Public education, private education, or homeschooling?

private school kids appear to do better after they leave

Each has advantages and disadvantages. Public schools are often underfunded, classrooms over crowded and the childen all expected to perform at the same pace....Private schools lack the diversity of public schools in culture and interactions. Home schooling can be the perfect solution for some. It allows the child to learn at his or her own pace, accelerated in some areas, average in others and perhaps even slower than what is considered the norm. There is no competetion for grades, no curve. The attention is one on one, breaks can be when it is convenient, not scheduled. The ability not to adhere to the rigidity of both public and private schooling can be either an enormous plus or a gaping minus. Depending on the parent. Socialization can be done by introducing the child to sports, church or other means available. Even with public schools, often children fail to socialize...due to various reasons which I shall not go into at this time. I have known children from both public and private schools and have yet to see appreciable differences between their socialization and that of the children I have known attending home school classes.

Well, I don't know any facts about this. But I do have some personal observation. With public school there seems to be a lot of peer pressure. Home school doesn't have that problem. Public school kids seem to have too much attitude. In general it appears that home school kids are more behaved and seem to have learned more.

Public education is good

My mom pulled me out of school after 8th grade because she thought I was mixing with the wrong kind of people... I had boyfriends outside of my religion... was looking into Wicca and hanging out with the "weird" kids. I basically homeschooled myself. I got the books through an acredited school and I just followed the curriculum. My mom also homeschooled my brothers through middle school and high school. While I missed out on prom (one of the only things I missed about high school other than the chance for scholarships)... I had a very active social life through church, 4H, acting lessons, dance lessons, art classes, voice lessons, and friends. So I don't think that I missed out on social interactions. Believe me - church kids can be just as shallow and mean and cliquish as normal high schoolers. On the plus side I was still 16 when I graduated high school. I started college and when I took the placement test I was told that I placed higher than 98% of the kids that had gone to regular high school and had taken the test. I had two years of college under my belt when I was eight. My brothers were able to do two years of college for free while they were in high school. So it has it's ups and downs. I will either home school my kids or send them to a Waldorf school when I have them. I know from when I was in school that most of the class period is spent trying to get the students under control. There are a lot of disruptions. I think as long as you have your kids enrolled in sports, groups, extra-curicular activities where they can get social interaction, homeschooling isn't so bad. But it gets bad when the kid doesn't have any contact with other kids except siblings. Those types of situations scare me.

I just have to say that I'm really shocked and saddened at the degree of misinformation so many people here have about homeschooling. I have homeschooled my children now for nearly 8 years. They are smart, outgoing, very easy to make friends with, not at all closed in or closedminded. My oldest son is doing some college level work not because he has to but because he wants to, my other children are also very smart and not afraid to make mistakes, fail or anything along those lines when it comes to learning because they fully understand how life it. We live in a very poor neighborhood and we are fitting right in cause we are just as poor as everybody else around here but we are not snobbish and we know how to interact with rich people, poor people, white people, black people and any other person we come across, maybe even more so than some of you might from what I have read. The lack of understanding from many of the people who have responded is really disheartening and disturbing. If you met my child and didn't know they were homeschooled you would treat them kindly but if you later found out you would treat them like second, no as third class citizens. I say that because you already are and you haven't even met them and you already are treating them that way, that is sad.

I think that public or private school as well, My mom's friend homeschooled her kids and two of her daughters got pregnant at very young ages, never got to go to college and right now her youngest is just graduating from home school, she has a boyfriend who is also home schooled and both are going to go to college but he is planning on going to a university and she just to a junior college. Basically once they are done with the home school, it is like being in the amish community, they let you go on a mission and all those kids just go WILD because they never had it before, some go back and some stay away and get into all sorts of trouble. I feel that is how homeschool can affect some kids.

I think it's a decision each parent has to make. My oldest granddaughter (now 19) was homeschooled. She had plenty of interaction with other kids her age (neighbors, relatives, church activities), and the other kids in her homeschool group met for "physical education" activities and trips and such. She even got to play volleyball and soccer at a local Christian school that allowed homeschooled children to take part in their sports. I think you have a misconception of what homeschooling is. She is a very well adjusted young woman. She started working when she was 16 and still works at the same place after 3 years. I might add that she is very well rounded in all aspects of social experience. Her two younger brothers are in a Christian school, where they get a good education all the way around. If parents can afford that, why should they subject their kids to some of the stuff that goes on in schools today? The teachers have no control over their classes because they're not allowed to use any form of discipline. Kids have little or no respect for the teachers today, and I find that sad. I wouldn't want my kids in public school today either, and both of mine went to public schools...as did I. I got a wonderful education in public schools, but it's just not that way today for way too many of the kids.

personally I would say that homeschooling till a certain age is essential to build a basic foundation..the child needs to learn what are the basics and how and what to expect from the surroundings..but that should not delay the age in which he/she is expected to join the school..a child would learn more from external environment than from the internal one..but the support of homeschooling is really important..

I homeschool my daughter and have been doing so for 2 years now. She's 5 and doing 1st/2nd grade work. However, she has some issues and so she acts like she's 2. The teachers wouldn't be able to handle her in school. They don't have time and all they'd do is dumb her down and fail her in kindergarden and she'd be more than bored since she'd have to do what she already knows how to do at least twice. No thanks! I think I'll continue homeschooling her instead. This way she can continue with her love of learning and be gifted while we work on the rest of her issues. That, in a nut shell, my friend, is the reason why I homeschool.

I send mine to a private school. They only let 10 kids per class, so they get extra attention than if there were 20 or more. It seems to be working out really well. We about kill ourselves sometimes to pay for it though.

Both of my children go to public schools. I could never imagine homeschooling them. I live in a small town so not many prvivate school options here. I said that I wanted to homeschool my daughter and I started teaching her basic things around 3. I noticed that this would not be a long term thing because she did not look at me as her school teaher and told me to learn these things you go to school. The downfall that I see with homeschooling is that the children do not get that much social skills. I would like to think that parents enroll their children in social activities when they are homeschooled but I have seen many who dont.

private education i think is still the best - if we can afford but then there are still public schools that offer good education

You are entitled to your opinion, however the results speak for them selves home schooled children learn more about the right way to behave and handle situations and progress faster in the real world, plus you can pass on to your children your good, wholesome values, not some values imposed on them by a so called professional teacher!

Private if you can then public children need to socialise it a form of growning up and indepence.

public education is best in my opinion, private education is expensive and the teacher are not qualified, so anyone can be hired for the job.

i think is a big stupid thing this home education school! why to cut you child from other children?why ? i think public shool is the best!!!

public education

i say that public or private schools are better...its helps the children to communicate with each other and get to kno them more...it will help them to grow socially and also mentally...homeschooling wont be of any good to the child...the child cant interact with other children and get to kno about so many things...so i think public or pivate educaton is far more better than homeschooling...

I went o public school. I feel children in public and private school are more well rounded then kids who do homeschooling. As a child you need that interaction. School develops your personality and also assist in who you are when you get older.