I agree that parents that home school their children need instruction on how to do it properly. There's a lot of resources for parents who home-school, but no one makes sure they get connected. I think like schooling in general, it's hard to make a blanket statement about the quality of home-school education.

I think that some parents do an excellent job of home schooling.  However, we did have some students who came from a home school environment who were behind.  To me it would be very difficult to teach your own children everything.  Also, kids need to have experiences interacting with their peers. I do know that some parents work together to ensure that their kids are getting all that they need.  It probably just depends on the parents and the kids.  As a child who was bullied a lot, I would have welcomed the chance to stay at home.

How about sending the bullies and naughty kids to home school and leave the kids who are there to learn?

idk. most of the home-schooled kids i knew growing up where home-schooled b/c their parents wanted to shelter them from exposure to the world and wanted a curriuclum that included religious(Christian) instruction and there just wasn't a school that was affordable or dogmaticaly correct or something.  these parents got together regularly, so there was increased social interaction, but i have noticed throughout the years, you can usually tell after a little conversation if someone has been homeschooled.  i have never had an experience where the parent thought the school was failing and so then the parent would teach the child, but then again, some of my students have a higher level of education than their parents do by the time they get to middle school. not to mention the parent having no idea how to go about it. changing schools or teachers seems to be the preferred method of blame for us.

sending the bullies/inappropriately behaved students to be homeschooled probably wouldn't do any good for anybody since those students usually are the ones where the student runs the home or home is an incredible mess. the kid would probably just end up on the street.

i think the curriculum should be standard and that the kids should take the damn tests. someone somewhere should be checking in on these people regularly as well.

Using a standard curriculum doesn't work in the public schools because every child is different, which is why a standard curriculum is a very bad idea for homeschooling. It's a bad idea for public schools, but it's really the only way to teach 20-40 kids at the same time. When you have the advantage of a 1:1 teacher-student ratio, why ruin that with a standard curriculum?

I do not support home schooling for the simple fact that students loose out on social development. Yea, there are situations in public education that I would rather my kids not to be exposed to, but the fact is that one day they will be exposed to it, home schooled or not. I want them to be prepared for it. Besides, I believe that as long as I teach my kids right from wrong; over all things will be OK. I have not had a problem yet. As a 12th grade teacher I have students, very few, that adhere to good moral principles regardless of corrupt social surroundings.

Two things; all parents must take control of their children’s moral upbringing, teach them well and they will be well; If parents do not teach their children well, they need to take responsibility for their actions and stop blaming everyone else.

Two things; all parents must take control of their childrens moral upbringing, teach them well and they will be well; If parents do not teach their children well, they need to take responsibility for their actions and stop blaming everyone else.

Curriculum standards are WHAT is to be taught, not necessairily HOW a subject is to be taught. Yes, the school system does tend to favor certain learning modalities over others. Why screw that up at home?---you shouldn't.  Teach however your child best learns, if you are able. But not everybody knows even their own child as well as they might think. And yes, the homeschoolers need a standard content just like everybody else. Have you heard some of the crap that comes out of home-schooled peoples mouths? It takes longer for them to unlearn some of the stuff they have been taught b/c it came from their parents.

Also, come 4th and 5th grade I probably would have killed my parents or they would have killed me if I had been home-schooled. We fought enough as it was.

Parental influence is underestimated far too frequently.  Children who are raised with core values that are modeled in the home on a regular basis are the ones who stand up to the negative exposure of the world beyond home. Sometimes we stray, it's true, but keep an eye and an ear on your kids, and they will turn out they way you want.

Home schooling is appropriate for very few people, imo.

My view of homeschooling is similar to mine about other types of "non-traditional" schools (ie: private, charter, parochial). Children learn in a variety of ways, and sometimes that incorporates different environments. In that respect, I support homeschooling and school of choice. There are plenty of children who prosper when given another chance in a different setting. And there are many factors that play into that success...just like there are many factors that play into their failure.

Homeschooling does need to be a little more structured. I can understand parents wanting to teach their own children: it preserves values and parents have a direct connection to their child's success. However, if a parent is not an effective teacher (and really, there are people out there who would be TERRIBLE teachers), does not follow a proper curriculum, or teaches their children bias information, the home school system fails. Therefore, I agree with your point about training. I think training is essential. As is giving parents the opportunity to acquire proper materials and give them curriculum suggestions (if you don't make them align with the state's curriculum).

To compete in today's society, an individual must have a competent education. Homeschooling allows for that not to happen. However, sometimes, its the perfect solution.

In my opinion, I do not think that home schooling does any justice for preparing individuals for the real world. First off, I feel that home schooling takes away a very important social aspect that students gain in the school system. Granted, some students do still have social ties when home schooled, but the majority do not know how to interact with the outside world. Another major issue with home schooling is that I do not believe a great deal of parents know what they are getting themselves into (especially at the high school level). I feel that some subjects are too in depth and parents are not properly trained to teach every one. The last issue I have against home schooling is that it is almost like it creates a protective shell around the child. I feel that most parents begin home schooling only as a way to keep thier children "safe" from the dangers of the world. However, unless these parents allow thier children the opportunity to experience the real world, these individuals are going to be in for a world of hurt once they finally "graduate" from home schooling.