Is there a difference between homeschooling and unschooling? [Archive]

brittone2

10-17-2006, 01:45 PM

Yeah, even unschoolers can't decide on a single definition of unschooling IMO ;)

I agree with the PP though...it is pretty much child-lead learning...the parent facilitates by supplying the materials requested, setting up experiences the child requests, etc. Some unschoolers will "strew" things for their DC...they may leave out interesting articles in the hope that their child will pick it up and read it. Some unschoolers say things like "strewing" go against the philosophy of unschoolers. It is a continuum like anything else, and people don't always agree on a single definition.

Unschoolers also tend to believe that their DC will seek out the right information for themselves at the right time. SO they may not read until 8 or 10 or later, but they may quickly skip right to chapter books and skip the early reader types of books.

At one time I thought the idea was kind of interesting but over the top, now we lean toward being unschoolers or very eclectic homeschoolers as DS gets older.

crl

10-17-2006, 01:45 PM

I think pp is right. Unschooling suggests no curriculum. Mothering dot com has a homeschooling forum and you could probably find out more there.

crl

10-17-2006, 01:45 PM

I think pp is right. Unschooling suggests no curriculum. Mothering dot com has a homeschooling forum and you could probably find out more there.

tarynsmum

10-17-2006, 02:43 PM

I agree with PP that unschooling (while nearing impossible to define) is best descibed in an open-ended way of saying "the child learns inately", meaning that there is no curriculum or really parental leading. The philosohy behind it is that it is natural for a human beingto seek out information, and that there is no reason for schools or whatnot (sorry, I'm really not very eloquent today).

An instructor at my LYS has an eight year old that is mostly unschooled. He'll just sit in a corner with things strewn around him, different books different days. They go to the library a lot and pick out different things for him to look at. He als does a lot of craft work, like knitting and felting, that is associated with Waldorf models.

tarynsmum

10-17-2006, 02:43 PM

carryingandstrollingabout

10-17-2006, 04:35 PM

I'm not being obnoxious, I'm just curious...

Why do families chooose to home schoo/unschool? I think school is such a postive experience to interact with other kids. Just curious...

carryingandstrollingabout

10-17-2006, 04:35 PM

I'm not being obnoxious, I'm just curious...

Why do families chooose to home schoo/unschool? I think school is such a postive experience to interact with other kids. Just curious...

lizamann

10-17-2006, 05:38 PM

I imagine there are as many reasons as there are homeschoolers.

It appeals to me because of the ability to individualize learning. I don't like the idea of grades and competition and believe that kids can learn quite well, and likely better, without grades (plenty of homeschoolers use grades, though). I don't like the fact that schools tend to focus on one type of learning, and those kids that do well with that type of learning are the "smart ones" while those who don't are somewhat humiliated or intimidated on a daily basis. I was one of those "smart ones" and I realize more and more how that that label did me a disservice.

I don't like how school kids are thrown into a group of age peers exclusively. Homeschooled children get the opportunity to socialize with kids and adults of all ages, which is a great model of the real world.

Homework in kindergarten. I don't want that!

Flexibility, both in time and curriculum,is a plus for the homeschooler.

We are not homeschooling yet, and are still considering it, but these are some of the reasons it appeals to me.

lizamann

10-17-2006, 05:38 PM

bcky2

10-17-2006, 05:52 PM

ita with all that you said. thoes reasons and a few others are why we are going to homeschool. they are going to a church based preschool but that is it.

bcky2

10-17-2006, 05:52 PM

ita with all that you said. thoes reasons and a few others are why we are going to homeschool. they are going to a church based preschool but that is it.

chlobo

10-17-2006, 06:48 PM

I've thought about it but I definitely don't have the temprement. As a result with live in a town with incredibly high taxes but great schools.

