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Home Schooling:
An Alternative to Public School
By Chris Moyer

          Never before have parents been so disgruntled about their children’s education. From big city schools to suburban schools all across the United States, for various reasons the quality of education in our public school system is on a declining trend. Parents are seeking an education that will allow their children to grow in a high tech world where a quality education is vital to their future success. Parents need a change; they need to feel secure that their children will receive this education they so rightly deserve. Therefore, parents are taking their children's educations and futures into their own hands. Due to the decline in the quality of education in public schools today, many parents are choosing home schooling as an alternative.
          In many cases, parents are choosing home schooling over public schooling since public schools are not meeting the student's academic needs. Parents expect their children will learn to read, write and acquire basic math skills by the time they graduate. However, public schools throughout the United States are failing to teach these basic academic skills. Author Ronald Nash states that "thirteen percent of American seventeen year-olds are functionally illiterate" (qtd. in Walker, par. 3). Dr. Charles Walker, Educational Director of the American Association of Christian Schools, explains, "Many who graduate from high school or college cannot read or write well enough to fill out a job application or to read an instructional manual" (par. 3). The primary reason for this atrocity is that children's literacy is just being neglected. This is a tragic statistic for a country claiming to be so well developed. Parents' home schooling their children will be able to spend the time and energy to ensure their children become literate. 
          In addition, parents are choosing home schooling since public schools are operating on protocol instead of taking student's individual needs into consideration. The school year is based on an academic calendar year. Students are expected to be able to complete specific tasks by the end of that year. When students fail to meet these expectations, they are required to repeat the same grade the following year. For example, if a student is having difficulties in reading but is doing well in all other subjects, he or she will be required to repeat that grade. Luigi Manca, a communications professor at Benedictine University and home schooling father of a daughter, in an article in Time Magazine states, "The problem is that schools have abandoned their mission” (qtd. in Cloud, par. 8). Manca also acknowledges, "They've forgotten about education" (qtd. in Cloud, par. 8). Shery Butler, a public educator and home schooling parent, wrote an article for Gifted Child Today Magazine in which she says, "I saw my children stymied intellectually in a system that was more committed to protocol than education" (par. 3). If public schools want to effectively teach students, they must stop worrying about politics and get back to the root of teaching children. They must adapt to each child on an individual basis and work to make that child a future success. They must leave the task of operating the school district like a business in the administration building and not in the classroom.
          Violence causing the quality of education to decline in public schools is another vital reason for parents choosing to home school their children. A staggering fact on school violence is that three million crimes a year are reportedly carried out in and around public schools (Toch, par. 2). In an article in US News and World Report, Thomas Toch states, "The terrifying thing is that the nature of school crimes has grown more violent" (par. 2). In a study done by the University of Michigan, results indicate that nine percent of eighth graders carry a weapon to school (Toch, par. 3) and many children in eighth through twelfth grade fear for their life (Toch, par. 4). The Columbine High School tragedy, in which two students came to school and massacred fellow students, could be considered a final straw for parents. With staggering statistics such as these on crime in public schools, it is not difficult to see why home schooling is becoming more popular in the United States. Parents just don't want to have to worry about the safety of their children being jeopardized. Being a good parent is an instinct. Being the father of four children ages nine, six four and two, I live this everyday. Parents want the absolute best for their children, with no compromise. With the lack of basic teaching, school politics being more important than education and the crime in public schools putting their children in harm’s way, parents are ready for a change. With the many advantages to home schooling, this just might be what parents are looking for.
          One advantage to home schooling is that parents can establish a curriculum to best suit their children's needs. Though the law says parents must keep a portfolio of work completed, logs of hours of study completed and standardized tests at various ages for submission to school officials, the curriculum for teaching is left up to the parents. Students of home schooling can move ahead quicker because their subjects are based on what they like and need for their future (Butler, par. 12). Butler also explains, "Students can work at or above their proficiency level" (par. 12). Students do need a curriculum that teaches them certain basics, but also need one that will be interesting to them. Public schools teach by a set of rules with little consideration for the child's interests. If a student is not interested in a certain subject, they will become bored and learning will become jeopardized.
          Flexibility of the family schedule will be an added advantage to being a home schooling family. These families can adjust their study schedules based on their family lifestyle (Butler, par. 13). Unlike in public schools where classes are a set length in time, home school students can make adjustments. If they need more time in a certain subject, they can put additional time into that subject. If they don't need as much time, they can move on to more important subjects. Another advantage to flexibility is the family being able to participate in family activities without school conflict. If they choose to take a vacation, they can do so without the children losing any study time, unlike in public school. They could even take their textbooks anywhere they go (Butler, par. 14), or they can study harder once they're back home again.
          The results of students participating in home schooling will be an added incentive for parents choosing home schooling or public school. In an article in Education Digest, Michael Romanowski asserts, "Evidence shows most home schoolers do very well on achievement tests, often outperforming their public school peers" (par. 15). In World and 1, Helen Mondloch states from an often quoted NHERI study: "Homeschoolers excelled on national standardized tests, outperforming peers in both public and private schools by more than thirty percentile points in subjects across the curriculum" (par. 51). In a study that is more current, Lawrence Rudner, national testing expert at the University of Maryland explains, "Homeschoolers perform one to four grade levels higher than the rest, and the gap widens with the number of years spent learning at home" (qtd. in Mondloch, par. 53). Based on research done by various individuals, results definitely indicate that home schooled children are receiving a better education than their peers in public schools. This shows the dedication these children have for this form of education.
          Public schools may have been the center of learning years ago; however, today they are not meeting the needs of the students. Parents strive for the best education available to meet the needs of their children. As a result, many parents are choosing home schooling as the method of advancing their children's knowledge. In this method of education, both parent and child show complete dedication. Based on the facts involving the advantages and the results of children that are home schooling, this method of education appears to be a successful alternative for parents who are discouraged by the public school system.

Works Cited

Butler, Shery. "The 'H' Word: Home Schooling." Gifted Child Today Magazine 
Sept./Oct. 2000: 31 pars. Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Reading Area
Community Coll. Lib., Reading. 3 Feb. 2002. <http://search.epnet.com>.

Cloud, John., et al. "Home Sweet Home." Time 27 Aug. 2001: 43 pars. Academic 
Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Reading Area Community Coll. Lib., Reading. 1 Feb. 2002. <http://search.epnet.com>.

Mondloch, Helen. "Education Hits Home." World and I. June 2000: 69 pars. Academic
Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Reading Area Community Coll. Lib., Reading. 3 Feb. 2002. <http://search.epnet.com>.

Romanowski, Michael H. "Undoing the 'Us vs Them' of Public and Home Schooling."
Educational Digest 66.5 (2001): 23 pars. EBSCOhost. Reading Area 
Community Coll. Lib., Reading. 31 Jan. 2002. <http://search.epnet.com>.

Toch, Thomas, and Ted Gest. "Violence in Schools." US News and World Report. 8 
Nov. 1993: 23 pars. Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Reading Area 
Community Coll. Lib., Reading. 16 Feb. 2002. <http://search.epnet.com>.

Walker, Charles. "Illiteracy: An Educational Crisis." American Association of Christian
Schools 1998: 10 pars. 13 Feb. 2002. <http://www.aacs.org/publications/ces/
cesilliteracy.asp>.

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