Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Cohousing / Homeschooling

[DoULuvBks (DoULuvBks]

In a message dated 97-04-03 17:22:42 EST, tylik [at] eskimo.com (Catherine 
Harper)
writes:

<<  But if we leave the public schools it will be because of despair -- >>

I taught in public and private schools for 12 years.  I LOVE teaching and I
LOVE children.  I can tell you from first hand experience though, that a
great deal of a child's time at school is NOT spent in academic pursuit.  I
made an observation one semester and found that an average of 2 1/2 hours out
of 6 were spent on task.  The rest of the time was spent going back and forth
between activities, getting the class to settle down after an activity,
recess, discipline problems in the classroom etc.

Additionally there is a lot of negative peer activity that goes on at school
and a LOT of hurt feelings.  I also found that in a classroom setting
children have a LOT of time to zone out and not focus on the task at hand.
 It is my experience that homeschooled children are much more self motivated,
curious, apt to pick up a book on their own, creative in their play, creative
in their work, take a more active role in their learning, etc.

Thought I'd share my observations and experiences on the topic!

D'vorah
(A former elementary school teacher with a MA in Creative Education who is
now a homeschool advocate and a homeschooling mother!)