Thursday, June 02, 2005
Why Wouldn't You Homeschool Your Children?
I think this article makes some good points to consider...all of which Istrongly agree with.
Why Wouldn't You Homeschool Your Children? Usually we get asked "why are you homeschooling?" when anyone (family, friend, complete stranger) learns we homeschool. The short answer is, ofcourse, that God has led us to here - we homeschool out of obedience to Hiscall. While this answer is sufficient, there is a bit more to say abou thematter. Spend a little time researching educational philosophies, thehistory of compulsory education in our country, and the decline of thinkingskills along with morality in schools today, and you realize that is askingthe wrong question. Parents should be asking themselves why they don'thomeschool. Most parents intuitively understand this and become defensive -giving a reason immediately as to why they could never homeschool. To besure, there are some really good reasons (Single parents or both parentsneeding to work, feeling the school is really just fine and inline with yourfamily's values, for starters). Most of the reasons I've heard, however,aren't so good. Here is a good summary of excuses that most homeschoolingmoms hear from people who just couldn't possibly homeschool:Anti-homeschooling excusesWhen we started to consider the options for educating our daughters, werealized we really needed to understand just we thought we meant by"education". We hope that these thoughts on Foundations of Education will behelpful to you.I do tend to sound a bit anti-public school here, and really, I am.Seriously! I think the American model of schooling, based on the Prussianschooling of the 18 century, is harmful (to kids, to families, to thecommunity, to church, etc). If you have kids and they are in public school(or even private if it's based on the same model as the public ones), pleasedon't take my opinions as attacks. I know some wonderful kids and fantasticfamilies that use the public school system - but they are not the norm.Perhaps you think homeschooled kids and their families are a bit weird or"off". That's okay. But you're still reading, so, are you ready to do somemore reading? Maybe a little research on your own? It is okay, you know, toquestion the education you received and perhaps consider there is a betterway for your children. What is the Holy Spirit speaking to you about?What Public Schools really are: www.johntaylorgatto.com Beware! You'll neverlook a school the same way again! You think it's far-fetched that theinstitution of public education - compulsory schooling - was meant to dumbdown the population and make them suitable for factory work, believeanything the media tells them, weaken the family, and encourage the consume,consume, consume mentality? Does the school building itself remind you of apenitentiary? Johnny could read before compulsory schooling, now Johnnycan't (and he can't tell right from wrong, either). It's horrifying torealize school are NOT a failure, but an unbelievable SUCCESS! You just needto know what their purpose is, and it isn't to teach reading, writing, andarithmetic.Separation of School and State? honestedu.org If you want to go "deep end",visit the site by the Alliance for the Separation of School and State. Itend to agree with them, although the road to separation may be rougher andlonger than they think. But, they are on the right track.No Separation of secular and religious educationGod has called parents to be responsible in bringing up their children toknow the Lord. Where you send your child for 6-8 hours a day, 5 days a week,9-10 months a year, for 12 years MATTERS in their spiritual development.The school system assumes that there is a separation between "academic" and"religious" instruction. It is based on a the gentile pagan philosophy ofGreece and Rome, and was introduced early in the Christian church by theneo-Platonists and the Gnostics. While the church rooted out many of theheretical gnostic teachings, some remained. The most pernicious is thisbelief that things of the "material" world are evil. God created everythingand called it good (read up on Genesis 1 & 2 if you're rusty).This separation is unbiblical and therefore false. The fear of the Lord isthe beginning of wisdom, and studying to gain knowledge of God's createdworld is an act of worship. Learning is a religious act. What the schoolsystem teaches is based on a humanistic religious worldview. It's notneutral to religion. Don't be fooled.Here is an excellent quote that sums this up. It is from Harvey Bluedorn, apioneer in Christian homeschooling, who, with his wife, wrote "Teaching theTrivium".
"We cannot divide 'academics' off as some separate part of education --parents can teach children to love the Lord, and public school can teachacademics. Christians have been trying to do this for scores of years, andguess whose education is having the greater and greater impact and whoseeducation is having the lesser and lesser impact? All education isessentially religious in nature, and the public school more and more teachesthe religion of humanism -- God is irrelevant, man is the measure of allthings, and each individual must determine his own value system. Puttingaside the fact that in general, public schools do a poor job of teaching themechanics of academics (if the student learns it well, he learns it at homeor on his own), the fact is that every academic subject must be taught fromcertain philosophical presuppositions, and these subjects are taught inpublic schools from the perspective of naturalism and humanism. The God ofthe Bible is ignored all day long, while alternately man or nature areexalted as idols for worship."
