I believe all American children deserve access to good, free, secular education, but that does not mean I am going to send my own kids to a school that cannot meet their needs. The suggestion, as in this article, that my choice to homeschool is at odds with my belief in public education is as off-base as suggesting I am not a feminist because I choose to be a stay at home mom. I stay at home with my kids and homeschool them because it works for my family, and our current situation, and not because I think it's the only suitable parenting and education choice for every family.
Goldstein posits the question "Could such a go-it-alone ideology ever be truly progressive—by which I mean, does homeschooling serve the interests not just of those who are doing it, but of society as a whole?" First, let me say that in making pretty much every parenting decision, I am not thinking of society as a whole, but about my children in particular. Then let me finish by asking this, does society as a whole really benefit more by me sending my child to a mediocre public school in a below-average state, or by teaching her at home to be a strong, well-educated, freethinking individual?
Though our daughter is currently in private school we're considering homeschooling and know a number of liberal parents who homeschool.
ReplyDeleteWhile it's probably less common than the current rash of people who homeschool for religious reasons there are definitely liberals who parent for social/developmental/educational reasons.
Good luck with homeschooling, if you decide to go that route! You're definitely right that more and more liberals are deciding to homeschool for nonreligious reasons.
DeleteAmen, sister! I'm right there with you. This crappy op-ed frustrated me to the extreme. I've heard this argument before, about how we're hurting other kids by keeping our "stable" kids out of the mix. This is a stupid argument where we live especially, because we live in a very homogeneous suburb. Why isn't anybody railing on my neighbors to go live in the inner city and send their kids to the public schools there? What's the difference? I don't really buy this argument anyway. I think the problem is more that schools can't handle the myriad behavioral issues in the classroom setting in poor districts. And I get that this sucks, and that the problem is multi-pronged. But it's not my fault so lay off the guilt, please. Between this and another article I read lately about homeschoolers with lots of expendable income who seem to be just as over-extended as traditional schoolkids, I'm feeling more alone on the island of misfit secular homeschoolers than ever.
ReplyDeleteOh! And I love the comments about how we'd be better people if we worked within the system to change it. How is that supposed to work? What happens to my kids in the meantime, while their mom is fighting an impossible struggle against an enormous, unmovable machine? By the time a tiny change even happened, if ever, my kids would have already spent years sitting in those plastic chairs. And it seems impossible for people to grasp that I don't agree with traditional schooling in the most basic sense. I'm a John Holt groupie and it's hard for me to see it as anything beyond institutionalization.
Sorry, I will climb down off the soapbox/cross now. I'm just all kinds of frustrated lately.
Anyway, imho, society will absolutely reap the benefits of you teaching your child to be a well-educated, freethinking individual. Yes, yes, and more yes.
Thanks, Sarah! I agree that working within the system still equates to sacrificing the kids. I found dealing with our public school similar to banging my head against a wall, and it started to hurt. A lot.
DeleteI didn't catch the other article you mentioned about homeschoolers with lots of expendable income. We don't quite fit into that category!
Hmmm...I will go out on a limb here and say that I think the author has some points that at least deserve consideration by people who actually take the time to think about such things. I definitely understand the position that you are making the decision you feel is best for your kids, but the author is right - that is the kind of "protect your own" thinking that most conservatives build their values on. In any public system we set up, whether it be public schools, national healthcare (should I live to see the day), or any other, the system will work best if people who think and people who have means (not always the same I know) participate. If all the people in Jefferson County who send their children to private schools or homeschool actually used the public schools, do you think JCPS would be in the state it is in? I doubt it, because those parents would be there every single day making sure things were up to their standards. I definitely believe that if those kids (and their parents) were in the public system every kid in JCPS would be the better for it.
ReplyDeleteThis doesn't mean that I don't see your point. This doesn't mean that if I had kids I wouldn't consider sending them to a private school. I just think that maybe the author brings up a good point, and if you are serious about being "progressive," or about just wanting a good and fair society, it is worth thinking about what is going to happen to all those kids who are left languishing in the public schools. They are kids whose parents either don't have the means to give them other options or who don't have the education to homeschool. Those kids aren't your problem right now, but believe me, they will be. Will they be able to read? To do the kinds of jobs society needs? Will they vote intelligently? Will all public schools go the way of Texas and start using the Bible as a science text? It is definitely worth thinking about these things and what might be done to ensure things turn out well for everyone.
Low blow bringing Texas into the discussion.
DeleteBut seriously, I don't see why a progressive view of education can't include non-cookie cutter choices such as homeschooling. Maybe if I lived in a more liberal area where I had a chance of teaming up with many other like-minded parents, I could see the logic in keeping my kids in school and fighting for the changes I think our local system needs.
I finally had to break down and respond to that article too...it was just everywhere! LOL
ReplyDeleteHere is my response: http://taytayhser.blogspot.com/
I was referred here by a friend who was proud of your "coming out" as an atheist.
YAY you!
Great response to the article, Karen. I especially liked your words, "Goldstein claiming that homeschoolers 'jumping ship' of the ailing schools is a part of the problem. I suggest she consider the possibility that she is confusing 'cause' with 'effect'." :)
DeleteOkay this isn't about the article but I noticed you were in KY, and my daughter wants me to find "other kids like me"
ReplyDeleteYou see we live in S.IN and I am looking for other kids. I saw your posts on SHS when searching.
Have you joined the Freerange Homeschoolers group on Yahoo?
DeleteI've been wanting to write a similar post, but I have been off my blog lately and well, you are more with it than I am.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post. I'm not sure I could have said it any better.
I'm extremely glad I found your blog. It's comforting to know I am not alone.
Thanks, Kevin!
DeleteI have often felt that I live in the center of a busy ideological highway. And Deathrace 2000 is going on and I have nowhere to take cover!
ReplyDeleteGoldstein's ridiculous story drove that point home, but also confirmed what I suspected for quite some time after having periodically run into similar sentiments on various forums whenever the subject of home schooling comes up.
You are not the only one. I also got a similar flack/vibe about the feminist stuff too, for choosing to stay at home.
I am going to stop here, before I go on a tear
:)
Great analogy. :)
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