Homeschooling Pros and Cons: What to Consider Before you Homeschool your Child

Homeschooling has become more popular since the turn of the century and many parents are finding this a better way to educate their children. Children that are homeschooled have more one on one time with an instructor that is online so if they are confused about a project, they get more individualized attention. Children that are homeschooled are still allowed to use the public school system in their area for classes like physical education, music, or fine arts. Some children are homeschooled and still attend a public school for other interests like sports and music. This is a good way for them to still be able to socialize and study at home. Homeschooled children are still able to attend the colleges and universities that will accept them based on their grades, volunteer work, projects, etc, that they learned during their four years of high school. There are many things parents have to consider including the pros and cons of homeschooling their children.

Parents have many things to consider before choosing to homeschool their children. The whole routine of the household is going to change and mom and dad will have to trust that their teens will do their work when parents are both working during the day. In addition, if parents choose to start homeschooling their children at a younger age, one parent will have to stay home in order to teach their children and make sure they understand the schoolwork. This means, either one parent will have to work, or both parents will have to work different shifts in order to make ends meet. Parents still have to consider working out a routine because homeschooling doesn’t have the structure like a public school system so teachers conferences, seasonal breaks and various days off due to bad weather are different for homeschooled children. These are the days they don’t have to make up. Homeschooled children can also log in and do their schoolwork at any time. In addition, parents don’t have to spend a fortune on school clothes and school supplies needed for different subjects in the public school system.

The American Education System has also been struggling since the 1980s and the reason is that technology has surpassed what the school’s offer in their curriculum. There are many subjects that have been discarded, including classes like philosophy and cursive writing so children aren’t learning penmanship like they did 50 years ago. The students of today aren’t thinking for themselves, they are being told what and how to think. There could be a difference in homeschooling your child. There are more subjects offered and they will learn how to use their critical thinking skills, and learn how to think for themselves because there is less of a distraction.

Pros and Cons

Parents that are considering homeschooling should look at the pros and cons of their choice before considering homeschooling and the pros and cons will be discussed here.  

All educational systems offer wonderful opportunities for kids to learn different skills and information. This, in turn, helps them take control and gain their own unique qualities and interests. Homeschooling is basically the same as public schooling, private schools, charter schools, and something called unschooling, and this includes different models that also have pros and cons. This is the main thing all these choices have in common is the pros and cons.

Homeschooling is a huge change in the lifestyle

Homeschooling is going to create a major change in the lifestyle of the families who choose to homeschool. This is not a bad thing, but there will be changes that will occur and parents and kids will grow from this experience.

When you choose to homeschool, you take on the responsibilities and duties of the teachers and administration. Whoever is going to be the homeschooling parent will have to choose the lessons, research field trips, put together activities with other homeschooling parents and make sure they are following all of their local and state homeschooling rules and the requirements. These are the extra responsibilities that are required in order for you to homeschool your children, rather than choose to send them to school outside of your home base.

There are also additional costs to homeschool and while there are quite a few resources out there, you are still responsible for books, textbooks, paper, art supplies, computers, software, and the extra tools for homeschooling that costs money. There is good news about these costs because you are still able to minimize the cost of homeschooling.

Some programs that you choose actually help with costs by bundling resources into a kit and this can include classroom text materials, lesson manuals that provide the step by step instructions, textbooks, reading books, math information, science kits and other online tools that are helpful for the parent to succeed at teaching their children with homeschooling.

Parents still have to think about the loss in income if one parent decides to stay home and homeschool their children. This is a huge challenge for a single parent, two-parent families can always work different shifts. Parents have to think about good budgeting skills, along with time management because this will be critical if you choose to homeschool.

Parents should understand that their child will no longer be in a public school structured environment because they will be learning at home and the family dynamics will change including the pace of life and complete lifestyle changes. Children will have to pound the books because more time will be used on homeschooling and chores, errands, appointments, and normal household routines might have to be rescheduled to fit everything in and this includes the hours you choose to homeschool your children.  

Parents should think about another important change in their lifestyle which is parents that spend a lot of time with their children when you choose to homeschool your kids, you will be spending more time with your kids. This is a major lifestyle change when it comes to the amount of time you spend with your children. This also will help influence your choice on whether homeschooling is right for your family or not. You can still be resourceful if you are good at time management and find ways to schedule a time for yourself and your spouse.  This is an important decision though because you have to understand that you are going to be spending more time with your children than you do normally.

