Homeschooling: What makes it different?

In case you are new to the series, you can start at the series opening or the first series post.

After my last post, where I explained what makes homeschooling so important, I would now like to talk about the benefits that make it so different (and better).

As common sense would show, one-on-one tutoring is more beneficial than one teacher for a classroom of twenty to thirty or more students. The child receives individual attention and focus. He or she can ask questions or interrupt whenever there is a misunderstanding. The teacher will almost immediately know when the child does not understand the material. Therefore, the learning is at the child’s own pace.

All of us excel in some subjects and need more work in others, but in a classroom setting, the teacher must teach at whatever pace will benefit the class as a whole, not one individual. This can cause boredom and laziness in students who excel at the material. I can certainly vouch for that! The boredom I experienced from school turned me away from learning for quite a few years. Students who have trouble with the material will be left behind and some will never catch up. I experienced this through my “tutoring” of others in middle school and high school. In the home school, each subject is learned at the child’s pace so that he may be at a fourth grade reading level and a sixth grade math level in the same year.

The parent can incorporate the child’s own learning style into the lesson. This is especially helpful for visual or kinesthetic learners who have a difficult time learning from a lecture in a classroom. Many children lag behind in a specific subject only because they are not experiencing the material in the way they can absorb it most efficiently.

Homeschooling also allows for younger ones to be able to move around more when learning. Often times, young children, boys especially, need a break to “get the wiggles out”. You can even incorporate movement while learning if the child is really active. In a classroom setting, this would cause chaos! As I noted before, there are some schools that no longer allow recess. Many others, as discussed in this article, are trying to limit the opportunities for play. I cannot imagine the plight of those teachers!

With all the government regulation regarding school, it is no wonder why some children excel, while others are left behind. They are all forced to start school at the same age! Some children are ready to start earlier, but will be held back because they are too young; therefore, they will be bored in school, having to learn at a slower pace. Other children may not be ready until the next year, but must start at the mandated age, because that is what the government decided.

Homeschooling is also better for the character development of the child. I cannot count the amount of articles I have read regarding parents who say their children do not have time for chores because their schedules are so full—between school, homework, and extracurricular activities. To do their part for the family, children should be assigned chores according to their ability. When children stay home, they are also more exposed to cooking and shopping and will have a better perspective on true family life (as opposed to those children who are so busy away from home that they do not even have time to help).

As I discussed in my last post, teaching our children about Catholicism is one of the most important duties we have as parents. We should not be relying on schools (whether CCD classes or Catholic schools) to teach our children doctrine. This allows error to be portrayed as truth through other people’s opinions, views, and beliefs being interjected into the teaching or from answering questions. Also, religion must be avoided in public school because of the difference between religions and the “need” for tolerance, and a weekly CCD class from first through eighth grade instills very little catechesis—I say this from experience. The ability to add our religious teaching to the yearly curriculum, without the outside influence of others, sets homeschooling apart from all other types of learning environments.

Classroom settings offer pretty much a one-size-fits-all approach. To offer anything else would be out of the teacher’s ability. Homeschooling fits the material to the child, instead of the other way around. Is it any wonder why most homeschooling students have better test scores and are even preferred by colleges?

For more information on homeschooling, please read the resources listed here.