s. Although I was in the middle of 2nd grade, not 1st. We are an anti-homework family to the core :)

[SparklyUnicorn]

What kinda irks me is a lot of homeschoolers I encounter in the state I live don't ever want to push for any sort of changes in the regulations.  None of any kind.  They'd rather just go away quietly because they are afraid it would make things worse.  I just don't see how things could be worse. Most of what we are required to do is pretty meaningless. 

 

 

[Farrar]

Hmm... interesting questions.

 

I do support anyone's right to homeschool without any awareness of the history of homeschooling or any desire to learn it or anything about homeschooling beyond what they do for their own kids. And to have a different agenda from other homeschoolers. And not to be responsible for other homeschoolers at all.

 

On the other hand, I'm really glad that people helped establish good homeschool laws and do things like hold homeschool 101 seminars to help newbies. And, while I don't think anyone is obliged to do this per se, I continue to hope that homeschoolers learn to speak out against some of the more harmful practices that have taken hold in the homeschool community. When the Coalition for Responsible Homeschooling says that homeschoolers are more vulnerable to all kinds of forms of abuse, I think that's true and I think sometimes fellow homeschoolers can help make that better by speaking up and not normalizing abusive behavior if they see it and not supporting homeschoolers who may have been abusing their children who are now in trouble with CPS by publicizing their cause or fundraising for them.

 

Homeschooling isn't a club... but there are overlapping communities. Communities matter - they influence whether we want them to or not.

[Reefgazer]

I think New Yorkers are so accustomed to being regulated to death that the HS regs don't strike them as onerous.  We have a house in upstate NY and we consider moving there from time to time from where we are now (VA), but the homeschooling regs give me pause.  There would be some real advantages for us to live there, but my kids are better off here for the moment because no one hassles us about college entrance.  Although wouldn't you know it, my DD has taken an interest in Cornell and one of the SUNY schools.  But I'm still thinking admission to those schools would be easier for us as out-of-staters who live in a state that recognizes their homeschooling diploma as legit....sorry for the thread derail....

What kinda irks me is a lot of homeschoolers I encounter in the state I live don't ever want to push for any sort of changes in the regulations.  None of any kind.  They'd rather just go away quietly because they are afraid it would make things worse.  I just don't see how things could be worse. Most of what we are required to do is pretty meaningless. 

 

[SeaConquest]

I am a freshly minted refugee who is enjoying this discussion immensely. But, can I just say that the Donahue episode was fascinating. I can barely remember a time when people discussed substantive issues on television.

[Kerry Blue]

There is a bill floating around the New York state assembly now that is an attempt to help homeschoolers enter college by changing the rules for needing an high school diploma. The homeschooler would need a notarized transcript instead. Some are worried that the wording could also imply a student can not enter higher education without a transcript, so no dual enrollment.

 

There is a bill in the senate of New York to give an income tax credit for "the purchase of instructional materials approved by the education department or board of regents for use in non-public, home-based educational programs." It is on page 6, section W of the bill for those who wish to read it.

 

There is also a bill in the senate that would make parenting classes mandatory for all parents and guardians. A child would not be admitted to 7th grade unless the parents/guardians attended FOUR parenting seminars. The wording seems to cover all families in NY.

 

There are some other ones in the mix, like two separate bills that require students under 18 to "maintain good school attendance" in order to be eligible for a driver's license or permit. The senate version also requires "satisfactory school grades" (70 or 2.0 gpa). The wording of the bill says a person must either have a diploma or be enrolled in a program leading to a diploma. In NY, homeschooling does not lead to a diploma.

 

These fun filled findings and more can be found at NYHEN (New York Home Educator's Network). :P

[luuknam]

There is also a bill in the senate that would make parenting classes mandatory for all parents and guardians. A child would not be admitted to 7th grade unless the parents/guardians attended FOUR parenting seminars. The wording seems to cover all families in NY.

 

WTH? And if a parent/guardian doesn't do it, the kid just never gets to 7th grade? I mean, there are no laws against a kid repeating 6th grade until turning 18, are there? On the bright side, don't the majority of bills fizzle out and die before becoming laws?

[LMD]

I know I'm in a different country :)

 

I wouldn't have a clue who the homeschool 'pioneers' were here. Or how homeschooling became legal - or even if it was always legal. Not a darn clue. Until this thread, it has never even occurred to me to find out.

I know a couple of pioneers in my state... They had to fight hard against the education department wanting to regulate, I'm so glad they did as we have the most relaxed laws in the country.

Also, we have a big distance ed/school of the air etc history so homeschooling isn't an enormous leap.

 

I found some of the nsw report findings worrying.

 

Currently I'm more worried about the community imploding from egos, immaturity, and personality clashes...

 

I also know that our general community is split more along unschooling/formal academics. Religion isn't as big a divider, though Christian still dominates.

[Kerry Blue]

WTH? And if a parent/guardian doesn't do it, the kid just never gets to 7th grade? I mean, there are no laws against a kid repeating 6th grade until turning 18, are there? On the bright side, don't the majority of bills fizzle out and die before becoming laws?