The difference in homeschool socialization skills

When parents hear things like there is no socialization when kids are homeschooled, this is just a myth. Another myth is that all kids that are homeschooled are nerds and have no people interaction skills. The truth regarding this matter is that of course there are pros and cons concerning the social experience with homeschooled kids, just like there are pros and cons concerning public school experience. All experiences are different for children, and the most reasonable way to categorize homeschool socialization in a homeschool environment is the word different. The experience is just different for all children.

How does homeschool socialization differ?

This is a good pro when it comes to bullying because homeschoolers don’t have to put up with peer pressure and bullying, which cause poor performance and cause low self-esteem. Parents often decide to homeschool because they worry about their child’s values being influenced by their peers. In addition, parents also take into consideration bullying and teasing or ridicule, in the public and private school systems. There is too much pressure on clothing, shoes, and fitting in and also social status can be a great experience or a poor one for their child.

There is also less interaction on a daily basis with a large room of classmates that are their age. This way homeschoolers spend less time daily participating in sports and other activities with their classmates. This can be solved by allowing your child to take a few classes in public schools to be able to get involved in sports and after-school activities.  This also doesn’t mean they can’t have the ability to join in other interests and sports. They can interact socially through their community in sports and activities, and become more active and socialize with people of all ages, including professionals. They have a greater chance of meeting more of a variety of sports and people while homeschooling.  

Homeschooling is more flexible and focuses on personalized learning experience for each student. This is also more of a one on one experience and involves more field trips, more real-life situations, and also hands-on learning. Homeschoolers also engage in more recreational and community leagues and there are some facilities like the YMCA that offer homeschool sports in their community. There are many students that choose to homeschool because they are gifted athletically or have great artistic skills that have them in much higher levels of activity so it’s easier for these types of students to be in a homeschool environment.

Greater educational freedom

A third pro to consider is homeschooling provides more freedom for you and your child and you will see what kind of impact this type of education has on your kids. Homeschooling has the greatest benefit which is flexibility for you and your family. All kids struggle academically at one point in their life with a subject or a certain concept and don’t skip it and move on. This way you can help your child work through their struggles until they have understood and mastered the basic problems. There is no time crunch with homeschooling because you and your child have the ability to take all the time you need. This is great because you want to make sure your child has gotten a good grasp on the material. When your child is ready to advance, you don’t have to waste time going over the material because they got it from your patience in teaching. Therefore, homeschooling never becomes remedial or repetitive when learning the lessons for your child. Homeschooled children move much quicker through their lessons than their peers in a structured school system.

If your child attends a public or private classroom with over 20 children in a class, the teacher has to understand every student’s style of pace and learning. Most of the time the majority of the students are ready to move on, however; there are some children that still fall behind. When your child is ready to move up to new material, then your child has to wait until the other students catch up and this might be half of their class. This is how kids become bored, frustrated or both because they have nothing to do for a while as they are waiting.

Another good pro of homeschooling education is that kids are exposed to many unique experiences. Parents and their children talk often about how being homeschooled has encouraged them to leave the house and learn more about science, art, math, and history in the world they live in. There is something great about experiencing things outside of a classroom because kids are able to learn and absorb more of the knowledge and skills they are exposed to.

There are always different responsibilities with this type of educational freedom and as mentioned in the beginning, parents are now both teachers and administrators to their children. You want to believe you are doing the greatest job you can when teaching your children, just remember how important it is to plan and schedule the homeschool experience. This requires parents to put on their critical skills thinking caps and take this into the picture when you are deciding whether you want to homeschool or not.

The Homeschool Pros and Cons Chart

Parents only want the best for their children and homeschooling can become a whole different world of learning opportunities that other school systems don’t offer. Parents still have to think about both pros and cons to make sure you make the correct educational decision for your children.

Here are some of the homeschooling pros and cons and remember more family time is spent on homeschooling.

Pros

• Parents have more of a role in their child’s learning on a daily basis
• Parents have the satisfaction that their kids are learning, using new skills, and also maturing the way you feel is consistent with the goals and values you believe in
• Homeschooling creates stronger relationships

Cons

• Parents have to plan lessons, take care of the administrative duties of being the teacher
• Parents have less time for themselves
• Parents suffer from more stress and fatigue by taking on these responsibilities at times
• More cash is needed for education if parents decide to homeschool

Pros

• Parents can use different variations and different activities as part of their homeschool lesson plans
• Parents can buy bundled learning packets that help them with their budget to cut back on the cost

