The Right To Homeschool My Own Children

A common theme in my life that seems to come up over and over is the question of, Is homeschooling fundamentally right or if it is our right to be able to homeschool. First off, let me say, I have a hard time when this topic comes up from idealistic and childless young singles who are out of touch of many responsibilities that parenting often brings. They are parenting's biggest critics who happen to be the most out of touch of most of reality. To them, I'd like to say that parenting is hard. Most of us parents do our best, and believe it or not, we are humans. And humans make mistakes. Even at our best. And you really have no idea how difficult it can be until you have made the journey yourself. It just makes me cringe.

Anyhow, getting back on topic: the right to homeschool. I had to ask myself, Do I really have the "right?" What gives me the "right?" The first answer I gave myself was that God not only gives me the right, but He gives me the responsibility. Not only does the bible tell me that I am responsible for teaching my children, but it gives me the responsibility to teach them about God.

Secondly, my constitution reserves things like education to "the people." See the tenth amendment. If you think that the tenth amendment means that  it is reserved to the state, well then my state has a law protecting my decision regarding right to my children's education.

Ultimately, who is responsible for children? Who do the children belong to? The parents or the State? I believe that my children belong to me. They formed in my womb, which is part of my body. They are a part of me and  I am responsible for their education. I have decided that they deserve the best. They deserve one on one tutelage. They deserve an education without limits. They deserve an education that does not segregate their faith from their daily lives. They deserve to not have to compartmentalize their lives and have the opportunities to develop a firm foundation of education in science and religion in relation to one another and not one at the risk of the other. They deserve to be parented by their parents. They deserve the best.

Now, there are a few arguments against homeschooling on if it is fundamentally "right." There are a few issues that have been brought to my attention and probably every homeschool family has been asked about these things.Topics such as neglect, abuse, socialization, bad curriculum, and bad parenting come to mind.

I'd like to start addressing this by referring back to my question on who is responsible for my children? I trust the government to enforce regulations and policies regarding our safety as citizens and protecting our well being. In most cases, homeschooling does not interfere with most children's well-being. Even though I am ultimately responsible for my children, I will humor the points brought up by others.

The case against homeschooling on grounds for abuse:

               

 How many cases of abuse have been reported in homeschool? How many cases of murder, sexual assault, rape, or physical assault have been reported in public school? That's really all I have to say about that.

                 

When parents are negligent and do not send their children to school, this is not considered homeschool. This is abuse and it can be reported. My state also requires that we send in attendance forms to help highlight these cases so that child welfare authorities can step in and investigate. A lot of homeschool moms that I know grumble at these requirements, but I can see how they can be beneficial for this very reason.

On grounds of bad curriculum or poor education:

                 

In my state, public education does not solve this problem.  You also cannot deny homeschooling based on the worst case scenario, when the average homeschooler receives a better education than most of their public school peers. This is shown in standardized testing and other studies regarding homeschool education.

On grounds of social isolation:

                 

My children are some of the most confident social individuals that you will ever meet and they are far from isolated.  We are very active in our community, my oldest daughter participates in sports, we go as a family to participate in events with our homeschool group, and my daughter does most things in life that help her develop most social norms which would be implemented in a school setting: waiting in lines, waiting for her turn to speak in conversation, eating with a group, etc. Our day to day lives are pretty common for most homeschoolers that I know of. Homeschoolers tend to be pretty active socially. And I often think that there is too much emphasis anyhow on the social aspect of education. I would like to be the person responsible for teaching my children the priority of “social lives.” And while it is fun and necessary, it is not prioritized over my child’s educational needs. 

 Even though I have humored some of you out there in showing the positive aspects of homeschooling, I hold firm to the fact that my children's education is my responsibility and choice and my government's. Public school, private school, and home school each have their benefits and each have their draw backs. This blog is not to say if one is better than the other. I do know that homeschooling is not for everyone, but it is best for my family. Each circumstance is different. I am thankful daily for my opportunity and I am doing my best to make it worthwhile for my kids.