Education in the United States is a constantly changing system. For some, it is too unreliable. This is one reason many Americans choose to educate their children from home. Homeschooling gets a bad reputation for being extremely conservative and damaging children 's ability to function without parents. It also has a bad reputation for being too liberal and not challenging enough. Homeschooling itself is not inherently wrong. Many Americans have benefited from a well-planned, well-implemented homeschool regimen. The problem, however is that it is widely unregulated. In order to fix the issues in the current system, the federal government should regulate homeschooling across all states because it currently lacks a nationwide standard, leaves
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Regulations for parents wishing to homeschool exist only on the state level. Depending on the state, a parent can have total freedom in what the child 's curriculum looks like, or they are subject to a set amount of subjects that need to be taught. For example, homeschoolers in Louisiana are required to report their instructional plans and materials every year, while a few states vaguely require that the parents instruct their children in what is commonly taught in the area (Wixom, 2015). Widely differing policies like this give parents the freedom to impart on their children any information as long as the minimum state requirements are met. This is good news, of course, for the parent who wishes to teach his child about the Bible, as public school would not allow. However, this freedom can and does open the door for misuse. The rules varying from state to state has created a chaotic system for those within …show more content…
One of the major problems with homeschooling is that it removes the opportunity for social interaction. Recently, homeschool students have been able to join participate in recreational sports or club activities. However, the ability to do so is at the discretion of the parent. Should the parent decide not to have his or her child participate in social activities, that child is deprived of lessons learned through peer engagement, such as learning to be a good sport, or empathize. This leaves children awkward or unsocial. It is not uncommon for a homeschooled child to feel his or her environment as “restricting, demanding and duty-driven and [. . .] longing for a radically different lifestyle of adventurous exploration and freedom” or “intensely resentful about his situation since he was expected to carry out his parents’ wishes at the expense of his own” when only having interacted with close family members (Van Schalkwyk & Bouwer, 2011, p. 186). In order to prevent this, homeschooled children must have opportunities to mingle with their peers, as mandated by law. Schools and homeschooling parents could work in tandem to ensure engagement for
Regulations for parents wishing to homeschool exist only on the state level. Depending on the state, a parent can have total freedom in what the child 's curriculum looks like, or they are subject to a set amount of subjects that need to be taught. For example, homeschoolers in Louisiana are required to report their instructional plans and materials every year, while a few states vaguely require that the parents instruct their children in what is commonly taught in the area (Wixom, 2015). Widely differing policies like this give parents the freedom to impart on their children any information as long as the minimum state requirements are met. This is good news, of course, for the parent who wishes to teach his child about the Bible, as public school would not allow. However, this freedom can and does open the door for misuse. The rules varying from state to state has created a chaotic system for those within …show more content…
One of the major problems with homeschooling is that it removes the opportunity for social interaction. Recently, homeschool students have been able to join participate in recreational sports or club activities. However, the ability to do so is at the discretion of the parent. Should the parent decide not to have his or her child participate in social activities, that child is deprived of lessons learned through peer engagement, such as learning to be a good sport, or empathize. This leaves children awkward or unsocial. It is not uncommon for a homeschooled child to feel his or her environment as “restricting, demanding and duty-driven and [. . .] longing for a radically different lifestyle of adventurous exploration and freedom” or “intensely resentful about his situation since he was expected to carry out his parents’ wishes at the expense of his own” when only having interacted with close family members (Van Schalkwyk & Bouwer, 2011, p. 186). In order to prevent this, homeschooled children must have opportunities to mingle with their peers, as mandated by law. Schools and homeschooling parents could work in tandem to ensure engagement for