Public School versus Home School Over the years people have debated which one is a better education system for children, whether it is public school, or home school. There are many arguments for which one benefits the student more, such as social development in children, the education level to which he receives and also the maturity level upon completion. With the number of homeschoolers growing at about 11% a year so you can see that the public opinion of homeschooling is slowly changing.
Pros and Cons of public and home school education
When considering the difference between public school and home school education there are many pros and cons for both sides it depends on the learning ability of the student. Here are some of those differences:
Pros of Public School: * Learning within a social setting * Extracurricular activity availability * More curriculum opportunities * Diverse social education
Pros of Home School * Free to choose curriculum * Free to choose schedule * Small teacher to student ratio * Teaches students to be independent in their learning choices
Cons of Public School: * High student-teacher ratio * Less independence (scheduled learning) * School chooses curriculum * Peers based on area instead of choice
Cons of Home School * Usually more expensive than public school * Teachers are not always qualified to teach all subjects * It is harder to provide social interaction * Colleges sometimes have stricter admission policies concerning homeschooled students.
Differences in social development
One main arguments between public school and home school is the social development of the student, according to a California study by researcher Dr. Brian Ray 92% of superintendents believe that home learners are emotionally unstable, deprived of proper social
References: U.S. Census Bureau, The Barna Group, NHERI, Dr. Michael Slavinski, Dr. Brian Ray, Dr. Thomas C. Smedley, Dr. Larry E. Shyers, Dr. Michael Mitchell, Dr. Linda Montgomery, Dr. Rhonda A. Galloway, Dr. Amy Binder, Belick, Stacey; Kathryn Chandler; and Stephen Broughman, “Homeschooling in the United States: 1999.” NCES Technical Report, 2001-033. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2001 Smith, Christian, and David Sikkink. “Is Private Schooling Privatizing?” First Things 92 (April 1999): 16-20, Rudner, L. M. (1999). “Scholastic achievement and demographic characteristics of home school students in 1998”, Cloud, John and Jodie Morse. “Home Sweet School”, Neufeld, Gordon, “Homeschooling, Time.com, nheri.org, familyfun.go.com