I can imagine that if one couldn't afford to live in a town that they thought had good schools then homeschooling would be a great optoin. As to socializing, I've heard that homeschoolers often network together. And, kids who are homeschooled can still participate in school sports in some areas. It also doesn't preclude them from doing other activities (paid by the parents, such as ballet, soccer, music) where they can intereact with other kids.

brittone2

10-17-2006, 10:21 PM

ITA with the PPs. For us the major motivators are the ability to follow DS's interests and go where he leads us. If he is passionate about a topic, we can explore it til his heart's content ;) We can build on concepts that interest him and let things naturally progress, following his passions.

I'm not a big believer that grades serve a huge purpose and I don't want my child to be afraid to explore challenging subjects or things he may not "excel" in because they'll hurt his GPA. He won't have to worry that his interests are "uncool" or that it is not socially acceptable to be excited about learning.

I don't like the pressure of early academics, homework, expecting kids with very busy, active bodies to sit in their seats for extended periods of time, etc. I think there are a lot of tradeoffs to the pressure that early academics places on our kids.

I like being able to be hands on as much as DS wants. We can go to museums, we can interact with professionals in various fields. We can do tons of hands-on projects. If we find he's a kinesthetic learner or a visual learner or an auditory learner, we can adapt our methods that.

Socialization is the least of my concerns. Every interaction we have in life with others is socialization. Paying the cashier at the grocery store, volunteering at the animal shelter as a child working with other adults, talking with professionals in various fields. There are homeschooling groups in almost every community now, where homeschooled kids can interact together for purely fun or sometimes parents even share academic duties (so if one mom is an artist, she may help set up a homeschool art class, while another parent may be a scientist and is chosen to teach a physics class). I know in both states I've lived in, our local YMCA has homeschooling gym classes. There are sports teams, camps, extracurricular activities to participate in for homeschoolers and traditional schoolers. Unless you *choose* to isolate your DC/family, it is unlikely IMO that socialization is really an issue. It is what you make of it.

Many ivy league universities and other colleges now have homeschool admissions counselors that review homeschool "portfolios" (where a writing sample may be included as well as other projects, etc. in lieu of grades).

AngelaS

10-18-2006, 06:20 AM

We love homeschooling because it gives my girls a chance to interact with people of all ages, not just their peers. A few weeks ago dd struck up a conversation w/a guy working in a fast food restaurant and learned he was from Uganda (gol, I forget now, but she'd remember!) and spoke 4 languages. She was fascinated and we had to come home and look up his country on the map.

We homeschool so that my girls can learn at their pace. My oldest is a smart girl and a lot like me. That means she'd be bored waiting for the other kids in her class to keep up. I remember school as being lots and lots of waiting around for the slower kids to catch up. My teachers didn't give me anything extra to do and I got in trouble for chatting with my neighbors a LOT. :P She's just starting third grade this year, but is almost done w/3rd grade math already.

We homeschool so we can teach what we want, when we want. We're studying history in chronological order. It's been FASCINATING! My history in school was seriously lacking and I've been learning right along with her. She loved learning about Henry VIII and his 6 wives. Bloody Mary fascinated her. She loved hearing the story of Beowulf. She knows who Marco Polo was. I sure didn't know any of that in third grade! She doesn't yet know where babies come from or what boy parts are really for, but we'll get to it. ;)

We homeschool so that my girls can be together and learn together. I love watching my oldest teach her little sister what sounds letters make. They will always be sisters and I love seeing them work together. Friends come and go and people move, but when you're growing up, your siblings will always be there. To play with, to annoy, to love.

I am enjoying homeschooling. We take it on a year by year basis...so far it's still working: my girls are learning, I'm not going nuts, so it's a good thing. Perhaps down the road things might change, but for now, it works for us, so it's what we do.

MartiesMom2B

10-18-2006, 08:49 AM

How long is a homeschooled day. Things that I've seen on tv, suggest that homeschoolers have school for 2 hours a day. I don't understand how you can educate a child in only 2 hours. I've also seen that homeschoolers do have "home work". This is just something I've been wondering.

