History and Debate of Homeschooling
Homeschooling is rapidly growing in popularity, with the numbers increasing by at least 7 percent every year. There are currently approximately two million children homeschooled throughout the United States. Homeschooling is a hot topic, with a great deal of pros and cons.
Pros to the Homeschooling Debate
First and foremost, homeschooling offers a great deal of freedom, especially educational freedom. While the basics are certainly covered for all homeschool students, the students have a great deal of freedom over what they specifically learn and when. Students can focus on the subject matter that gets them excited, whether that is history, biology or creative writing. Next, homeschooling offers a great deal of physical freedom. Without the strict schedule of school hours, homework and school trips, families have much more freedom to vacation at odd times, visit museums during the week and other such activities. Additionally, homeschooling offers emotional freedom. Students often experience troubles with bullies, peer pressure, boredom and competition. In a homeschool environment, these factors are eliminated. Students are able to think, dress and act the way that they want, making sure that self-esteem remains intact. Lastly, homeschooling offers religious freedom not found in public schools, which is definitely important to many families.