Everything that we used to think got taught at home now seemingly has to be taught in the public school system, and something is going to get lost in the process.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
As a former board member for Teach For America, I understand that every child has the ability to learn and that, no matter their circumstances at home, we have a duty and a responsibility to educate them and to do it well.
I feel sorry for the poor kids whose parents feel they're qualified to teach them at home. Of course, some parents are smarter than some teachers, but in the main I see home-schooling as misguided foolishness.
Our experience at Teach For America has been that the more people understand educational inequity, the more they want to do something about it.
When we home schooled my oldest, Jasper, in eighth grade, I saw how empowering it is for a child to learn in their own way. That rebooted my thinking about education.
The phenomenon of home schooling is a wonderful example of the American can-do attitude. Growing numbers of parents have become disenchanted with government-run public schools. Many parents have simply taken matters into their own hands, literally.
A core part of Teach For America's mission has always been affecting positive change in the traditional public school system.
We now accept the fact that learning is a lifelong process of keeping abreast of change. And the most pressing task is to teach people how to learn.
Plus, teaching brings home to you very fast that you actually know nothing. I didn't realize that before.
Thousands of present day students, like many of our Founding Fathers, are being taught at home.
I look back and see the kids who made it through school - it made a huge difference in their lives, which made me believe in the power of public education and what it can do for individuals and communities and the state.