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By Grace Jorgensen
FOR the majority of parents, enrolling kids in public or private school has been
the familiar and ‘reasonable’ option.
However, it is not the only option; and many families across B.C. are now
choosing to teach their children at home. Parents who make this choice can
follow one of two paths.
Traditional homeschooling places the parent completely in charge of the child’s learning. There is little funding support for parents making this choice; but
the freedom to cultivate their children’s gifts is liberating, and opens many doors of opportunity.
Traditional home school students do not lack opportunities for further
education. In fact, a traditionally homeschooled student has just been accepted
into UBC without a B.C. Certificate of Graduation, having challenged the grade
12 provincial exams.
There is another approach, for parents wanting more structure and
accountability, and a report card and a diploma for their kids. The Distributed
Learning (DL) program gives teacher support and direction. Some 18,000 students
in B.C. are doing all or part of their schooling at home through DL.
Home-based programs are free to the parents, and the cost of materials and
activities that directly relate to the student learning plan can be partially
absorbed by the school. Parents have a responsibility to implement the
teacher-directed learning plan, and communicate regularly with the teacher.
Why are so many choosing to school at home? Because these parents want to
nurture their own children.
Eminent psychologist Gordon Neufeld, in his book Hold On to Your Kids: Why Parents Matter, presents a strong argument for schooling children in a nurturing home
environment. Family travel, flexible schedules, individualized learning, and
freedom from peer pressure and bullying, are a few more of the reasons. For
many, public school is simply not an option. The recent economic crunch forces
some parents with children in private schools to look at alternatives.
School at home requires a parent or caregiver to be in the home, and this can
impose adjustments to household income. But with only a few short years to
educate their children, many parents believe the extra time and money invested
now will provide benefits for generations to come.
The longstanding concern that children schooled at home will not be adequately
socialized is a myth buried in the past. Opportunities for socialization
abound.
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One example is the Graduation Program offered by Traditional Learning Academy
(TLA) to high school students. Students meet their teachers online in a virtual classroom, with fellow students around the
province. Students may never meet face to face, but they share concerns,
interact in enjoyable activities, and pray for each other.
When a teen is unhappy, the whole family knows about it! Junior High students in
grades 8–9 often feel trapped in a world of questions such as, “Where do I belong, and why do I have to do this?” TLA has recognized the needs of such teens, and developed a unique program that
allows students opportunities to engage in ‘real’ learning that makes sense.
There is one other important consideration. Special needs students are falling
through the public school cracks. More and more parents are bringing their
children back home, believing they can do a better job and give their children
more individualized attention than they would receive in the overburdened
public system.
Parents know the potential of their own children, and desire for them to be all
they can become. The world is changing, and parents need to know they have
options. School at home is rapidly becoming a key choice of the future.
Grace Jorgensen is director of relations for Traditional Learning Academy.
schoolathome.ca
September 2009
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