Archive for the ‘Social Interaction’ Category

Until recently, homeschooling parents had to defend themselves (if they wanted to, of course!) against the common accusation “But homeschooled kids don’t know how to socialize!” with either anecdotal evidence, or with the single long-term study on the subject, “Homeschooling Grows Up,” a study that showed that the socialization issue when it comes to homeschooling is no more than a myth.

Now, we have another large, long-term study in our arsenal. “Fifteen Years Later: Home-Educated Canadian Adults” clearly shows that home-educated adults are more socially engaged, earn more and are happier than their public-school-educated peers!

This reminds me of the early opposition to homeschooling, when the main argument was that homeschooled kids will not do as well as public schooled kids because they’re not taught by professional, college-educated teachers. Several studies later, when it turned out that home schooled children actually do BETTER academically than public school students, the arguments shifted. Now, critics were saying that home schooled kids are isolated and will not learn how to socialize.

I’m happy about the studies, because they will ease the worries of parents who are considering homeschooling their children. But anyone who has been engaged in homeschooling for the past decade, or more, is not exactly surprised.

What’s surprising to me is that anyone would assume that what’s going on in a typical public school, socially speaking, is desirable or even “normal.” You force a large group of immature kids into the same classroom, and make them spend eight hours each day with each other, with very little supervision (one teacher for 20-30 students), and you call that normal, desirable socialization? While this scenario may work for some students, for many others it creates unimaginable stress and social difficulties, and not because something is wrong with them – but because the situation is inherently difficult.

Being homeschooled does not equal being isolated. It means spending your days with your family and with a select group of friends. It means going outside on field trips and on excursions, meeting other home schooled kids, and going through a much more gentle, natural socialization process than in public school.

We knew all along that homeschooling produces intelligent, happy, confident, well-adjusted adults. And now we have the studies to prove it!

Many parents are certain that they want to homeschool their child, but are worried that their child would not enjoy homeschooling. The main concerns I hear from parents are about social isolation, and about discipline. Would their child feel isolated if she doesn’t attend a physical school every day? And would their child have the discipline needed to learn in an environment that is much more independent than traditional schooling?

My own experience is that the vast majority of children love homeschooling. Sure, homeschooling takes some getting used to. It’s very different than what your child knows. But it’s better.

Homeschooled kids are not socially isolated. This is especially true for our online homeschool academy, WiloStar3D, because they get to go to a 3D school every day and interact with teachers and with peers. But in any homeschooling scenario, parents are definitely encouraged to meet with other homeschooling families, to go on outings, and to send their kids to enrichment classes. By the way, research consistently shows that grownups who were homeschooled as kids are well adjusted socially. So the social concern really is no more than just a myth.

As for the discipline aspect, homeschooling is perfect for kids who are self-motivated, independent, and want to learn. WiloStar 3D students are expected to remain current with all class assignments and to participate on a regular basis in our 3D virtual learning community, Wiloworlds. If you’re not sure about your child’s desire to learn, you will have to monitor them more closely, especially at the start – but this is true for any learning situation – students that are less motivated need more supervision. The beauty of 3D learning is that it often transforms reluctant learners into enthusiastic learners, simply becuase it is more interesting.

Photo by Picture Youth

Despite the common accusation directed at homeschooling parents that they are ruining their child socially by not letting him interact with kids his own age, it’s been well established by researchers that homeschooled kids actually grow up to be mature, well adjusted young people and that the “socialization issue” is no more than a myth.

We didn’t really need research to know this, although it is certainly good to have scientific backup to what we knew all along: there are many different ways to socialize children. Certainly children in past generations were socialized via going to church or to other social gatherings and simply spending time with family members. The best socializing happens when the child is naturally exposed to many different people from many different age groups – spending the majority of their day in a classroom with 40 other kids their age is not necessarily the best way to socialize and can be very hard on some kids!

Here are 3 great ways to socialize your homeschooler:

1. Spend time with family! Whether it’s the nuclear family or the extended family, the very fact that kids spend the majority of their time with family members means that they are getting plenty of opportunities to socialize. Of course, meeting the extended family is helpful because it expands the number of people your child is exposed to and also enables her to play with children of different ages.

2. Schedule play-dates and outings with other homeschooling families. You can start your search for other homeschooling families online, or you can ask friends and relatives, and befriend other families when you go to the library or to the park during a normal school day.

3. Go to church, or join a local community. Church is a wonderful place to build a community of like-minded people. Or you could join any other type of local community in your area. You could also sign up your child for enrichment activities or for a local sports group. If you do, make sure socialization there will be gentle.

The myth of the isolated homeschooler who spends her days next to the kitchen table with books is just that – a myth. Homeschoolers enjoy a very active social life. In fact, by not spending 6-8 hours each day locked up at school, they get to experience much more than a typical student who attends a traditional school.

Photo by D Sharon Pruitt