If my children asked me to homeschool then, than I would consider doing it. I was a mentor to someone at church who had asked her mother to be homeschooled for highschool. I think it's a good choice if that's what your child wants/needs.

-Sonia
Mommy to Martie
& Li'l Girl Bunny to come Feb. 2007
http://bd.lilypie.com/Kchhm4/.png (http://lilypie.com)

drsweetie

10-18-2006, 09:01 AM

I have a friend who homeschools her two sons, and she's encouraged me to let her homeschool my own DD when she's old enough. Can people homeschool other people's children? Or just their own?

Ellen

g-mama

10-18-2006, 10:30 AM

"Homework in kindergarten. I don't want that!"

My ds started kindergarten this year and is loving it. I wanted to mention that he is truly sad on the days that he isn't given any homework to do. He loves doing homework because I think it makes him feel grown up and responsible and he is a child who loves to learn. But, honestly, they get very little homework in kindergarten. We are supposed to be reading together at least 15 minutes an evening, but we've always done that anyway.

~Kristen

Paolo 11-00
Benjamin 8-03
Marco 12-05

MissyAg94

10-18-2006, 10:35 AM

I have wondered about the same thing (time spent learning.) But you know, if you add up all the time spent doing "other stuff" at a traditional school, you only spend a few hours a day doing lessons. I hope that made sense. :)

bcky2

10-18-2006, 10:45 AM

i know someone who homeschooled someone elses child for a few years.

lizamann

10-18-2006, 10:50 AM

It completely varies how long someone's homeschool day is, but yes, I can imagine that homeschooling could be only a couple hours (or even less for the really early grades.)

In school, the teacher is dealing with a large group, and just managing the group takes a lot of time. Moving a line of 25 kids from the gym to the cafeteria is not always easy. Transitions of any sort take a while.

A large part of the school kid's day is not spent in academic work - gym class, art class, lunch, independent reading, for example, are all things that kids do in school, but most homeschoolers probably wouldn't count these activities in the "academic" 2 hours you hear about. Even during the academic time, not all that is productive in school since you have kids who are ahead and waiting around, and kids who are slower who aren't getting what they need out of the lesson, etc. Having a lesson really targeted towards the child and relevant to where they are speeds things up quite a bit.

bcky2

10-18-2006, 10:51 AM

everyone homeschools differently. some do around 2 hours but in a reg school there is usually about 2-3 hours of teaching and the rest is spent on discipline, transitioning from one lesson to another, recess, lunch, and other such stuff. i also believe that you educate your child all day long with different things that you do. like with my son now simple things like shopping when we pick out something he will pick out different letters on the box. he will count out how many we need of stuff, he will pick out something by the color i tell him. all that is teaching but not in the traditional way people think you need to teach. really you can make learning fun without sitting at a table or a desk. so yes for us in the grade school years i would say we will probably spend one hour maybe a bit more at a table but the rest of the day is also filled with learning experiences :) i hope i kinda answered your question ;)

lizamann

10-18-2006, 10:54 AM

Now that would be fun. I would love to homeschool another kid along with my own! I know a lot of people do what a pp mentioned - they teach a group of kids in their area of expertise. I don't personally know anyone who's taken over the whole job for someone else, but it sounds interesting.

kijip

10-18-2006, 10:55 AM

Back to the homeschool/unschooled distinction, LOL.

Unschooling seems to me to be somewhat akin to an individual approach to the group, student run schools in the Summerhill tradition. The idea is that kids will seek out the stuff they need to know and then perhaps learn those things they seek out more quickly because they are ready and SELF motivated to learn them. I attended a democratic, student led, self initiated learning school for the final 4 years of my secondary education. Which in retrospect was somewhat akin to a school of unschooling to some degree. ;)

Homeschoolers tend to have an approach/lesson plan that is not child/student lead (although many are to some degree or another.)

