Animals
One poster on the Dr. Phil Board adamantly maintained that homeschoolers were shutting the door on their communities and were bad citizens simple because they didn't use the public schools to educate their children. After all where else would our children meet ethically and religiously diverse people if they didn't attend public school?
The myth that all homeschoolers are WHITE FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIANS is alive and thriving. H$LDA is a huge reason this myth is alive and well, as they are often the only voice and face of homeschooling the public hears and sees. So I found the post Taking Charge - Let's Not Link Homeschooling to Partisan Politics - Larry and Susan Kaseman in Home Education Magazine timely.
First do you really have to associate with ethically and religiously diverse people to be a good citizen? to be well educated? to be well socialized? If so I am afraid the Founding Fathers may have failed the good citizenship test. After all multiculturalism is a relatively new educational fad. Not to mention there is no way the Founding Fathers attended public schools. Public Schools didn't exist yet. And even after public schools were established for many years they were segregated. At Principled Discovery Dana has this to say about Liberty and Learning, and what education meant to those who founded our nation.
Secondly homeschoolers are not as isolated and insular as many people think. My INCLUSIVE homeschool group (PEAK) is made up of religiously and ethically diverse (Wiccans, Pagans, Atheist, Free-Thinkers ect ) members. Homeschoolers also get out in their communities. we belong to civic associations, we utilize public libraries, our kids play on recreational sports leagues made up of public school, private school and homeschooled kids.
I decided to visit the Merriam-Webster Dictionary and see how it defined citizenship.
After Katrina hit the Gulf Coast I was really impressed with the way my community pulled together. Those who had electricity opened their homes to those who didn't so they could do laundry, make phone calls etc. Those who had food shared with those who didn't, those who had gasoline to operate their generators shared with those who didn't. When things got better those who had little or no damage helped those whose homes were badly damaged to clean up and rebuild. That's being a good citizen, and some of those helping were homeschool families. Homeschoolers are good citizens!
- The Voiceless Homeschoolers
A Fundamentalist Christian Homeschool Blogger wanted to know why Secular Homeschoolers seem to be so hostile toward them. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that they presume to speak for ALL homeschoolers. They make inane comments like All...
- Top Myths About Homeschooling
I am totally mystified by the number of people who know absolutely nothing about homeschooling but feel compelled to write post on homeschooling full of misinformation and false assumptions. Here I will address some myths about homeschooling that have...
- Stupid Comments Of Public School Jingoist
Lately I have read with amusement the comments on some blogs by non-homeschoolers bashing homeschooling. You would think if they were going to comment on another parents educational choice they would at least take the time to find out something about...
- Sheer Ignorance On Dr. Phil Board Astounds Me.
Before I get started on my own rant about that show, I wanted to recommend Valorie Delp's post Dr. Phil Doesn't Get Homeschooling, at Homeschool Families. And Why Homeschool also had an excellent post on "that show". Considering how negatively...
- Educational News
Homeschoolers are a very diverse group contrary to what some people think. For the Native American Homeschoolers amongst us The Native American Homeschool Association and Native American Homeschoolers are two groups you may want to check out. *********************************************************************************...
Animals
Politics, Citizenship and Homeschooling
You Aren't A Good Citizen If You Homeschool!
One poster on the Dr. Phil Board adamantly maintained that homeschoolers were shutting the door on their communities and were bad citizens simple because they didn't use the public schools to educate their children. After all where else would our children meet ethically and religiously diverse people if they didn't attend public school?
The myth that all homeschoolers are WHITE FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIANS is alive and thriving. H$LDA is a huge reason this myth is alive and well, as they are often the only voice and face of homeschooling the public hears and sees. So I found the post Taking Charge - Let's Not Link Homeschooling to Partisan Politics - Larry and Susan Kaseman in Home Education Magazine timely.
First do you really have to associate with ethically and religiously diverse people to be a good citizen? to be well educated? to be well socialized? If so I am afraid the Founding Fathers may have failed the good citizenship test. After all multiculturalism is a relatively new educational fad. Not to mention there is no way the Founding Fathers attended public schools. Public Schools didn't exist yet. And even after public schools were established for many years they were segregated. At Principled Discovery Dana has this to say about Liberty and Learning, and what education meant to those who founded our nation.
Secondly homeschoolers are not as isolated and insular as many people think. My INCLUSIVE homeschool group (PEAK) is made up of religiously and ethically diverse (Wiccans, Pagans, Atheist, Free-Thinkers ect ) members. Homeschoolers also get out in their communities. we belong to civic associations, we utilize public libraries, our kids play on recreational sports leagues made up of public school, private school and homeschooled kids.
I decided to visit the Merriam-Webster Dictionary and see how it defined citizenship.
Main Entry: cit·i·zen·ship Pronunciation: 'si-t&-z&n-"shipFunction: noun1 : the status of being a citizen2 a : membership in a community (as a college) b : the quality of an individual's response to membership in a community.
As you can see for yourself attending a public school isn't a requirement. For many homeschoolers the church is the heart of their community, for others it may be a community center, civic association, public library or a mixture of places where they interact with their fellow citizens. But we all work to make our communities a better place
After Katrina hit the Gulf Coast I was really impressed with the way my community pulled together. Those who had electricity opened their homes to those who didn't so they could do laundry, make phone calls etc. Those who had food shared with those who didn't, those who had gasoline to operate their generators shared with those who didn't. When things got better those who had little or no damage helped those whose homes were badly damaged to clean up and rebuild. That's being a good citizen, and some of those helping were homeschool families. Homeschoolers are good citizens!
- The Voiceless Homeschoolers
A Fundamentalist Christian Homeschool Blogger wanted to know why Secular Homeschoolers seem to be so hostile toward them. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that they presume to speak for ALL homeschoolers. They make inane comments like All...
- Top Myths About Homeschooling
I am totally mystified by the number of people who know absolutely nothing about homeschooling but feel compelled to write post on homeschooling full of misinformation and false assumptions. Here I will address some myths about homeschooling that have...
- Stupid Comments Of Public School Jingoist
Lately I have read with amusement the comments on some blogs by non-homeschoolers bashing homeschooling. You would think if they were going to comment on another parents educational choice they would at least take the time to find out something about...
- Sheer Ignorance On Dr. Phil Board Astounds Me.
Before I get started on my own rant about that show, I wanted to recommend Valorie Delp's post Dr. Phil Doesn't Get Homeschooling, at Homeschool Families. And Why Homeschool also had an excellent post on "that show". Considering how negatively...
- Educational News
Homeschoolers are a very diverse group contrary to what some people think. For the Native American Homeschoolers amongst us The Native American Homeschool Association and Native American Homeschoolers are two groups you may want to check out. *********************************************************************************...