Homeschooling - Education
First, I will explain about the positive aspects of home schooling for parents. Parents feel responsible for the education of children and they want a closer relationship with their children. Basically, the parents seek for the best training methods for their children, because of that parents want to sacrifice more, especially in their children's education. This is mainly true of home schooling parents. Educating at home allows parents to monitor their children's experience to outside events. Child's growth and development are detached from the unknown realm. Throughout home schooling program, the emotional bonds (or the relationships or ties) between parents and children can be fostered, because the time that they spend with children together increases. Time spent learning together, talking together, and working together result in a more cozy relationship. A parent count the days until school is back in session will possible find, that she/he enjoys the companionship of her/his children. .
Second, the positive sides of home schooling received by children. In home schooling programs, children have the self-rule to choose when and where they want to study. For example, a child could do Math from 8:00-10:00, then do soccer from 10:00-11:00 and then finish the day doing homework. Homeschooled students are not restricted to a regular 2-hour practice time and a 6-hour learning day. The children can make his/her own schedule and may be more paying attention to do homework because he or she planned it out. They will have allowable option of passing on more hours to a difficult subject without putting more pressure on themselves. Children who may be better in English than Math have the chance to get a higher level English class while remaining in a lower level Math class. This way the lessons become fun and takes education to a personal quantity by learning about something which a person is interested in.
Children receive extra help in the subjects they are having trouble in. Parents can prefer a special curriculum to help with that difficult subject. For example, if the child is having trouble in history subject, there is a curriculum that makes history subject obvious and kinetic. Especially, for the subjects where children are excelling in, parents can make the assignments more challenging. During a normal school day there is a lot of busy work, however, by home schooling this pointless paper work can be eliminated, so that there is more time to spend on the important subjects. The best thing about the one on one education if the children do not understand something, parents can go over it until the children finally get fully understand about that. This type of learning goes at the children's step. For example, if on a science test this child does not do well, the parent can take his or her time going over this material, re-explaining it to the child, so that the child is able to finally understand the material. A one on one education really gives children the special attention that they needs. For example, my sister's friend, named Afian, is a homeschooled student, he ever told me about what he got when he was in home schooling program. Home schooling gave him the freedom to explore and experiment. He was never given real lessons on "how to write a sentence" but he learned in the same way he wrote history essays. He even managed to finish his essay writing book that year, too.
Homeschooled students also become more independent and more responsible with their behavior. For example, a home schooled child in high school is given a hand out paper to do at home in literature subject and given a date when it has to be completed. Since their teachers are their parents, the children cannot use excuses like, "my homework were lost on the way I went to school." Parents know what is exactly going on and there is no excuse for laziness. At home, they are not only taught about lessons in General, but also about the good attitude that should they practice in daily, such as, how to speak politely to parents, how to tidy up a bed room, how to clean the house, how to eat and drink well, how to pray to God. Home schooled children have extra time to be taught about these skills. Then, the instructors will practice it in front of children, in order they will practice it too by their selves. That will be the good habit for them. If they sometimes do mistakes, the instructors or parents are going to give them advice or a little punishment, in order to make them will not do the same mistake anymore. For example : the child does not want to pray to God before eating food or lunch, then, the parent can advice the child by telling him or her that God will get angry if he or she does not pray and be thankful for what has given by God for them. Not only that, the children who get their education at home will reducibly get bad influence of peer outside. As we know, some public school student sometimes do fight with their friend at school, or sometimes they speak using bad words which are inappropriate use by children. Those bad words which they get from their peer at school, will usually they use when they speak with each other, not only at school, even at home to their brother or their parents. So that, to decrease that bad thing happened, better for children get their education at home which will be controlled by their parents. Like the positive aspects that parents get from home schooling program, children who are taught at home also tend to have stronger relationships with their parents. This is because the children only usually spend, on the average, three to four hours per day receiving instruction. Then, they will spend more time with their parents, for example; they have planned to go travelling somewhere, or they can play some sport outside.
Third, the positive sides which home schooling present for education development. Home schooling method in learning is using the consciously process, organized and directed by the parents or family at home or other places where the learning process can take place on a conducive situation with the aim to develop potential, talents and interests of each children ( DEPDIKNAS : 2006, my translation ).
According to my sister's friend, home schooling system itself are provide an accommodating situation for learning about democracy: argues, refused the opinions and agree on certain values without having to get fear and pressure, also inspire to perform religious activities, and recreation with family. So that, the children are more prepared to understand their selves and their part in real life and real world. Not only that, one-on-one education method also makes the lesson that students get is more effective and focus with their interest in. In fact, home schoolers in first through fourth grades are able to do work an entire grade level above public and private school students. By the end of eighth grade home schoolers are able to do work at a twelfth grade level (Daniels, 2003). Yet, the research's results are accurate. The average national percentile rank of home schoolers is about 35% higher that the public school students' rank in all areas (Home Schooling Works). However, not only does higher achievement take place in the younger years, but it continues throughout high school as well. Their SAT and ACT scores are higher than the scores of regular students also (Daniels, 2003). They become better than other public school students because in studying at home, generally they use best, famous, and up to date text book. All academic achievement of homeschooled children has been notice of public. For example, in the National Spelling Bee Event, in 2000, the top three finalists were all home schoolers. In 2001 and 2002, the actual winners were bother students taught in the home setting (Daniels, 2003). In fact, many colleges desire home schooled students because they are good students. The average home schooled child does 80% better than the average student on regular standardized tests (Klicka Homeschooled Students Excel in College). Home schooled students also do exceptionally well on the SAT's, their average score is around 1083 and a non- home schooled child average is 1016 (Klicka Homeschooled Students Excel in College).
Home schooling system education has proved many kind of achievements that have created by home schooled students. These are name of public figures who have got success in their life now, they are Julian Assange, a Wikileak-site founder; Condoleezza Rice, a minister in USA; Erik Demaine, a math professor. Not only from abroad, in Indonesia itself there are many public figures that also became a homeschooled students, such as M. Syafei, KH. Agus Salim, and Ki Hajar Dewantara. These people are familiar and well-known by their achievements in science, politic, technology, and so on. These people also show us that home schooling system has helped them to reach their dream in real life.
