Home Schooling Handbook - Seventh-day Adventist Church in the

266 Pages·2002·0.98 MB·English

by  Daren Bullock

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HOME SCHOOLING
HANDBOOK

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Prepared by

Neal Lawrence
Sutherland Education & Training Agency
Old Fallings Hall
Old Fallings Lane
Wolverhampton
WV10 8BL

Sponsored by

British Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Education Department
BUC Offices
Stanborough Park
Watford
WD2 6JP

© Neal Lawrence 2001

All rights reserved.

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CONTENTS

Preface 5

Introduction 7

SECTION 1: THE BASIS OF HOME SCHOOLING

Chapter

1. What is Adventist education? 15

2. Does the Bible support home schooling? 47

3. Why should I teach my child at home? 50

4. How does home schooling relate to the work of the Church? 70

5. Is it legal to teach my child at home? 79

6. What research has been done into home schooling? 90

SECTION2: ADDRESSING YOUR MAIN CONCERNS

7. How do home schooled children socialise? 118

8. What are the financial costs of home schooling? 122

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9. How can single parents home school their children? 128

10. What if my child has special educational needs? 131

11. How can home schooling prepare young people for careers? 139

12. What are the challenges of home schooling? 152

SECTION 3: MAKING A START

13. How do I set up a home schooling programme? 163

14. What support organisations and resources are available? 197

15. The real life experiences of home schooling families 206

Quick questions and answers 259

Amazing facts about home schooling 262

Bibliography and recommended reading 265

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Preface

My interest and experience in home schooling stretches back over 10 years when I first
became acquainted with committed home schoolers in the church. In 1987, I met and
became friends with a family that home-schooled their two daughters. They were very
enthusiastic and organised in their home schooling. Sending their daughters to school
was just not an option as far as they were concerned. I was impressed with the
happiness and contentment of both girls, who seemed to be fully in harmony with this
chosen option for their education.

About the same time, I also had the opportunity to watch a good friend of mine, in my local
church, raise her daughter as a single mother, determined to home school her. She was
convinced that this was the best option for her all-round education. We talked frequently
and I shared my thoughts and insights as an Adventist teacher doing some explorative
work, myself, with Christian education principles, in an Adventist school. I recognised
the home school as an ideal context in which to develop and exercise these principles,
perhaps to an even greater extent than I could in the classroom. These encounters with
home schoolers made a significant impression on me, broadening my horizons on what
was possible in Christian education.

Over the years, I became acquainted with many other Adventist families involved in home
schooling, both here and abroad. Most of these families had strong Christian
convictions about education, similar to my own. I was able to share ideas, from my
experiences as an Adventist teacher. Later, I worked with and helped groups of families
set up home schooling programmes.

My experiences convinced me increasingly of the need for strong parental involvement in
the education of children. Home schooling seemed to provide the best opportunity for
this. As I saw conventional education moving progressively toward a rigid, standardised
and mass production approach, the beauty of tailor-made, individualised home schooling
seemed more and more attractive—indeed, the ideal option.

As an Adventist teacher, always looking for new and improved approaches to teaching and
learning, certain aspects of home schooling seemed to offer exciting potential for a
more dynamic and meaningful learning experience. These include:

(cid:148) personalised learning at a child’s own pace
(cid:148) vast scope for learning from real life sources in and outside of the home
(cid:148) the spiritual development and all-round success of the children
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(cid:148) mutual support and closeness within families
(cid:148) flexibility to explore and follow a child’s interest
(cid:148) parents taking full responsibility for their children’s character development
(cid:148) freedom and happiness of children in the more informal learning setting of the home
(cid:148) the sacrifice, dedication and commitment of parents, especially mothers.

Neal Lawrence.

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Introduction

This handbook is a comprehensive and practical guide on home schooling for Seventh-day
Adventists (hereafter referred to as Adventists), within the British Union Conference (BUC),
in various capacities:

H for parents considering or currently home schooling, it’s a vital resource
H if you’re looking for a better way in your child’s education, it will help you
H those wanting to know God’s plan for the education of children, and how to make it a
reality, will discover a fresh approach
H if you’re in the field of education, working with children, it provides valuable insights
into an interesting and effective alternative
H as a church leader who wants to be more informed on the subject, it gives answers
H perhaps you’re concerned about the decision of a relative or friend to home school
their child—it can clarify the issues
H or maybe you’re just fascinated to know what it’s all about.

