Does Homeschooling Hurt Public School?
A dear friend and Modulo parent recently confided in me that she was concerned about sending her 10 year old to their local public school because it had a reputation for bullying. However, she was very divided about doing so because she wanted to support public school.
Over the last several years, I’ve spoken to many well-intentioned families who are concerned that homeschooling hurts public school.
I think this is the wrong way of looking at things for several key reasons.
It’s unlikely that homeschooling hurts public school
Your tax dollars go to your local public school. If you live in an area with failing public schools and pay taxes, your tax dollars will go to support that school whether or not your child is enrolled.
However, if you move to an area with “better public schools” in order to send your child to public school, your local school that needs the money will get less of it. (I call this buying public school through real estate)
Classrooms are overcrowded. School lotteries exist because not everyone can fit into the best public school. If you give up your spot at a public school, it’s going to either give that spot to someone who needs it more or reduce teacher:student ratio. In some states, the ratio is as high as 1 teacher to 50 students, not a great set-up for positive learning outcomes. Not sending your child to public school may actually improve the experience for other students by making class size smaller.
Your decision to opt out of public school may put pressure on policy makers to improve the state of the schools that are failing the most.
Public school is different than public education
Every child should have a fundamental right to a quality education, but why should that have to take the form of a school based on a 1930’s farm schedule that hasn’t changed the way it’s done things in the last 100 years?
Unfortunately, the school choice movement is largely led by conservatives and libertarians who want a school free-for-all where families can use tax dollars to enroll their children in religious institutions or schools that condemn marginalized groups. That said, I view the school choice movement as a positive thing if there are some measures of accountability built in. If families can choose where their children go to school, schools will be more pressured to make education better for their main users (kids and parents) and their main employees (teachers).
Imagine a FREE decentralized public education system with accountability and support built in where local communities, parents and kids can set goals for their child’s education and adapt quickly to changing times and changing needs and new insights into the science of learning as it comes out on a micro-level (local community, family, child), rather than a uniform education system that is one-size fits all.
Our current education system is not built to change and so it remains stuck in the past despite all the efforts to instill gradual change. If we want to improve public education, we need an education system that evolves quickly.
Your child shouldn’t have to suffer for your political ideal
As an educator for over 20 years, this is the argument that’s closest to my heart when parents say they want to keep their child in public school so they don’t hurt public education.
While some children enjoy public school very much, many have an excruciating time. Gun violence, sexual harassment and bullying are some of the issues that students encounter every day. Should they be forced to suck it up and endure this in the name of public school? It goes beyond a threat to their physical or emotional well-being: some kids simply aren’t learning at school. Schools are designed to help the majority of students perform at grade level on standardized tests. This leaves many students behind (dyslexic students, profoundly gifted students, students on the spectrum, or kids who simply prefer learning in nature and the outdoors) . Furthermore, due to large class sizes a great amount of time is simply wasted on behavioral management. Differentiated learning and mastery-based learning is nearly impossible in a classroom where all the kids are the same age.
When’s the last time you, as an individual, chose to suffer immensely due to a political cause? Why should make your child do what you wouldn’t do yourself because of your political ideal? I, for one, know many who go to climate change protests and drive an SUV because it’s more convenient - or vote in favor of human rights, but buy I-Phones even though some of those phones are made in factories with forced labor. I am willing to wager that many families would be bored out of their minds in a traditional public school and deeply frustrated having to sit at a desk all day with 20-30 minutes a day of recess, and then 3-4 hours of homework, not being told why they have to learn what they have to learn and in general being told what to do all the time.
We need systemic, government-level change to encounter the problems with our education system, just like we do with climate change. Your decision to recycle, not eat meat or only buy from environmentally sustainable companies that support human rights is great, but it’s not enough.
Let’s face it. You wouldn’t suffer unnecessarily or even a little for your political ideal, so don’t make your child do the same. Unless you are willing to sit six hours a day in your child’s classroom and eat lunch in their cafeteria for 180 days of your life each year, don’t make your child do the same so that you don’t feel guilty.
But what about diversity?
Since children are often zoned for school according to the area where they live, going to public school is no guarantee of diversity, especially if you live in the suburbs.
And diverse populations are increasingly choosing to homeschool.
In the last 2 years the Black and Latino homeschooling communities have doubled, largely because families are discouraged with the “white-washed” approach to history and the considerable failure of schools in their district.
Research shows that homeschoolers are just as likely to be poor or near poor than other populations. If you’re curious to learn more about this, read my blog on homeschooling on a budget.
Due to the nature of schools, diverse populations tend to self-segregate within school to protect themselves from the bigotry and racism present in school.
In public school all the children in a class are the same age. How is this diverse?
From personal experience, unschooling groups are some of the most diverse and inclusive groups I’ve seen (in terms of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religious beliefs and economic status). And since many families have left school because they felt left out, the groups have measures in place to ensure that they feel welcoming and inclusive.
How can you help public school? Or a better question, how can you help public education?
What your local public school needs most is parents who are involved in making it better. There are so many ways for you and your child to help public school if this is something you truly care about, but sending your child there is not the first I’d suggest.
Start off by asking your public school how you can most help? It’s always better to ask others how to help them then simply enforce your help. You can ask the head of the PTA or the school principal’s office. (By the way, I doubt they will say please send your child here)
Volunteer to tutor at the school or local library. Mastery Learning improves student outcomes by 2 standard deviations. Children can benefit enormously from help from mentors in the local community.
Attend local government meetings and advocate for your schools to get more funding, and in particular a higher per pupil allotment, higher teacher salaries and benefits. While it’s challenging to make a difference on a national level, you can absolutely have an impact on a local level.
Give money to your local school. Many local schools have fundraisers and you can contribute. Stay up-to-date on what’s happening at the school near you.
Advocate for public education at a local and national level. It’s becoming increasingly common for states to give families vouchers to homeschool or attend low-cost microschools. Advocate for choice, advocate for more money to go to public education, but also accountability for families choosing to homeschool, so all children are given a quality education, are safe and nourished, regardless of the level of involvement their families choose or are able to take in their education. Advocate for a public education system that upholds democratic ideals of social justice, science and inclusion.
As you can see, there are many ways to help public education and public school. And your help is direly needed. Just please don’t use your child as a soldier for your political ideal.
