Here are some websites, (USA) that you might look at:
http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/MI/
http://www.pearsonlearning.com/
BlackSwan of Memphis
JoinedPosts by BlackSwan of Memphis
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40
Home Schooling - Yes or No?
by winnie inwhat are your opinions?.
it seems that alot of jw's are into this.. i think there is a time and place for this, ie if you don't have access to a public/private school.. it doesn't seem regulated to me.
my mother home schooled my sister because she couldn't be bothered taking and picking her up from school.
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40
Home Schooling - Yes or No?
by winnie inwhat are your opinions?.
it seems that alot of jw's are into this.. i think there is a time and place for this, ie if you don't have access to a public/private school.. it doesn't seem regulated to me.
my mother home schooled my sister because she couldn't be bothered taking and picking her up from school.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
That may be true if the parents are suitably qualified and sensible..Does that sound like most dubs? I thought their main motive was so that the kids would not have to "mix with the world"I am not even a parent, so you can shoot me down, but the witnesses I knew who did this kept the kids seperated.
I'm not a JW, so I suppose I am approaching this from the non-jw perspective.
IMHO, unless there are special reasons the kids lose out on social interaction. If you don't learn how to cope with others as a 10yr old, it will be darn hard when you are 18 and plunged into the world for the first time
This is exactly what I'm saying...If a parent allows this to happen. Does it happen? Sure. All the time? No. If it does is homeschooling itself to blame? No. The parent is.
I think only a few rare people pull it off successfully. Home Schooling was all the fad amongst the evangelicals when I was raising my children (I chose a private school). I became suspicious when the literature talked about the sacrifices the entire family would have to make. Why huge sacrifices? Isn't the goal to make things BETTER for the child? And I felt vindicated when books on overcoming "homeschool burnout" started coming out.
Parents make sacrifices for their kids. It happens, comes with the job. In my school life, I had perhaps 2 teachers that I can honestly say taught with a passion for helping others learn. The others were there to collect paychecks and give tests. My first grade teacher was evil and had the temperment of a raging bull. The fourth, fifth and sixth grade teachers, only one I can honestly say was a good guy. The others were evil wenches that preferred to either embarrass their students or physically harm their kids. This was public school. This was this school district that I am now living in. Why huge sacrifices? Hm..
Think about it. A teacher at least gets summers and "professional development" days. She takes some work home, but generally her evenings are her own. She can specialize on a particular grade or subject and refine it year by year. A homeschooling mother gets NO time off. Every event is a "teaching moment". There are no holidays, and there are no breaks. When does she have time to develop a curriculum, create a program? She needs to learn as the children learn, so she can't refine or go back and fix her mistakes. What is not learned is gone.
The teachers that our kids have right now, do Not have evenings to themselves. Most work late into the evenings.
And homeschooling mothers should get time off by scheduling it for herself, just like any sensible parent does. A parent cannot be "on" all the time. The best parents that I know, homeschooling and nonhomeschooling, make sure that each parent has down time away from the kids to regroup and relax. The homeschoolers that I know take holidays, take breaks and get down time. Curriculums are developed as they learn their child's needs for the following year.
I.e a parent will likely start developing a curriculum based on what the tests say (yes tests) to them this year so that they know where their child is lagging. As for tests, there are third parties that provide testing, as many states have very strict requirements that a homeschooling famly must meet yearly. Further, there are third parties that provide curriculum and testing and help you answer to the state at the end of the year. I know of a few that have good, perhaps excellent qualifications. Many who work for these companies are teachers or former teachers.
Institutional learning has some big drawbacks as well. It is not as individualized. It tends to be impersonal. Some children will fall in the cracks. Parents have to be vigilant and take action if necessary.
I agree with this. I have to add...
We had a problem with a specific school and teacher and principal a few years back with Hannah. We learned that our school district does Not work well with parents. Parents in these areas have to play hard and nasty to get what their child deserves, because in all honesty, the school district reps don't want to deal with it.
