Homeschooling's True Colors

By Rachel Gathercole
Issue 131 - July/August 2005

We're all familiar with the popular images of homeschoolers in America: Extreme fundamentalist families gathering for a morning prayer and Bible study. Tired mothers teaching in front of a blackboard after late nights of preparing lesson plans, or perhaps stumbling recklessly through unfamiliar subject matter they are not qualified to teach. Lonely, friendless children sitting at home, wistfully dreaming of an exciting, lively social life at school--or worse, isolated little misfits tragically unaware that an outside world even exists

These stereotypes are touted freely by the popular media and conventional schooling experts alike. We have probably all imagined them ourselves at one time or another. But they have little to do with the realities of homeschooling for most families today, and are rarely backed by factual data.

But even when we ignore these stereotypes and look to the news media for answers, it's hard to sort out what homeschooling is. The things we are told about it and the images portrayed are often contradictory and/or downright sensationalized. The mass media tell us on one hand that homeschoolers excel, and on the other hand that they are underregulated. One minute we hear that it is hard for homeschoolers to get into college, and the next minute that they are going to Harvard. We are told that homeschooling is difficult and requires an incredible degree of sacrifice by parents, yet the number of parents choosing to homeschool is skyrocketing.

Just what is the truth about homeschooling? The hard facts might surprise you.

To read the full article "Homeschooling's True Colors" get your instantly downloadable digital copy of Homeschooling Toolkit which contains a collection of five of the "best of" Mothering articles on this popular education alternative to public schools.