D Klement

Found this on the OFTP e-list

Buzz
>
> BreakPoint with Charles Colson
> Commentary #000615 - 06/15/2000
> Not Just for Scary Religious People: Homeschooling Goes Mainstream
>
>
> How quickly things change. Not long ago, the
> educational establishment derided the idea of
> homeschooling, claiming that mere parents couldn't
> teach kids adequately -- after all, education is for
> professionals. But now, after homeschool students
> swept this year's national spelling bee, the
> education elites are objecting that these kids are
> TOO well-educated.
>
> So what's it going to be? The defenders of America's
> failed education policies can't seem to make up their
> minds.
>
> A homeschooler first won the national spelling bee in
> 1997. But this year first, second, and third places
> ALL went to homeschoolers. When the results were
> broadcast, the establishment circled the wagons:
> "These kids are not socialized," they cried. "They
> spend too much time studying."
>
> Really? Well, this year's winner, 12 year-old George
> Thampy -- who also placed in the National Geography
> Bee -- wrote an excellent article about his education
> for the WALL STREET JOURNAL. In it, young Mr. Thampy
> soundly refuted many of the mischaracterizations of
> homeschooling.
>
> In addition to taking trips and classes with other
> homeschoolers, he says, he participates in sports and
> Boy Scouts, and has friends in his youth group,
> neighborhood, and from competitions like the spelling
> bee. The socialization objection is specious on its
> face.
>
> One of homeschooling's greatest strengths is the
> quality of learning it provides. Since homeschool
> kids don't spend hours in sensitivity-training, or
> putting condoms on bananas in sex-ed class, they're
> free to learn in ways public-school kids cannot.
>
> Moreover, as Helen Cordes writes for SALON Internet
> magazine, homeschooling allows parents to tailor
> education to their kids. Easy material can be taught
> quickly, but difficult material can be given all the
> time it deserves. A tailored education allows
> students to visit museums, learn a musical
> instrument, and devote themselves to things they're
> passionate about.
>
> And it's not just Christian kids who homeschool these
> days. An episode of the ultra-hip teen drama "Buffy
> the Vampire Slayer" even showed Buffy asking her
> mother to consider homeschooling. After all, Buffy
> reasoned, "it's not just for scary religious people
> anymore." Well, even these unflattering remarks
> reveal that the stigma is disappearing, as 1.7
> million homeschool kids are entering the mainstream.
>
> Homeschoolers are having phenomenal success getting
> into top universities. According to Cordes,
> homeschoolers are accepted to Stanford at "twice the
> rate of schoolers."
>
> Now spelling bees and college admissions don't
> necessarily prove that home-schooled kids are better
> educated -- but they certainly illustrate the
> importance of educational options.
>
> Some public schools do a great job. Others don't. And
> homeschooling isn't for everyone. Some parents lack
> the training, temperament, or time to teach kids. But
> the principle is clear. Bureaucrats ought not to be
> the ones deciding how we educate our children. And
> that's why we need school choice and vouchers, to
> allow parents to send their kids to schools that are
> best for those kids.
>
> Education isn't something we can compromise on. It's
> the vehicle for transmitting our intellectual
> heritage to our children.
>
> Homeschooling's recent successes ought to serve to
> remind us that educating our kids -- not propping up
> a failed bureaucracy -- is what really counts.
>
> =======================
> Helen Cordes's article, "Sour Grapes Anyone?"
> is available at:
> http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/tues/2000/06/06/homeschool/
>
> =======================
> This week on BreakPoint Online: a new News and Views
> covers the Iowa Corn-Cam (and the Amazing Cow Cam).
> Roberto Rivera has a new Summa Nonsensica that will
> lift your spirits. Plus: did you take this week's poll
> on Capital Punishment? <http://www.breakpoint.org>
> ========================
>
> Copyright (c) 2000 Prison Fellowship Ministries

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The Klement Family "Education is what survives when
Darryl, Debbie, what has been learned has been
Kathleen, Nathan & forgotten"
Samantha B.F. Skinner in "New Scientist".
e-mail- klement@...
Canadian homeschool page: http:\\www.flora.org/homeschool-ca/
Ont. Federation of Teaching Parents: http:\\www.flora.org/oftp/
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