Home sweet home

Each of us remembers (more or less) his first day at school. For every child and its parents it's definitely one of most significant days in his life. For the first time a child leaves the 24 hours parent's protection and enters the adult's world; the world of responsibilities, formalized rules and this constant routine that accompanies us. However, in our society we notice an increasingly evolving phenomen, so-called: 'Home education' (UK) or ' Homeschooling' (US) what tends to be a serious alternative to traditional public education system. As the name suggests, the idea of home education is to abandon school-learning and executes the curriculum by parents who on their own educate their children at home. From that reason, this (let's say) 'innovative' way of learning tend to be seen by the society in rather sceptical way, as a disturbing of social order and the school institution. But is it really so? In order to dispel any doubts in this context, analyse, though, the benefits and the threats connected with homeschooling.

Advantages

Lack of pressure

In homeschooling there is no pressure for students to follow the patterns and to keep up with the others. There is also no place for grades that determine, in a way, student's value and are actually an end in itself. Here, it's the curriculum that follows a student and not the other way around as students acquire knowledge at their own pace without being frustrated and discouraged by the results.

Individual attention

Educational needs of a student, educated at home, are more individualised. Child's level of learning but also its shortcomings and interests are primarily taken into account. The aim of home educators (parents) is to encourage children to find their interests and to follow it. Children learn, though, how to associate learning with pleasure and not with a bitter responsibility but also how to be more systematic in broadening their knowledge by themselves.

Flexibility of education (time and place)

While teaching children at home, parents can dispose freely their time and decide of the time and place of taking lesson. As a home educational process doesn't follow any strict schedule studing is less tiring and dull. Parents can also diversify boring learning by changing place of study and replacing theoretical knowledge from books with the practical one or by taking children to exciting locations like museum or zoo where science becomes more touchable.

Disadvantages

Full time jobs (for parents)

Even though the homeschooling may strengthen family ties it's actually a challenging work for parents who, in order to educate and control their children's education, need to subordinate their own lives or sacrifice their career. Parents are also obligated to supplementing constantly their knowledge as being literally responsible for their children's education, they can't pass them inadequate information.

Expenses

Contrary to appearances, homeschooling is associated with huges expenses as parents need to supply themselves with pedagogical and writing materials, textbooks etc. There is also the case of additional classes, sport activities, private lessons that actually can cost a fortune. However, the most expensive cost, connected with homeschooling, are the fee for each exam that a child (treated as a private student) need to pass regularly in order to prove its educational progress.

Socialisation issue

One of the most common reason of criticising homeschooling is the fact that it makes children more withdraw and isolated from the others. At school children develop their social skills, they learn how to cooperate with the others, to deal with pressure but even how to compete in order not to stay at the back. At home, in contrast, children stay still under the protection of their parents so they have limited range of interaction. Unfortunately, this may negatively results in their adult life, as this ruthless world may appear to them  so intimidating that it can be even impossible for them to bear it.

This short presentation of home education shows that nothing is fully white or black, everything has its pros and cons. As we can see this innovative way of educating children incorporates the opposition of efficient learning and lack of developed social skills. So which side should we approve? I think that there is no one good answer. The choice of priorities is is rather personal matter. However when it comes to the education one thing is obvious. It's not important 'where' but it's more significant 'how', because as Shakuntala Devi (Indian writer) said: 'Education is not just about going to school and getting a degree. It's about widening your knowledge and absorbing the truth about life'.