I do not plan to either homeschool or unschool my child.

lizamann

10-18-2006, 11:01 AM

I highly suspect my dd would love homework, too, and the whole structured school atmosphere, actually. It's one reason I haven't yet completely decided to homeschool yet. But just the idea of early academics and all that pressure gives me the willies, regardless of whether dd can handle it or not.

MartiesMom2B

10-18-2006, 11:08 AM

"We homeschool so that my girls can learn at their pace. My oldest is a smart girl and a lot like me. That means she'd be bored waiting for the other kids in her class to keep up. I remember school as being lots and lots of waiting around for the slower kids to catch up. My teachers didn't give me anything extra to do and I got in trouble for chatting with my neighbors a LOT. She's just starting third grade this year, but is almost done w/3rd grade math already."

This is what concerns me about public school. I'm not worried about Martie not keeping up, I'm afraid that she'll be bored and will act up. I told DH that we should give public school a try but be prepared to look at different schooling situations if it doesn't work out.

-Sonia
Mommy to Martie
& Li'l Girl Bunny to come Feb. 2007
http://bd.lilypie.com/Kchhm4/.png (http://lilypie.com)

lizamann

10-18-2006, 11:09 AM

So Katie, what did you think of your unschooled school? Is Summerhill like Sudbury? Does that experience lead you to not unschool your son?

I was in a somewhat progressive program for 4th - 6th grades, and it was very self-directed. Very little if any direct instruction from the teachers, self evals instead of report cards, setting our own goals and reflecting on achieving them, etc. When I got to jr. high and had the traditional classes with tests, grades, homework and lectures, I LOVED the structure and excelled at it.

So it's quite ironic that I am seeking something for my child (towards the unschooled/progressive end) that didn't work so well for me.

aliceinwonderland

10-18-2006, 11:22 AM

I also do not plan to unschool/homeschool my child, but I *can* see some of the benefits, FWIW.

Only reason for adding to this thread is that I absolutley plan to offer, and have offered some of the experiences/opportunities cited above as part of the reason to homeschool but plan to do this in addition to a formal curriculum. I never thought that all learning, or even most of it, was supposed to take place in school. My kid travels a lot, is exposed to many kinds of people very regularly, and, I can bet that if there were a poll for "most museums visited" ;), I think he'd be near the top :) He also happens to go to a very unstructured preschool full time. My long-winded point is that I do not think it's either/or, IYKWIM.

californiagirl

10-18-2006, 11:54 AM

School was an incredibly negative experience for me, and for most of the kids I went to high school with. I think it did terrible damage to my socialization (and my math skills, which were worse leaving elementary school than entering it). I had few positive interactions with other kids until high school.

DH didn't hate school as much as I did, and we both work, so I'm not sure about homeschooling. But DD is in some ways even more poorly suited to a school environment than I was (she was more coordinated at 2 than I was at 6, which is good news, but she's much more active than I was, which is bad news).

lizajane

10-18-2006, 12:55 PM

i think i am with sonia. (but duh, we are great friends IRL.)

i do not PLAN to homeschool because i am selfish and i want to do some things for me (like work, which our family also needs) and not pay for childcare.

BUT if schuyler, a VERY active and highly sensitive child, is unable to excel in public school, we will move to private. and if that doesn't work, he will come home. i want what is best for my FAMILY. and sometimes that means i base decisions on how my happiness will affect my children. but ulitmately, my children are not equipped to "take" what is best for them- they need me to give it to them. so if school isn't working for him, i will find a way to make learning work for him elsewhere. (maybe montessori, which i think might be ideal.) honestly, though, he is so crazy about preschool and is so well behaved and learns so well there, i think i worry too much about elementary, etc.

dylan, on the other hand, i expect (as much as i can at not yet 2 years) will LOVE LOVE LOVE school. if schuyler ends up in private, i will probably switch dylan over, too. but even if i need to homeschool schuyler, i will send dylan to school outside the home. i think (but my thoughts can change) that outside school will be best for dylan.

unschooling would not work for me. i am highly type A, and while i don't want that for my kids AT ALL, i couldn't just let all structure go. and the highly sensitive child needs structure to know what to expect or he gets lost.

brittone2

10-18-2006, 01:05 PM

ITA w/ the PPs. I thought the idea of 2 hours was nuts initially, but it depends on how you set up your lifestyle, etc.