I absolutely do see where the perspective is in relation to a parent homeschooling a child to keep them away from the "world". I have to say this though,I have met homeschooling parenst from so many different walks who are not necessarily trying to shield their kids from the world, but are seeking to provide an environment where a child can learn without having to worry unnecessarily about violence and peer pressures. Peer pressure starts from such an early age. I know and understand why people tend to think "But a child has to learn to deal with it". I won't argue with that. However, my theory, and it is only that, is that young ones want so badly to fit in that school can become more a place of learning to fit in, even at the cost of their self respect, and less a place of learning reading, writing and arithemetic.
I think too, it really depends on a persons own experiences with school. I.e. if you have had positive experiences with school and less positive experiences with homeschooling, your opinion on the matter might reflect that. And this applies vice versa as well.
My experiences with the school as a child, and my experiences with the schools and school district as an adult has led me to the conclusion that I have come to.
I think the key is this:
If you can't be a good, balanced parent, you will likely not be a good, balanced homeschooler.
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40
Home Schooling - Yes or No?
by winnie inwhat are your opinions?.
it seems that alot of jw's are into this.. i think there is a time and place for this, ie if you don't have access to a public/private school.. it doesn't seem regulated to me.
my mother home schooled my sister because she couldn't be bothered taking and picking her up from school.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
Personally, Im against home schooling because of the lack of socialization that the kids wil have, even if the education were superior, the children need to learn team building skills and other things that can only come from participating in groups.
This was a huge concern of mine and one thing I learned right away was this:
There is NO reason for a child to Not have socialization when homeschooled. When a parent who is sincerely interested in homeschooling does their homework, they will find both co ops (where parents work together to create a school like atmosphere where they both "socialize" with other students and are given opportunities to work together.
On top of that, there are a number of classes that are available, from sports to dance, you name it.
In Many cases, that I have personally witnessed And have read about in various books, children who are homeschooled have excellent social skills as their parents are able to instruct them how to interact with people of All ages. My point is not that homeschooling is superior to public education, but that when a parent is serious about homeschooling their child, believe me they have already worried about socialization and have tackled that problem. They have looked ahead and for groups in which their children can interact with other children.
Google homeschooling and the number of support groups out there is amazing. Out of all the cases of homeschooling, I have seen 1 family where the children were just short of being illiterate and have no social skills. The others have excellent social skills and are well read.
It all comes down to the parent.
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40
Home Schooling - Yes or No?
by winnie inwhat are your opinions?.
it seems that alot of jw's are into this.. i think there is a time and place for this, ie if you don't have access to a public/private school.. it doesn't seem regulated to me.
my mother home schooled my sister because she couldn't be bothered taking and picking her up from school.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
We are going to homeschool our younger one beginning after she finishes preschool.
The reasons for this are:
a) The schools around here have maybe 30 kids to one teacher. I remember school and when you have That many kids to one teacher, with no aide, that teacher Cannot keep up. Especially in light of our country's No Child Left Behind Act which has given teachers More paperwork to complete.
b) Each child has their own learning style, which can usually be categorized into some basic patterns. Curriculums in school are designed to "try" to hit each style, but really, they don't. I.e. Some kids just do not learn well unless it's hands on, practical reality type learning. As a result, give a kid an assignment out of a book, without anything else, and they likely will not do well. In the early grades, like preschool and kindegarten (4 - 5 yrs old) they are better about this. But by the time they get to 1st grade, it drastically changes. I had a conversation with a woman the other day whose daughter is in elementary school (she is 8) and she feels like she might as well homeschool her.
c) Kindegarten here is a full day thing. This means my 5 yr old would be with a person I don't know for 5 days a week, 6 hours a day. That doesn't sit well with me. I am Extremely picky about who watches my kids. For babysitters, they must be adults that I personally know and who my kids are comfortable with. You Can handpick teachers in the schools, but that doesn't matter as I don't know Any of them.
d) Quite frankly, kids are losing respect for both themselves and others. I think of it like this, would I allow her to hang out with some of these kids at home? No. Would I allow her to hang out with some of these kids at their home? No. So why on earth am I going to put her in a classroom where the teacher is already swamped, and further on a playground where conversations are taking place and teasing etc without some one There to intervene when it takes a wrong turn?
