Ads by Yahoo!

" For Oly: You're totally wrong.
For Cheesehead: You're totally correct. "

" Most (not all) of the young adults I have worked with who have been home schooled have lacked a lot of the social skills that are important in adult life. I don't have a problem with the educational aspect of it, as most have seemed very bright, but it is important to interact with many different types of people and develop relationships with others their same age. It is natural to want to shelter your children from anything potentially harmful, but I believe it is vital to a child's development to face the trials of everyday life that comes with public education. "

" TO DAVE: I was totally unaware that all you had to do to homeschool your kids was to sit them in front of a TV all day and monitor thier progress. Heck, we all should do it if it's that easy.

"

" One thing most of you forget, your children are your responabilty. Not the public school systems, not the government. How one chooses to educate their children is a family decision not the publics decision. If one chooses to educate their own children in their own home and teach their child the families values and not those of the Teachers union then who are you to judge? The teachers do have a powerful influence on the students and yes teachers want to help you raise your children of a more worldly and liberal view than some parents are willing to expose them to at the ages they are exposed to these things. There are plenty of opportunities for these children to socialize, in the neighborhood, at church and home schooling events. "

" To Dave: I'm not trying to say that kids can't have fun with their parents. I'm just saying that kids need to be away from their parents sometimes in order to create their own personality. calling me shallow adds nothing to your arguement "

" God has blessed us with children that I gladly teach at home. After reading these comments (especially from ES) I am so THANKFUL that we do! "

" For ES: My daughter home schools my grandson. This is their second year. My daughter has a BA and is working on her masters in youth psychology but is a stay at home Mom. They use a video program. My grandson sits at his school desk with the monitor interacting with the teacher and class. He wears earphones and starts and stops the video to do the practices as instructed. My daughter and son-in-law check his progress at certain intervals.
My grandson is doing things like dividing fractions, diagramming sentences plus studing history, the sciences, civics and of course reading. He's reading a CS Lewis book now. (I forget which one)
Of course, I already knew homeschooling works. The neat thing about it is anyone with average intelligence who has a desire to teach their children at home can do it because of the vast amount of resources available from the universities and colleges that prepare the home school learning and teaching materials for them. It's expensive and takes dedication and sacrifice but it can be done with wonderful results. "

" I must admit that I've held the view in the past and still hold to some extent that some home school parents do so because they don't want their "little darling" associating with the "riff-raff" of public schools; sort of an "I'm too good and pure for you mentality". Also, I feel that extremists like James Dobson have been responsible for pushing the paranoid myth that public school education is tantamount to having Satan himself teaching your child and that they're trying to "indoctrinate" children into the "Church of Liberalism". I do agree with Emily though that a lot of times parents home school not because of a Christian separatist motive, but because they feel they can provide their child with more one-on-one interaction then they'd get in a public school. Also, some kids may be bullied relentlessly at school or they have special needs. As far as the original article goes, I'm glad the kids got to enjoy themselves and I do wish them well. "

" Stereo-typing? Kids are all different, whether they are homeschooled or at public school. Some kids are social, some are not social. Personality has more to do with it than anything. "

" What are the qualifications for the home school teachers? I have a Masters plus and I am STATE qualified to teach and have to submit a certificate and renew an education plan every few years. I also have to follow state standards in my subject area. What exactly are these parents doing to achieve the state standards? Not only that, but how are these parents qualified to teach multiple subject areas like math, English, science, social sciences, pe, driver's education, vocational training, and the like. I question the education as well as the qualifications of the parent/teachers as well as the social aspects. "

" I wonder why the public schools(teachers union) is so threatened by homeschools? "

" Believe what you want, but our homeschooled from 2nd grade through high school, 20 year old son is graduating from community college this year, is going off to a 4 year college in the fall, and can socialize with ANY age. I can give you MANY more examples exactly like him. As a matter of fact, I can give you MORE examples of unsocialized public schooled kids than homeschooled ones. "

" I am familiar with several home schooled and fundamentally religious schooled children. While they are polite and can speak with adults, I get the impression that they are socially backwards for their ages. I like the kids but I hate to see them at a disadvantage because their parents didn't want their "Christian" kids in with the hoi polloi, non-Christian students. Public school has a worse reputation than it really is. And by the way, Individual, during the years of the baby boom, we traditionally had 35 - 40 students per class. 25 students in a class isn't being "thrown in", believe me. "

" The fact these kids could have a great time with their parents is great.
Equating the absence of parents with having a great time is shallow thinking-- Very Shallow indeed. "

" Hey Emily: I agree completely! "

" Additionally, is it really natural to attend a dance with your parents? Kids need to get away from their parents some times and just act naturally stupid like teenagers do. With their parents hovering over their every move, be it at home school or prom, there is no possible way this kids can feel comfortable "

" I can see why some people might home school, what with the violence and horror stories that come from public and other private schools, but seriously, this can't be a normal upbringing for kids. How are they going to go from only associating with their parents on a daily basis to competing with other students in college? I think if a student is raised correctly, then a public school education and socialization is much healthier. "

" I wish for friggin once the Pantagraph would do a story on the NON RELIGIOUS homeschoolers who are about education not isolation.
I'd be happy to give you my phone number. "

" Yes, I agree that everyone especially children should have socialization with their peers. It's important to learn the art of interaction and manipulation with others. Ok, putting that aside, I now ask what is wrong with being an individual that doesn't follow the herd? I do not follow the herd. My suburban neighborhood is filled with Mom's who talk badly about each other and then pretend to be friends. I choose to not be around that. People who homeschool do it for so many different reasons. This prom was a great idea! I'm sure those kids had so much fun. I'm all for homeschoolers. I'm pregnant and when my child is ready for school I think I will homeschool. Being thrown in a class size of 25 or more kids, or being bullied, or being ignored by teachers to busy to really teach are not my idea of things my children should go thru to be better adults. Bottom line is, we will all do what is best for our own families. Does that make me a cult? That way of thinking is so ridiculous. "

" This was very refreshing! I am encouraged that these young people were so well behaved at their event. Bravo! It is a testament to a good upbringing. Our world needs more young people with character. I found it amusing that the author pointed out numerous times that these children were “dateless”. What was the intended implication? At public school proms, many teens attend with friends. These children did the very same thing. They attended a dance as a group of friends. Have we reached a point where wholesome fun is to be scorned? Are we more comfortable with the teens that party on the dance floor, and then get a hotel room to close the deal? Perhaps we are! We are told that these children come from Christians home. So what? Don’t 86% of public school students also come from Christian homes? My choice was traditional school for my daughters. However, I have two close friends that elected to home school. In both cases, their oldest children are now excelling in traditional colleges! Both young ladies are smart, well grounded, and yes…very social. These are great kids. Let’s encourage them and keep an open mind. "

" this all seems strange,but after hearing about what goes on in public schools maybe it's not a bad idea.i mean the teachers and staff don't control them.the kids gang up on each other.i'm against home schooling but it's a lot safer.i'm starting to change my cult like out look on it. "

" They need social interaction to survive in this world. The prom they had is not an example of that interaction...
"

" we have homeschooled for 5 years and our daughter has attended proms at public high schools (with a date) before and will be attending a prom this weekend. Not all homeschooled children come from isolated families who do not "mix" with the public. It is stories like these that make the homeschool community look like a bunch of cultist or religious/social isolationists...many of them are! But please don't generalize all of the homeschooled families this way. "