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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Someone I know was homeschooled. Looking back she says she misses out on having a greater variety of subjects to choose from and the missed opportunities
Her parents just laughed at her when she said that. She is doing ok now, but she grew up very religious, parents provided her with a super religious peer group, some of them are almost like cult followers

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The problem with anecdotes like this is that they can happen in a variety of educational environments. A student in a small rural public school will not have the same opportunities as one in a DC or NYC public school. Small private schools have limitations and advantages that public schools do not.

I do not doubt that she missed out on a few things, but she probably also had some opportunities that she would not have had in a traditional school setting as well. Parents have to carefully weigh their options and make the choice with the best interest of their child in mind, which is something that parents have to do regardless of the educational options before them (public/private/charter/immersion/homeschool/etc)

It makes me feel sad that her parents would have laughed at her, though, because I think the biggest advantage of homeschooling is being able to tailor the education to the child. Being able to progress in subjects when they master something and just keep moving, plan lessons around their learning styles, and having time to incorporate interests. Even at the elementary school level, my children let me know about additional things they would like to learn-- the equivalent of 'electives' I suppose-- and we find ways to work them into their curriculum. We regularly have open discussions about the curriculum they work with and their lessons. We talk about material and lesson styles. As children, they know that they are not going to enjoy every subject and that they have to read books they might find boring or complete lessons they don't love, but I also feel confident that they know they are listened to and their opinions are respected.

As they get older, they will have increasing amounts of control over the electives they choose outside of the core subjects.

I went to a blue ribbon high school with over 2000 students and we had a set math, science, and history sequence (IE math was Algebra, Geometry/Trig, PreCalc, Calc) with some electives offered in each area (ie statistics and probability) and the courses were tracked based on ability, but there wasn't a ton of options there. My children will probably actually have more choices than I did in that regard thanks to all the online classes available.[/quote]
She was homeschooled and got her GED
She is bright and could have done better
Her parents are burdened with 4 children, one special needs
I know she will never homeschool her kids, if she even has them

I think your anecdote is incorrect. Yes, she didn't have a say, her parents are not open to hearing her opinions now, not were they open to it earlier. Despite this she has built her life. I respect her more than her parents. Just think, despite all of that she has a good head on her shoulders[/quote]

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