Well, whoever you are, this handbook seeks to address your questions, concerns,
interests, fears, doubts or mere curiosity. If you’re not already, it may help you to become
an informed supporter of home schooling.

The handbook explains all of the important aspects of home schooling and the surrounding
issues. Many illustrations, practical experiences and ideas for carrying out home schooling
are included. The handbook has been set out for either extensive reading or quick access
to specific information. Key points are shaded for emphasis.

The Bible and the writings of Ellen White are the main sources of the principles outlined
and the quotations given.

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Addressing your questions

“What’s home schooling all about?”
(cid:148)
“Are parents really the best teachers of their children?”
(cid:148)
“What’s home schooling got to do with Adventists?”
(cid:148)
“Is home schooling better than formal schooling?”
(cid:148)
“How do I start, practically?”
(cid:148)
“Is it biblical?”
(cid:148)
“What’s the financial cost?”
(cid:148)
“Is it legal?”
(cid:148)
“How can single parents home
(cid:148)
school?”
“Why do parents choose this
(cid:148)
option?”
“Is it really worth the bother?”
(cid:148)
”and many more….???”
(cid:148)
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What is home schooling?
The term home schooling probably strikes different chords in different minds? What does it
mean to you right now?

Home schooling is simply:

… the education of children at home rather than at school. Usually the
parents, especially mothers, are the main teachers. It is in many respects
tailor-made education, adapted to the specific character, circumstances and
needs of the individual child. Above all, home schooling was God’s original
plan for education and still remains His ideal today.

Home schooling tends to vary considerably from one family to another. While some
families follow the regular school curriculum quite closely, most opt for a more creative and
flexible approach. Much depends on the reasons, experiences and abilities of parents
when starting to home school.

Home schooling or home education?

In Britain today, the term home education is most widely used. This is largely because of a
desire to move away from the narrow conventional school related concept of education. In
America, the term home schooling tends to be more common. In practice the two terms
mean the same thing. However, most Adventists in Britain are familiar with the term home
schooling largely due to the American influence on Adventism in Britain. The two terms are
used interchangeably in this handbook, although home schooling is the most widely used.

Home-based education

Home schooling could more accurately be described as home-based education. Many
families use home as a base from which to engage in a wide range of out-of-home
community-related activities and investigations rather than simply duplicating the
conventional school programme at home.

Some children are home schooled all the way through their compulsory education years (5
to 16), while others are home schooled for just a part of this time. The early years up to 10
or 11 are seen as being especially important for some parents who want to retain control
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over the formative stages of their children’s characters and lives. Others, after initially
putting their children into school, may start at any point along the age range.
Why teach your child, yourself?

The reasons for parents choosing to home school their children are wide ranging. They
include deeply held religious, political and philosophical convictions, dissatisfaction with the
school programme, concern over academic standards, avoiding peer pressure and
geographical isolation, amongst others. Research evidence from home schoolers in
Britain, has revealed the following reasons:

H over half related to school, such as ‘unhappy with current school education’, class
sizes too large’ and ‘bullying’.
H almost a third of reasons listed were child-centred; e.g. ‘we wanted to stimulate our
child’s learning’, ‘its the child’s choice’, ‘it meets our child’s needs
H one in five parents describe their motivation in terms of their beliefs, referring to their
‘ideology’, ‘lifestyle’, their faith and ‘the lack of morality in society’.
H some families adopted a more philosophical approach, often believing that the
present education system needed reform.
H close family relationship and being together and learning together
H freedom and flexibility to do what we want, when we want
H letting the children learn in their own style and develop naturally.

F see chapter 3 on reasons and chapter 6 on research

A growing revolution

In Britain, America and many other countries a quiet but growing home school revolution
has been taking place, in recent years, as more and more parents opt out of mass
education into a more ‘do it yourself’ approach. In America, it is estimated that well
over a million families are home schooling, while in Britain the numbers are over 10,000.
Of these, between 1200 and 1500 are estimated to be Christians. There are probably
between 10 to 20 Adventist families in Britain, today, that are involved in home
schooling in some way.

You may be surprised by these figures, since few people in this country have ever heard of
–never mind considered and tried—home schooling. Most people still think that sending
children to school is compulsory because ‘everybody else does it’.

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