Summary: A Choice Of Public Education

A Choice of Public Education

COM155
March 9, 2014

A Choice of Public Education
Did you know you have more choices today about where your children attend public school? There is more to public schools than just the traditional “brick and mortar” schools you attended in past decades. Cyber schools are essentially public schools where students attend school full-time online at home or where ever they have an internet connection. Technology has made it easier than ever before to educate your child at home. According to NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS (2013). “From school year 1999-2000 to 2010-2011, the number of students enrolled in public charter schools increased from 0.3 million to 1.8 million students. During
Students have started to attend Cyber School because of a variety of reasons including: social anxieties, peer pressure, students who are under stimulated with curriculum, students behind in classes, and bullying. If you are saying to yourself that stuff like this only happens in middle and high school, you are kidding yourself. Bullying and Peer Pressure also happen at the elementary level. At third grade the main reason my nephew left public school was because of being bullied. He was the subject of humiliation, when an older student forcefully made him take chewing tobacco and put it in his mouth and keep it there until he got sick in front of other kids. This instance alone was enough for my sister and brother-in-law to pull their son out of public school and begin to Cyber School him at home. It is something like this that makes parents stop and think if traditional public education is the right choice. Families deciding the best option of a public education or cyber school for elementary children need
A public school teacher oversees the daily efforts of the students and parents get reports only if the student is failing or at report card time. Public school parents can be involved in other ways like: helping with homework or help study for a test; be there for plays, concerts and activities; and talk to the teacher and see what areas you can help your child achieve. While some parents want and need to work, making it so they have less time to spend being involved in their children’s education; other parent’s want that hands on approach to ensure their child’s success. Parents’ involvement in their child’s education is crucial in Cyber School while in public education you are leaving your child’s education up to the teacher. A parent would need to manage their child’s schedule, ensure child is completing work at a reasonable pace, while leaving the instructional experience to the teacher. Parents who decide to home school their children should find a way to integrate social aspects into their child’s daily structure; such as, signing him up for sports teams or community clubs like: Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts with other children his age. This way students will be able to benefit from the social aspects, which are needed at every age. Parental involvement is important for the success in any child’s education whether in public school or in Cyber