I agree, a lot of school is waiting. Do a worksheet and wait for the rest of the class to finish. Standing in line, waiting while the teacher spends time with other kids, waiting while the teacher is yelling at a distracted class. Lunch, recess, assemblies, etc. Art class, music class. You get the idea ;)

If you include your kid in day to day activities, you can structure them to be educational without much effort. A trip to the grocery store can integrate math, home economics, etc. Involving your child in comparison shopping, etc. Cooking with your child teaches fractions, volume, and other concepts. Family trips to the zoo, museum, etc. on weekends are educational experiences that "count." Lessons, sports involvement, trips to the library all add up too. Bedtime stories, reading as a family, dinner table discussions are all educational experiences as well. Writing a letter to the grandparents can be structured as an educational experience.

I'd say the ability to customize what your child is learning to their needs at the time makes it possible to be very efficient.

brittone2

10-18-2006, 01:11 PM

I think it depends on your state laws. Some states only require parents submit a letter of intent to homeschool when their child hits a given age, and there are no more reviews of what happens after that. It is totally an independent venture for the family. There really are no regulations. Some states have more specific requirements. IIRC when we were looking into laws and living in PA, you could have a private "tutor" for your DC other than yourself. I don't recall the details but there may have been a requirement that the person had a certain number of education credits. PA is considered a relatively "strict" homeschooling state though.

In a lot of cases parents interpret the laws relatively liberally and don't have any problems. IMO It is doubtful in a lot of states that anyone would be checking in to see exactly who was teaching your child...you vs. someone you trusted.

Mothering.com has a homeschooling board that could help you out with more specifics.

bcky2

10-18-2006, 01:12 PM

>But just the idea of early academics and all that pressure gives me the
>willies, regardless of whether dd can handle it or not.

that is one thing that i think about alot. i will probably get flamed for this post but ill give it a go anyway ;) i think that society keeps increasing its demands on children. each year they expect more and more. they take away more of what makes kids, well kids, and pushes more and more things to help they grow up faster. we wonder why kids want to act like adults and do adult things at such a early age when just years befor we pushed thoes same kids to grow up as fast as possible. Kids will learn to read and write and all the things that they need to know. i dont feel like young children should have to know all that is pushed on them at such a young age. things that my boy "should" know in preschool are things that i was taught in kindergarten and first grade. i just feel sad that alot of times kids are overscheduled and "booked" for the day when really they should be playing and being a child. i also think that parents are so into the competition of whos child is smarter and does more elective activites that the children get lost sometimes. please dont think i am talking about any mama on this board, im not. im just posting my point of view. ok, start the attacks ;)

brittone2

10-18-2006, 01:42 PM

Eri-
I totally agree it isn't either/or. I think most parents here probably "supplement" their DC's education no matter where it happens, with various activities, trips, and tons of exposure to wonderful and enriching experiences.

I like that homeschooling gives us more flexibility in doing those things (more hours and flexibility in the day) but I hope that it didn't come across like those that choose traditional schooling can't have rich, varied, wonderful experiences that add to their child's out of the home education. I think most parents here do all of those enriching things w/ their kids to varying degrees.