taken from; The Berea Homeschool
Why Wouldn't You Homeschool Your Children? Usually we get asked "why are you homeschooling?" when anyone (family, friend, complete stranger) learns we homeschool. The short answer is, ofcourse, that God has led us to here - we homeschool out of obedience to Hiscall. While this answer is sufficient, there is a bit more to say abou thematter. Spend a little time researching educational philosophies, thehistory of compulsory education in our country, and the decline of thinkingskills along with morality in schools today, and you realize that is askingthe wrong question. Parents should be asking themselves why they don'thomeschool. Most parents intuitively understand this and become defensive -giving a reason immediately as to why they could never homeschool. To besure, there are some really good reasons (Single parents or both parentsneeding to work, feeling the school is really just fine and inline with yourfamily's values, for starters). Most of the reasons I've heard, however,aren't so good. Here is a good summary of excuses that most homeschoolingmoms hear from people who just couldn't possibly homeschool:Anti-homeschooling excusesWhen we started to consider the options for educating our daughters, werealized we really needed to understand just we thought we meant by"education". We hope that these thoughts on Foundations of Education will behelpful to you.I do tend to sound a bit anti-public school here, and really, I am.Seriously! I think the American model of schooling, based on the Prussianschooling of the 18 century, is harmful (to kids, to families, to thecommunity, to church, etc). If you have kids and they are in public school(or even private if it's based on the same model as the public ones), pleasedon't take my opinions as attacks. I know some wonderful kids and fantasticfamilies that use the public school system - but they are not the norm.Perhaps you think homeschooled kids and their families are a bit weird or"off". That's okay. But you're still reading, so, are you ready to do somemore reading? Maybe a little research on your own? It is okay, you know, toquestion the education you received and perhaps consider there is a betterway for your children. What is the Holy Spirit speaking to you about?What Public Schools really are: www.johntaylorgatto.com Beware! You'll neverlook a school the same way again! You think it's far-fetched that theinstitution of public education - compulsory schooling - was meant to dumbdown the population and make them suitable for factory work, believeanything the media tells them, weaken the family, and encourage the consume,consume, consume mentality? Does the school building itself remind you of apenitentiary? Johnny could read before compulsory schooling, now Johnnycan't (and he can't tell right from wrong, either). It's horrifying torealize school are NOT a failure, but an unbelievable SUCCESS! You just needto know what their purpose is, and it isn't to teach reading, writing, andarithmetic.Separation of School and State? honestedu.org If you want to go "deep end",visit the site by the Alliance for the Separation of School and State. Itend to agree with them, although the road to separation may be rougher andlonger than they think. But, they are on the right track.No Separation of secular and religious educationGod has called parents to be responsible in bringing up their children toknow the Lord. Where you send your child for 6-8 hours a day, 5 days a week,9-10 months a year, for 12 years MATTERS in their spiritual development.The school system assumes that there is a separation between "academic" and"religious" instruction. It is based on a the gentile pagan philosophy ofGreece and Rome, and was introduced early in the Christian church by theneo-Platonists and the Gnostics. While the church rooted out many of theheretical gnostic teachings, some remained. The most pernicious is thisbelief that things of the "material" world are evil. God created everythingand called it good (read up on Genesis 1 & 2 if you're rusty).This separation is unbiblical and therefore false. The fear of the Lord isthe beginning of wisdom, and studying to gain knowledge of God's createdworld is an act of worship. Learning is a religious act. What the schoolsystem teaches is based on a humanistic religious worldview. It's notneutral to religion. Don't be fooled.Here is an excellent quote that sums this up. It is from Harvey Bluedorn, apioneer in Christian homeschooling, who, with his wife, wrote "Teaching theTrivium".
"We cannot divide 'academics' off as some separate part of education --parents can teach children to love the Lord, and public school can teachacademics. Christians have been trying to do this for scores of years, andguess whose education is having the greater and greater impact and whoseeducation is having the lesser and lesser impact? All education isessentially religious in nature, and the public school more and more teachesthe religion of humanism -- God is irrelevant, man is the measure of allthings, and each individual must determine his own value system. Puttingaside the fact that in general, public schools do a poor job of teaching themechanics of academics (if the student learns it well, he learns it at homeor on his own), the fact is that every academic subject must be taught fromcertain philosophical presuppositions, and these subjects are taught inpublic schools from the perspective of naturalism and humanism. The God ofthe Bible is ignored all day long, while alternately man or nature areexalted as idols for worship."
taken from; The Berea Homeschool
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