I see and share your concerns, but homeschooling Does Not and Should Not mean a kid just staying home and watching tv all day or Not getting an education. There are too many resources out there for kids to learn well and become responsible persons. I've been spending a good chunk of time educating Myself first on this and putting together a plan of action.
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knocking forum
by BlackSwan of Memphis inuh ok there have been two threads on the topic of the knocking forum closing.. from jen at the top of the forum:.
since launch, the lively debates seen here have been largely related to the jehovah's witnesses faith as a whole, with minimal posting and participation about the film knocking.
the goal of the knocking discussion forum, as listed in the standards of use, is to "discuss your responses to the film and web site with us and with each other.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
my point is only that it HAS been seen by more then one person or group of people.
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knocking forum
by BlackSwan of Memphis inuh ok there have been two threads on the topic of the knocking forum closing.. from jen at the top of the forum:.
since launch, the lively debates seen here have been largely related to the jehovah's witnesses faith as a whole, with minimal posting and participation about the film knocking.
the goal of the knocking discussion forum, as listed in the standards of use, is to "discuss your responses to the film and web site with us and with each other.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
my guess is that a lot of people HAVE actually seen it. Just a thought though.......
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Knocking forum is now open on PBS website
by Jourles inhere we go folks.
a newly opened forum for knocking is now open on pbs's website.
let's not let the jw's overrun this with crap.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
Since launch, the lively debates seen here have been largely related to the Jehovah's Witnesses faith as a whole, with minimal posting and participation about the film KNOCKING.
The goal of the KNOCKING discussion forum, as listed in the Standards of Use, is to "discuss your responses to the film and Web site with us and with each other."
As a result, this forum will be inactive until the film's premiere on Independent Lens on May 22, 2007. At that time, we will welcome viewers to share their reactions and thoughts about the film.from jen on the forum
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knocking forum
by BlackSwan of Memphis inuh ok there have been two threads on the topic of the knocking forum closing.. from jen at the top of the forum:.
since launch, the lively debates seen here have been largely related to the jehovah's witnesses faith as a whole, with minimal posting and participation about the film knocking.
the goal of the knocking discussion forum, as listed in the standards of use, is to "discuss your responses to the film and web site with us and with each other.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
Uh ok there have been two threads on the topic of the Knocking forum closing.
From Jen at the top of the forum:
Since launch, the lively debates seen here have been largely related to the Jehovah's Witnesses faith as a whole, with minimal posting and participation about the film KNOCKING.
The goal of the KNOCKING discussion forum, as listed in the Standards of Use, is to "discuss your responses to the film and Web site with us and with each other."
As a result, this forum will be inactive until the film's premiere on Independent Lens on May 22, 2007. At that time, we will welcome viewers to share their reactions and thoughts about the film. -
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Give me something to celebrate! (Tell me some good news)
by AlmostAtheist inhey all,.
there are a few "what damage did the watchtower do to you?
"-type threads floating about, and it's easy to get sort of down over it all.
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BlackSwan of Memphis
My oldest (Hannah) is celebrating her 7th birthday tomorrow and on Sunday we are having a party for her.
And the younger one has successfully decided which boys from her preschool class she is going to date when she grows up................
all of them
And me?
I am making friends with never been jw's and who know me for who I am and am finally finding a place in this world that is just about living life and being content if not downright happy.
Period.
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Your favorite female artists?
by restrangled ini love frou frou, but the men in my house can't stand her!.
i also love cheryl crow, norah jones, enya and old joni mitchell.
there are more but will leave it to others to list!.
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