rogue education

I have learned alot this year from "homeschooling" with Connections Academy. The program was a God-send when we needed it. I have come to realize though, that although it is a fabulous program, there are still key requirements I feel are not being met in the education of our children. Specifically, in educating through CA we are still with a public school and public schools must follow states guidelines for education; guidelines which are based on a fictitious middle-of-the-road child who learns specific skills at specific times. I feel the current public school curriculums push the children through their lessons without providing the opportunity to master each lesson. I feel the school districts have prioritized only those aspects that directly effect the assurance of their funding, rather than assurance of a well-rounded education (which is individualized). While I value and appreciate the teacher, and believe teaching is only becoming more difficult, more underappreciated, and more underpaid, they too, are subject to the politics of the state's requirements as well, and consequently, limited by same. I have seen teachers hand out extra credit "work" with the intention that it would pass children along into the next grade level, rather than holding them accountable for their progress. God forbid we hold back too many children - but we "fail" them still. I was in a comfort zone with the only system of education I was familiar with, but it had become a Catch-22.

I agonized about pulling my children from public schooling. I worried about the extra work load I would have and fullfilling the responsibility (but whether they are in public school, private school, or homeschooled, I still bore that responsiblity). I worried that I might do them an injustice by pulling them out of public school, but continued to feel the injustice of leaving them in public school. I could either sit by and watch them struggle, stress, and fret over their assignments and passing each grade level, or I could step up and make sure they were provided the education I felt would be most beneficial (and the education they deserved). Yes, it would be more on my plate, but I had the kids in the first place. It's my duty as a parent, and simply, I am going to follow through for them. Anyhow, no one knows it all, not even the teachers. Fact is, many schools assign teachers to lead classes on subjects they were never trained to teach. A homeschooling parent learns along side the child, and a home education is all about meeting the child's individual educational needs.

So here's our new plan. Are you sitting down? We'll be homeschooling, by its, uh, truer form, and I never, I mean NEVER, thought I would be homeschooling any of my children, ever! This year we rushed our way through the textbooks in an online public school, which became a baby step towards an actual homeschooling program. Now, we will work our way through the textbooks at a slower pace. We will work year around, and allow the children to master each lesson before moving on. I have already purchased the books off of ebay for about $10-15.00 each, beginning with a repeat of this years textbooks.