I think sometimes it comes across wrong when homeschoolers talk about socialization...certainly kids can socialize with people of all ages and backgrounds no matter where they are schooled, home or out of the home. When homeschoolers bring up that their kids get a chance to socialize with people from all walks of life, etc. I think it is usually because the number one thing people insist on bringing up at the first utterance of homeschool is "but what about socialization???" and that makes homeschoolers a little nuts ;) Obviously homeschoolers and non-homeschoolers have tons of opportunities to expose their kids to all sorts of people, but homeschoolers just tend to talk more about the diversity of people their kids encounter because sooooo many people that don't homeschool worry so much about how homeschooled kids will ever learn to be social, so they feel the need to explain what kinds of socialization their kid experiences. Not that traditionally-schooled kids don't have those experiences too, but most people put homeschoolers on the defensive because they almost always ask about the "socialization" question, as if kids that are homeschooled live in caves and don't see the light of day LOL ;)

They forget that like anything else, it is what the parent makes of it. Yes, there are poorly socialized homeschoolers, but that may because their parents shelter them for regligious reasons or may have other quirky reasons why their kids aren't in contact with other people that often. Of course, you have parents in public school that may not really give their kids varied social contacts outside of school either. It all depends on the family, not so much where they are schooled.

Anyway, just trying to say that I hope it doesn't come across like homeschoolers are saying they are great for taking their kids to all sorts of cultural events and having all these great experiences that traditionally schooled kids can't have. I think we're just trying to explain what appeals to us about homeschooling in general...having more flexibility to do those things, but that doesn't mean people that choose another road can't do all sorts of wonderful things with their kids :) It sounds like your family has found a great mix :)

bcky2

10-18-2006, 01:48 PM

and yet again, so wonderfully said beth :)

aliceinwonderland

10-18-2006, 01:52 PM

I knew you were not making that point specifically (that only homeschooled kids get to do the cool stuff); just wanted to put it out there. ITA that the parent has, or can have, a lot of power over their child's education.

And, FWIW socialization is the least of my concerns when thinking about homeschooling. At one point it was the first, but I have since been, uh, educated ;) My main concern for my little family is that my son would spend a significant part of the day with...me. Now that just isn't fair to the kid :)

brittone2

10-18-2006, 02:03 PM

LOL Eri!!

I'm sure you are one cool mama to hang with, and your DS has it good I'm sure :) No doubt though, homeschooling is not for everyone! With a 2nd child on the horizon, I may eventually change my mind ;) LOL.

kijip

10-18-2006, 02:42 PM

>So Katie, what did you think of your unschooled school? Is
>Summerhill like Sudbury? Does that experience lead you to not
>unschool your son?

>So it's quite ironic that I am seeking something for my child
>(towards the unschooled/progressive end) that didn't work so
>well for me.

Homeschooling or unschooling for *me* would preclude me from working or preclude my husband from working. Right now, we both like what we are doing and are better parents because of it. Besides, someone has to pay for all those enriching activities and trips, LOL. I do believe in the value of *public* education so that is my default starting point. If it does not work, we can look to private or home. Frankly, I don't think I would mesh well with the local homeschooling circles in my area at all and don't think, like Eri, that my kid wants to be with me 24/7, LOL.

Sudbury is based on Summerhill to a certain degree, as I understand it.

I am not at all opposed to co-op led schools with the democratic principles of my high school and I am investigating that for my own children. However, I do not think I would send most children to the same school or exact type of school that I attended. It is not for everyone and IMO can be a disaster for kids that are not suited for it. I have a lot of accomplished friends from high school but too many of my classmates suffered in the long run by graduating without certain critical skills. I am unprogressive in that I firmly believe that some skills are needed, like it or not.

kijip

10-18-2006, 02:48 PM

>I also do not plan to unschool/homeschool my child, but I
>*can* see some of the benefits, FWIW.
>
>Only reason for adding to this thread is that I absolutley
>plan to offer, and have offered some of the
>experiences/opportunities cited above as part of the reason to
>homeschool but plan to do this in addition to a formal
>curriculum. I never thought that all learning, or even most of
>it, was supposed to take place in school. My kid travels a
>lot, is exposed to many kinds of people very regularly, and, I
>can bet that if there were a poll for "most museums visited"
>;), I think he'd be near the top :) He also happens to go to a
>very unstructured preschool full time. My long-winded point is
>that I do not think it's either/or, IYKWIM.

