by stillin 58 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse
Sorry if I'm stepping on any toes here, but I haven't seen anything positive about home-schooling...at all. The notion is that parents are taking advantage of the formative years to inculcate more worthwhile values while protecting their kids from worldly influences. They end up with lazy, socially inept, illiterate duds who haven't a clue. My rant could go on and on; it really pushes my buttons.
Are there ANY success stories out there?
Lol, the one homeschooled Witness I ever met didn't know the Americans had fought a war in France.
I'm sure some homeschooling is amazing but I can't imagine how a JW one would work.
Not sure if you could categorize this as a Success Story or not:
Vic and I home schooled our kids.... until about middle school. At that point, we recognized the invaluable education that could only be obtained thru actual interaction with other human beings their own age. Exposure to the "world" is the only way they would be able to cope with real life, so why deny them of it and shelter them in a bubble.? Are they going to make mistakes, get into fights, deal with kid-drama? Yep. That's what shapes us and makes us who we are. As parents, we wanted to be the ones to be there for them when they came home at the end of the day, to offer support, love, discussion, and explanation.
We are fully convinced that our initial Jump-Start was instrumental in the development of our children. At the same time, we have seen others who choose not to do so, and "home-school" until the child is old enough to "pioneer". Virtually without exception, they are some of the most socially inept, uncharismatic, uneducated, lackluster, lazy, welfare-prone bunch that can be imagined. And most, if they have any gumption, bolt for the door the day they turn 18. Seen it happen over and over and over.
Sad really. I know there are exceptions to the rule, but as a whole, that's what usually happens.
Home schooling is intellectual incest, the intentional stunting of the growth of your offspring's mind, IMO.
Part of the benefit of a public school education is the EXPOSURE to a variety of opinions and areas of expertise of the teachers, where some were inspiring, and others, not so much; but regardless, in the end the deck was shuffled and you got a fresh set of teachers every semester.
No single parent is able to replicate the broad range of exposure to teachers who have widely-different life experiences, etc, and that's PERCISELY why JWs discourage it: they want to avoid contact with those people where their offspring might question the beliefs they've been raised in.
Tech49 said- And most, if they have any gumption, bolt for the door the day they turn 18. Seen it happen over and over and over.
So after having been mentally- and socially-hamstrung their whole lives, they are set free in a World they've been indoctrinated to view as hostile, and have repeatedly been told they should want to be no part of, filled with people of which they are 'better' (no reason given as to WHY they are 'better'). So ill-prepared to survive on their own skills and wits, they usually end up failing, and their JW parents view it as conclusive proof of how "evil Satan's system of things really is", when they should be pointing the finger of blame at themselves for raising dullards which they've intentionally stunted.
The Amish and Mennonites allow their teens to leave the community and explore the outside World during 'Rumspringa':if the parents sufficiently hamstrung their kids, they usually decide to settle into their community, having been scared by their experience with the 'English' people outside.
Adam
Virtually without exception, apostates are some of the most socially inept, uncharismatic, uneducated, lackluster, lazy, welfare-prone bunch that can be imagined. And most, if they have any gumption, bolt for the door the day they turn 18. Turn into drugged-out, atheistic fornicators and adulterers. Seen it happen over and over and over.
Sad really. I know there are exceptions to the rule, but as a whole, that's what usually happens.
Adam ..."Home schooling is intellectual incest" classic!
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If you are going to misspell a word in a comment about education, it might be wise to refrain from capitalizing it. Or is that public edurmacashun at work?
Even when I was a dubbie I was dead against home schooling. Just isolates the kids even more.
"Home schooling is intellectual incest, the intentional stunting of the growth of your offspring's mind, IMO."
Maybe, maybe not. That almost sounds like a reverse CO comment, you know, the ones without children. It's easy to arm-chair quarter-back on Monday morning..
My kid has had home school since Middle-School. Not because of pioneering or peer-pressure, but because of drugs and crime. There were many factors that went into the decision. One of which is my personal opinion that public, standardized education is intellectually stunting. Public schools can only teach children so much. Sadly, unless the school is exceptional, your child is taught to be a cog in the machine.
I think the Parent's must KNOW the child and nurture them. I plan on helping my child further their education after completing the mandatory courses required in the U.S. One advantage of modern home schooling is the use of technology. My child may be able to do almost all supplemental/higher education via computer. That makes getting educated without being inundated with student loans a possibility. I know many, many, biologists and chemists, who specialize in making coffee at Starbucks. They may NEVER get out of debt. Universities make money for Universities, but yes, you may get a career if you are shrewed.
The downside of home-school is the lack of positive peer-pressure. I have to constantly help to motivate my child, especially since the wife is an asleep JW. I have to work twice as hard to teach my child to reason. The sleepless nights, filled with worry are almost more than I can bear sometimes. With having to provide for a family, I simply cannot always be with my child. So I must rely on the school system for what it can provide, and I must teach my child to reason while keeping cult-thinking at bay. I also cannot afford to educate myself. So I have to make due and plan accordingly. It's all very frustrating.
I can tell you this much, each circumstance is different. So, while I agree that children must be protected from harmful influences, especially cults, it's not so cut and dried. Yes, they need adults besides their parent to help them and motivate them, but it's not easy with a die-hard JW spouse. The END is SOON(tm), so only so much education is practical from a JW standpoint. You also cannot turn your hous into a war zone over religion. Especially when the focal point is the child. That is abusive. So while I agree with Adamah's points, judging and painting with a broad brush is not fair in every case.
DD
It's a tragedy - in most instances.
I've seen a few families work that home school situation very well. Part of their success was that the parents were balanced - and didn't turn their children into laborers in the 'family business' or spending their days in a field service car group. Home schooling often means getting the homework done asap - without any outside interaction or criticism.
It can border on child abuse.
It's control.
Home schooling amongst JW's has been very popular in our area for 25 years. These young adults consistently have a HUGE fear of the outside world, have a hard time leaving the nest to become independent and often marry other JW's homeschoolers. They tend to look (constantly) to their parents for approval and recognition.
A network of home school systems are run by individual Jehovah's Witnesses. The New System School is popular in our area. In my opinion, the "graduates" of this so-called School has a failure rate of over 80%. The poor kids don't have a chance...
ginger