 

A lot of bills do fizzle out, but I just wanted to give people an inkling of what some lawmakers in NY are thinking about. NY loves to regulate everything it seems. New York City has made kindergarten mandatory recently. Who knows what is next.

[LucyStoner]

Honestly, one of the main reasons (if not the only reason) we didn't start homeschooling straight away was that I had VERY negative impressions from my formative years on two different extremes. I turn 35 this year so these impressions were primarily gleaned in the 1990s by my peers who were homeschooled in the late 80s and 90s. I was home for 2 years myself and that was fine but being from a very religious but very progressive family meant that I straddled two very different worlds and neither world was especially mainstream. My mom was just as likely to take us to a nuclear disarmament rally as an prolife church event. I had friends who grew up on communes where they got zero help with school stuff. I also had friends whose parents had assembled a literal classroom at home and read scripted materials and refused to let the girls play sports. I saw few permutations, none that compelling and some pretty darn gross (no, no it is not ok for your uncle to give you pot for your 12th birthday nor is it ok to shame a girl for wanting to play ball) and mentally said "oh hell to the no". In the absense of a working model or clear example, the stereotypes creep in. I was very biased against homeschooling. Even my one excellent example (my best friend from church camp was homeschooled until DE started) was kinda of mixed bag, with mom handing him the text for things she didn't know and expecting it to get done without any instruction. He really was stymied/limited in math because of that. His dad sat with him and actively taught him Chemistry which opened his eyes to needing a teacher like his dad to dig into the material. It wasn't that his mom was bad or neglectful, she just overestimated their ability to figure it out and was focused on excellence in other aspects of their schooling. Outsourcing math would have been great for him and his brothers.

 

Believe me the realization that we needed to consider it for our son was a game changer. I had to shift my thinking and examine my beliefs a lot. I think that shows the way I parent in general. I don't prioritize my political values or any ideology over what my kids need. I have strong opinions (ha ha ha) and values but am willing to examine them and change when it is needed.

[texasmama]

Exactly.

 

Personally I am quite happy to be someone who cares about my child's education first, before any homeschooling fervor.

 

Like a growing number of families with 2e kids we initially explored homeschooling because the schools don't work for that need set very well. We stayed homeschooling him and decided to homeschool our younger son because we found that it works for us, and most importantly works for both of our kids. If I had a kid it didn't work for, I'd find something else. Perhaps this makes me a refugee homeschooler. Personally I think it makes me a demonstrably competent parent.

 

Homeschooling is not my vocation. It is not my reason for breathing. It is what works best for my kids and my family. I am perfectly fine to not be in a movement. I can appreciate those who stormed in and normalized homeschooling but don't regret that homeschooling has evolved to be a means to an end for many different types of families. The pioneers don't own the country.

 

For those who are philosophically opposed to anything but homeschooling for your kids, much respect but you don't own homeschooling.

This describes me, my family, my kids and our reasons for homeschooling exactly, right down to the choose it for one kid due to special needs and then decided it would work to homeschool all three.  Homeschooling was never on my radar.  It was something I respected when done well by others.  It was not something I planned to do.  When people say that they could never homeschool, I tell them that they could if they felt it was the only appropriate option for their child.  Because that is what happened to me.  

 

The original reason for being there doesn't win any street cred with me.  It's how you play once you show up.  :)

[texasmama]

Thanks! I respect you, too. :) FWIW, I've been wondering a little about my rose colored glasses through the whole thread. I'm aware of this blind spot but it's not one I can seem to shake at the moment...why do I need past hs'ers to be better than hs'ers of today? Why do I only see the end of hs'ing when others are seeing broader opportunity to hs? No idea. I should see a mental health professional.

 

The other blind spot I'm dealing with right now is an almost uncontrollable urge to enroll some of my dc in ps in the fall even though the school is so poor that even the guidance counselors at the high school told me not to do it.

 

Missing Objectivity,

Tibbie

You want to be inspired so you look to the roots.  You wax poetic because you are a person who feels things deeply.  You fear losing something (not just your loss but a widespread loss) that is precious.

 

I'm a mental health professional. I usually don't practice over the internet, but this one was easy.  I'm not even on my game today.  ;)

 

You're welcome.  :)

[Southern Ivy]

Barb, my first grade reading group was in '72, but other than that I could have written your post. ;)

 

Did you watch John Holt on Phil Donahue when you were a kid too?

 

I hesitate to call myself a "second generation homeschooler" because my mother had so little support and was such a refugee that all she did was essentially write a check to University of Nebraska-Lincoln to cover the legalities and hand me the box of books when the postman came.

Thank you for the link! I'm watching it now and find it fascinating. 

[LucyStoner]

This describes me, my family, my kids and our reasons for homeschooling exactly, right down to the choose it for one kid due to special needs and then decided it would work to homeschool all three. Homeschooling was never on my radar. It was something I respected when done well by others. It was not something I planned to do. When people say that they could never homeschool, I tell them that they could if they felt it was the only appropriate option for their child. Because that is what happened to me.