ITA with this. There are benefits. But it is not for my family. And Toby has many, many enriching experiences outside of "school". Learning does not start or end with only schooling.

cuca_

10-18-2006, 04:38 PM

I could not agree with you more. This scares and saddens me so much.

Carmen
DD May 2003
DD May 2005

punkrockmama

10-18-2006, 05:00 PM

Hey Jennifer, thanks for posting this! I had never heard of "unschooling" before at all until very recently mself. Not a stupid question at all. :) Good thread!

Judegirl

10-18-2006, 07:33 PM

"Many ivy league universities and other colleges now have homeschool admissions counselors that review homeschool "portfolios" (where a writing sample may be included as well as other projects, etc. in lieu of grades)."

Just popping in to say that of Stanford's 2004 (I think that was the year, though I can't swear by it) incoming freshman class, 2% were homeschooled. That's HUGE. The percentage of students of all ages who are homeschooled in the nation is just around 2%. This means that Stanford's homeschooling population in one year matched that of the proportion of all homeschooled kids overall. This means that they far outperformed Stanford's schooled applicants that year; by percentage, most of the homeschooled applicants who applied to Stanford would have had to have been accepted (though I wouldn't be surprised if 2% represented the total of all applicants who were homeschooled.)

I doubt, for the record, that either Stanford or the polltakers differentiated between unschooling and homeschooling; I'm sure the numbers reflect both.

I use homeschooling to refer to what we'll do, because I'm not comfortable with the ideological underpinnings of "unschooling" but we don't plan to follow a rigid curriculum.

Best,
Jude

jennifer_r

10-19-2006, 06:57 AM

My thoughts exactly.

Jennifer

Mom to:
Christopher 12/29/89
Adelaide 8/23/04
Bronwyn 11/9/05

http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_garnet_6m.gif[/img][/url]

cmdunn1972

10-19-2006, 09:16 AM

I hadn't heard of it either, and my Mom's a teacher. So don't feel bad.

lizamann

10-19-2006, 10:49 AM

I would think that because your mom's a teacher, that is all the more reason for you NOT to have heard of it LOL. Teachers in general hate the idea of homeschooling, especially unschooling. Though I used to be a teacher and love the idea.

AngelaS

10-19-2006, 02:20 PM

No doubt....man some of those teachers will just BLAST away if you mention that you homeschool. YIKES! I normally have no trouble announcing that we homeschool but I've encountered public school teacher that act like I've decide not to educate my kids at all when I tell them I homeschool.

cmdunn1972

10-20-2006, 12:43 PM

It's interesting that you brought that up. I wonder if it's because teachers feel that can't be objective with their own children?

aliceinwonderland

10-20-2006, 01:28 PM

Assuming the numbers for 2004 are correct (I cannot find them), it's high school seniors we're talking about getting admitted, right? If 2% of Stanford students are homeschooled and the entire group, not just seniors in any given year, but all age groups that are homeschooled is 2%. So theoretically, the senior class of the Homeschoolers represents 0.2% of all seniors in any given year that are applying. Basically, Stanford admitted 10 times the number they theoretically would have admitted if all things were equal. So, presumably, the homeschooled kids were in large numbers much more qualified that the rest of the applicant pool.

However, I went and looked at the nummbers for the class of 2009 (so, starting 2005), which are available. Seems Stanford admitted 3 students (out of 1,633) who were homeschooled...or 0.2%.

Ironically, this is right in line with the national average you quote. If Stanford did in fact admit 2% in the previous year, this is a relatively large swing. 2% represents 30 students.

(feel free to rip my math apart, since it was DH who did it--I shared the post with him over dinner as I found it fascinating, myself).

Edited for grammar :)