Why do some families homeschool?

It is impossible to detail in a few sentences why homeschooling has picked up more speed in the past decade. Deciding to homeschool is usually a very thought provoking process and different folks arrive at their conclusions in very different ways. Among these many ways are reasons of:

·        Conviction—The word conviction simply means believing very strongly about something. And some families believe very strongly that the best place for their children to be educated is right there in the home. There are many reasons for this—some feel this way based on religious reasons, others do it simply because they believe they can do a better job educating their children than an institutionalized setting can.

·        Convenience—Some families find homeschooling fits their family lifestyle better than public or private education does. This is especially true for families that move around a lot, living as ex-patriots overseas, or where the parents have unique working situations. Some families of several small children also find it more convenient to homeschool than to do the daily transportation shuffle.

·        Customized Education—When a family homeschools, they are able to tailor the material and levels around the needs of the child and not the other way around. For the child who excels in language arts, but is a bit behind in math, home education allows that child to learn at his or her own level. One common complaint parents have against the group setting is that teachers are forced to teach to the most common level of the class. Children more advanced become bored, while children having difficulty comprehending the information struggle to keep up.

·        Conditions—Medical conditions, that is. Some children are physically not capable of attending a formalized school setting due to health restraints. Families of other children with certain mental challenges decide it is in their child’s best interests to education them at home. One-to-one tutoring is often a better choice for these situations and homeschooling offers exactly that.

·        Conformity—For better or worse, the desire to conform still remains one reason why some families homeschool. It is not uncommon to find particular religious groups that place great emphasis on home education and therefore pressure families to make that decision whether they feel it is a proper fit or not. Peer pressure is not a trait reserved for the public school system.

·        Caution—Another reason some families choose to homeschool is the fear of “what might happen.” From school shootings to drug use to teen pregnancy to daily confrontations with a school bully, a desire to protect children from valid social ills is what makes certain families swing toward the homeschooling side.