Comments on: There is no Joy in Malkinville

By: mmanion

mmanion — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 20:33:41 +0000

There are plenty of good reasons for homeschooling that have nothing to do with religion. I homeschooled my daughter on and off throughout school because she has a genetic disorder that causes her to get lung infections frequently. After missing 70 or 80 days each year and getting lousy “tutoring” to help her stay caught up, we finally decided that being born with bad lungs should not mean you have to accept a second-rate education. If the school year was going pretty good and she was keeping up, she stayed in school. If not, we pulled her out and worked at home. The thing that frustrated me was the lack of a really good non-Christian curriculum for secular homeschoolers. I guess secular homeschoolers are just not as well organized as the religious ones.

My daughter did graduate from a traditional high school and went to college, but frequent hospitalizations are making it difficult for her to finish. She is now trying the homeschool version of college, taking online courses when she can’t be in school. Frankly, I’m just thankful there are so many options these days. She would have been screwed a couple of decades ago.

By: zumpie

zumpie — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 15:25:28 +0000

Actually, she quite personifies the OTHER, stereotype of a homeschooler: a hippie who considers themselves better than everyone else (really, the smug tone did her no favors) and won’t let their precious, brilliant darlings be subjected to the tortures of traditional schooling. Oh and there was lots of self-righteous, “I was victim and I’m super-special” to be had, as well.

Don’t get me wrong, my daughter’s quite non-conformist (as am I), I frequently butt heads with her teachers and I don’t believe in forcing children into molds. But I also think her school offers her a vast variety of exposure and social interaction that I cannot. And she overall enjoys the experience.

By: JCfromNC

JCfromNC — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 07:09:55 +0000

Yeah, I have to say I really dislike it when homeschoolers are all painted with the broad brush of “a bunch of jeebus fundie freaks”; or the children that are the product of same are characterized as being universally misfits. I mean, I know a lady down in the buckle of the Bible Belt to whom I don’t believe either of those characterizations would apply. (We Have Always Lived In A Homeschool)

By: sophronia

sophronia — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 05:38:21 +0000

I think it really comes down to the parents’ motives. Homeschooling isn’t really a problem unless it’s homeschooling to prevent the kid from ever getting a thought in his/her head that isn’t parent pre-approved. When someone is homeschooling not for education but for control, their kids are going to suffer. And it is in fact possible for a kid to be academically advanced but socially behind, which was the reason I put my son in a public preschool this year, and it’s made him a lot happier and better behaved.

By: zumpie

zumpie — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:06:36 +0000

I think it’s possible to have success with homeschooling, but overall, I’d say this http://ezinearticles.com/?id=1576813 woman is a typical homeschooling mom (and this is from South Africa). Do note the sexist attitude that it’s your duty as an xtian woman and “obedience to God” to sacrifice anything and everything to make this a reality.

By: yoki

yoki — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 22:37:19 +0000

I homeschooled two daughters from ages 9 & 7. No religion (none), just learning, travel, work, volunteering–a wide experience of the world. They nailed the SATs (700+), got accepted at Amherst, Colgate, Middlebury, Pomona, and elsewhere. One is now a Berkeley Law School grad, the other a geologist working on environmental clean-up. Y’all really need to stop treating homeschoolers as a clump. True, the Christianists predominate, but homeschooling is as diverse as America.

By: Moominpapa

Moominpapa — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:41:43 +0000

I have to say, if I were Jebus, I would so be riding dinosaurs. Fuck all that looking after the meek, etc. - I’d be out all day on Tyrone the Tyrannosaur. You betcha!

By: wavydavy

wavydavy — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:23:47 +0000

She and other like her are one of the primary reasons I and my husband are home schooling our two kids. — Quoted Malkin commenter

Um, I think you mean “she and others“, dearie. Oh, and BTW, that would be “my husband and I” doing the marvelous job of “schooling”.

And just remember, according to our current POTUS, the answer to the question Is our children learning?” is “Our childrens can learn.”

By: comsympinko

comsympinko — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 20:46:42 +0000

Best thing about this to me is that this is the first comment on the “My Baby Weet Off To Let Other People Teach Her About Cutting And Rainbows” thread:

“On September 10th, 2007 at 9:46 am, purplepeep said:

‘none of it was more important this morning than my son’s very first day of preschool’.

No preschool - but my first day of Kindergarten was overwhelming. I even got lost in the K-thru-6 school.

A whole new world is opening up for your little one, may you all be much richer for it.”

Besides, you can’t be a cheerleader if you don’t go to school…

By: HalloweenJack

HalloweenJack — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 19:52:58 +0000

I think that your daughter did well in homeschooling because she’s extremely intelligent, not vice versa.