Every once in awhile you read something that just makes you smile! Though this article has one of those "you've-got-to-be-kidding-me moments," (courtesy of an "enlightened" school board member), the article goes WAY uphill from that point on! Here are a few highlights. Please go read the whole article...it's GREAT!
First a thought from someone who doesn't get it...
"Those kids are nothing but problems,” he said. “They’re not socialized. We had one boy who wanted to go out for football because that’s something you really can’t do at home, and when he got to the locker room, the other kids found out he didn’t even know how to snap a towel or give a wedgie. That’s the problem with homeschooling." --a quote from a "big-city school board member"
To which the author responds...
"Yes, why can’t homeschooled children act as if they’ve been raised by wolves like socialized children? What were their parents thinking?
"I can always tell if children are being schooled at home. They call me “Mr. Mullen” instead of “dude,” or “yo,” or a couple of words that we can’t print. Homeschoolers are usually smarter and more talented than I am. Regularly schooled children may be smarter than I am, too, but since they are socialized to be uncomfortable speaking to anyone outside their age group, I will never know."
And finally...
"Parents and teachers know that what works well for one child may not work for another. How old were you before you found out what you were meant to do in life — if you ever have? Was it something you found at school or on your own?
"Maybe the best education is a combination of conventional schooling, homeschooling and unschooling — or something we haven’t thought of yet. But what isn’t working is socialization."
Really? Can't snap a towel? Child abuse!!! His parents should be locked up! Are you sure that's not parody? That's kind of insane.
ReplyDeleteLOL! Can't vouch for the integrity of the syndicated writer who wrote the article, but I wouldn't put it past a school board member to say something like that!! Those "enlightened" educators aren't always terribly logical!
ReplyDeleteOkay, I have to say I loved the first quote! It so clearly sums up the attitude of so many people as to why homeschooling is bad. It shows their ignorance so clearly.
ReplyDeleteI've been asked such silly questions about how my kids will be normal if they don't have school plays or, my favorite, experience being bullied.
I have a sister and b-i-l who are both teachers. They held each of their kids back a year so they'd be the oldest, and biggest, in their classes so they would have an advantage at sports. If these are the priorities of two teachers, why would we be surprised that a school board member would say such a bone-headed comment?
Boneheaded is exactly what it is! I've also been asked about how my kids will make it in life without the experience of going to the Prom and, yes, the learning experience of being bullied. Apparently, being bullied (including towel snaps and wedgies in the locker room) helps you become a functional adult who can succeed in "real life". Never mind the epidemic of children who are committing suicide as a result of being bullied. That's an inconvenient little fact that flies in the face of the "homeschooled kids need socialization" argument!
ReplyDeleteWow, I never knew that you had to be "initiated" into life in order to turn out as a normal, functioning adult. I never had the privilege of being on the receiving end of a wedgie or towel snap and I think I turned out quite alright.
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