 

The original reason for being there doesn't win any street cred with me. It's how you play once you show up. :)

See, you and I have a few things in common. 1. Why we homeschool. 2. I was born in Texas. 3. Converse wearing.

 

Obviously number 3 is most important.

[texasmama]

See, you and I have a few things in common. 1. Why we homeschool. 2. I was born in Texas. 3. Converse wearing.

 

Obviously number 3 is most important.

Obviously. ;)

[LMD]

Why I'm not part of 'the community' :)

 

Are you in Victoria ?

 

Yes, I remember as a kid seeing pictures of other children doing School of the Air, so I guess the idea that some other children were schooled at home was always around.

Yes I'm in vic. You are wise! My comment was probably unnecessary actually, just venting a little. There's a reason I'm generally aloof in 'groups', but I reluctantly held reigns during a power vacuum. Not anymore! But it's not a fair representation. 90%+ of our hs community is truly wonderful.

[LMD]

Obviously. ;)

Team Docs forever! ðŸ˜

[Guest]

If a back to basics movement hit fast enough, we might see some publishers republish old editions as "classic editions". Saxon 1st edition and Spalding 4th edition would be scooped right up if the price was right.

I'm so lucky - my father in law was one of the original consulting teachers/test families for the Saxon texts, and he saved them all. So I have access to first editions of every single one, along with his notes (as a math teacher and engineer) for improvements or corrections. One of the advantages to homeschooling before it was cool :D

[Guest]

When I think back on the truly pioneer hs'ing families I knew in the 80s, none of them were like us in Type A intensity, but they were solid people who got things done. Learning wasn't optional. Sloth was unthinkable. This radical unschooling, sleep until noon, it doesn't matter if my 12yo can't read and my 14yo isn't ready for algebra, play video games all day long mentality was unknown to them.

 

They were up and doing, with focus and curiosity, whether they chased down rigorous homeschooling curriculum or not. Which they didn't, because it didn't exist. But they were at the library, working through a math textbook, building something in the garage, running a vegetable stand, working on a turf farm after finishing lessons, that sort of thing. Truly John Holt style, I thought.

 

I have far more in common with that "can do" generation than with certain upcoming homeschoolers (or parents, frankly) who want to be spoon fed and/or left alone.

I agree 100%.

[Barb_]

Barb, my first grade reading group was in '72, but other than that I could have written your post. ;)

 

Did you watch John Holt on Phil Donahue when you were a kid too?

I did not, but I'm seriously looking forward to setting aside some time to watch it this weekend. Thank you for linking it!

[Omma]

Common Core touts college and career readiness standards.  Who is to say that, one day, these standards will become the ones that will be 'accredited' or get that official transcript stamp of approval (as someone else has mentioned)?  This could become a 'backdoor' way to regulate homeschooling if employers and/or college admissions offices want to see this official 'proof' of college and career readiness (particularly if federal dollars or support was at stake).   I certainly hope this would not happen, but just thought I'd throw it out there since we are trying to guess at future trends.

[8filltheheart]

Common Core touts college and career readiness standards. Who is to say that, one day, these standards will become the ones that will be 'accredited' or get that official transcript stamp of approval (as someone else has mentioned)? This could become a 'backdoor' way to regulate homeschooling if employers and/or college admissions offices want to see this official 'proof' of college and career readiness (particularly if federal dollars or support was at stake). I certainly hope this would not happen, but just thought I'd throw it out there since we are trying to guess at future trends.

Do you not think those backdoors already exist? They don't regulate homeschooling but they definitely filter students int different categories according to college admissions and their definition of college readiness. They are called SAT, ACT, subject tests, APs, and DE credits.

 

Considering many entry level jobs require a degree to be hired even if the job itself doesn't require a degree, employers already filter.

 

Do I think that it will come down to having proof of having completed a Common Core curriculum? No way. Elite private prep schools will never surrender their freedom of teaching to their levels of excellence. Considering whose kids attend those schools and where they attend college, no.

 

CC is just another experiment on a long list of patches attempting to triage American govt schools. American kids are guinea pigs to whatever flavor of reform comes along in a particular decade.

[VANURSEPRAC]

I think there will be an increase in a la carte homeschooling, by which I mean sending your kid to PS, but homeschooling or outsourcing certain individual subjects. Like AOPS for math. There are lots of families in my area where both parents are professionals, and full time homeschooling is off the table. We can homeschool single subjects in our state. I'm already hearing about families doing this on local blogs, I think it will become more widespread.

 

 

 

Do you mean where the child does not take the subject in school? Such as math? 

 

 

Anyone heard of this in TEXAS?

[MarkT]

I think most of the home schooling at the high school level will be outsourced due to technology advances. This has certainly started already. So at the high school level it will be almost a private school model. Because of this trend, there may be a further push for private school vouchers.