Cons

• Parents have to dedicate themselves and more of their time which can mean a loss of income or a shift change
• Parents have to tighten up on their spending if they find themselves on a tighter budget
• Team sports options are different for kids that are homeschooled

Pros

• Parents your children can still partake in recreational leagues, beginners leagues, join local homeschool sports or create their own sports leagues

Cons

• Most school districts don’t allow homeschoolers to partake in public school sports team unless they are taking a few classes at the public school
• Different Socialization skills

Pros

• Your kids won’t suffer from low self-esteem from the pressure that distracts them from learning
• No bullying
• More chances of meeting adults by going on field trips and doing different activities
• More chances to meet other homeschoolers of different ages and different skill levels
• Real life and hands-on experiences make stronger learning lessons at home

Cons

• Some kids complained they didn’t have as many friends being homeschooled
• There is still less of a chance for daily interaction in large groups of kids that are the same age
• More educational freedom, and flexibility when being a homeschooled child

Pros

• Parents your kids move faster through their lessons and subjects, they understand and spend more time on concepts that present a challenge
• There is no time limit to finish
• Homeschoolers perform better on standardized tests which have become a huge problem with the public school systems
• Homeschooling has the ability to give kids the chance to follow their dreams and enjoy the activities they choose, lessons are personalized to the child’s abilities and style of learning

Cons

• There are fewer resources like technology that is more readily up to date and available in public schools
• Parents have to teach all subjects and more flexibility means more time and more responsibilities for parents
• There is also a lot less structure compared to public schools
• Achievement recognition is only received at home when kids are homeschooled

Pros

• Students aren’t distracted so they have the ability to allow for greater achievements
• Homeschoolers show more pride in their work because they are self-motivated and have greater confidence in their ability to succeed

Cons

• Homeschoolers only receive recognition when they accomplish their work from their family and friends
• Homeschoolers don’t get the chance to participate in award ceremonies that are common in the public school system
• Children have more time for involvement in their communities

Pros

• Again, the students have a greater ability for achievement because they are not as distracted at home versus the public school system with over 20 kids in a classroom
• Homeschooled kids show more pride in their achievements because they are self-motivated and have more confidence and don’t suffer from low self-esteem

Cons

• Students have more time for community involvement, including volunteering opportunities that arise or different community projects
• Parents, your children will lose some social interaction with kids their own age by being homeschooled

Homeschooling offers an education specifically made for the child’s personality and capabilities

Homeschooling is focused on kids as individuals and a child’s education can be specifically tailored to their abilities and capabilities, including their personality. If your child is particularly good in a certain area, their education can move faster along. If your child is struggling in a certain area, parents can get additional resources to help. In addition, you can teach your child the way they learn based on personality. This helps parents teach their children in a more efficient manner. Some children are more visual learners, so more visual items can be used for this type of child’s instruction. Some kids learn better with a hands-on approach, so they do it better by doing things themselves. This is better than the public school systems approach of using the same mold for each child. Homeschooling gives kids the opportunity for the child’s education to be specifically designed for that child. 

A child that is homeschooled has the same teacher daily for every subject over a long period of time, which in turn makes their education process consistent with a long term goal in every topic that is taught. These kids gain more benefits than those that have been in public school systems for years. The reason is their parent is involved with their child throughout the student’s education. This is how the parent understands how the child learns and understands their experiences and their background and uses this knowledge to design the future of their child.

Homeschooling offers better teaching materials and these kids have access to the best teaching lessons available. The best thing is that these teaching materials are chosen based on the child’s individual needs and their capabilities. This is why parents should explore this opportunity to choose whether they want to homeschool their children or not. Take time and think about the decision and look at different homeschool bundle packages and compare costs and also discuss how the change will affect the family. Your children are the future generation and this is the one and only chance you get as parents to make sure your child is learning properly and to the best of their ability in a school setting, whether it be at home or in a public school system.

Virtual online schools

Don’t mistake homeschooling with Virtual Online Schooling. This kind of schooling is free and a student logs in with an instructor that teaches the class. The Virtual Schools have campuses that the children attend periodically and some of these virtual schools even offer Driver’s Education and there is no cost. The students take their test and do their bookwork for their temporary license, and get their six months of driving in if under the age of 18 and they qualify for their road test. There is no cost because the state students reside in pick up the cost and the students are not taught by their parents at all. This might be more of an economic way if you are struggling financially when it comes to homeschooling. The routine of your family will still change though and there are times the instructor is online for the students to learn so the rules are a bit different. This is a whole different form of research that is something a parent can look into.