HOME SCHOOLING
Home schooling is an approach to education where children are taught under the supervision of parents at home and not in any educational institution such as public or private schools. The concept of home school is ideally suited for those parents who wish to educate their children with quality learning, which they believe is not available at public institutions.
However, prior to the rise of compulsory school attendance in the 19th century, learning was mostly restricted within the family or community, with only a very meager population attending schools or private tutors. The American educator John Holt first coined the term home schooling in 1977.
An insight into Home schooling demographics, reveals:
- In Australia – there are some 20,000 families home schooling their kids (as estimated by the Roland Meighan of Nottingham School of Education in 1995.)
- In Canada – there is an estimated 10, 000 home schoolers.
- In Republic of Ireland – 250-350 children are officially registered as home schoolers however, Ireland’s National Education Welfare Board shows round about 1500-2000 who are not registered.
- In United Kingdom – 50, 000 children are estimated to be home educated.
- In United States – there was found to be an increase in the number of home schoolers from 850, 000 students in 1999 to 1.1 million students in 2003.
The primary reason behind selecting home schooling as the preferred teaching methodology depends on family needs. Home schooling programs are perfect for children with learning disabilities, or certain illness, or otherwise for traveling parents. This kind of schooling also turns out be beneficial for children who are otherwise interested in making their hobby as the career such as acting, dancing or music.
Some parents also feel that formal school approach leaves children with negative social pressure such as premature sexualization, violence, drugs and other school-related problems, which are detrimental to a child's development.
Home schooling has been legalized in many parts of the world now, such as the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Some home school programs have been revised in order to make it an extension of the compulsory school system. But, in many countries home education is not recognized and virtually does not exist at all.
It has been found that due to home schooling, students outperform their publicly-run-school peers by 30 to 37 percentile in all subjects. Generally, home school programs include many such subjects or topics which are not a part of the traditional curriculum. Hence, some colleges find it an advantage in creating a better rounded and self sufficient adult through regular schooling.
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