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Homeschooling and Socialization Revisited |
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Milton Gaither |
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Richard G. Medlin, a psychology professor at Stetson University, here continues a line of inquiry he began in one of the landmark articles of the original 2000 Peabody Journal homeschooling special issue. Since that article he has published several pieces in the journal Home School Researcher, all of which find very positive results for homeschoolers’ social and academic development. In this piece his goal is to review research on homeschooler socialization that has appeared since his 2000 article. |
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Homeschooling Benefits: Children less preoccupied with peer acceptance |
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William R. Mattox Jr. |
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Most people who have never met a homeschooling family imagine that the kids are socially isolated. But some new research by Brian Ray of the National Home Education Research Institute suggests otherwise. Indeed, Ray's research helps to explain why the number of homeschoolers in America continues to grow. Ray reports the typical homeschooled child is involved in 5.2 social activities outside the home each week. These activities include afternoon and weekend programs with conventionally schooled kids, such as ballet classes, Little League teams, Scout troops, church groups and neighborhood play. They include midday field trips and cooperative learning programs organized by groups of homeschooling families. For example, some Washington, D.C., families run a homeschool drama troupe that performs at a local dinner theater.
So, what most distinguishes a homeschooler's social life from that of a conventionally schooled child? Ray says homeschooled children tend to interact more with people of different ages. |
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Homeschooling Socialization for the Shy Ones |
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Sometimes, socializing is hard work, especially for those of us who have a shy kid—and if statistics are accurate, nearly half of Americans call themselves “shy.” For those of us homeschooling shy kids, there is a temptation to just let it go. It would be so much easier to just stay at home, curled up on the couch, than to watch our shy kid suffer or to feel compelled to make apologies for our shy kid. For those of us homeschooling shy kids, there is a temptation to just let it go. It would be so much easier to just stay at home, curled up on the couch, than to watch our shy kid suffer or to feel compelled to make apologies for our shy kid. |
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Homeschooling Statistics: Socialization and Sociability |
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Sara Mcgrath |
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According to Patrick Basham, author of the Fraser Institute's 2007 examination of homeschooling's growth from extreme to mainstream, "...the academic and socialization outcomes for the average home schooled child are superior to those experienced by the average public school student." When the socialization of homeschoolers is questioned, it's important to clearly define what the critic is asking. For example, how is socialization, an institutional training process, different from extracurricular social interactions, socializing, and sociability? |
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How I Shelter My Children |
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When children are nurtured, sheltered and loved, they can fully develop their social skills. Socialization doesn't just mean knowing how to act around other 12 year old kids. It means knowing how to function in our big world - a world that is much broader than the 4 walls of a classroom. |
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How to Develop Social Skills Without Socialization |
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Megan Zechman |
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The homeschooling community is wide and diverse, yet there is one question that almost every parent has been asked during the years they school their children at home. “What about socialization?”
We are led to believe that if we don’t put our children in public school, they will be missing out. They will become social misfits. Homeschooling means they will be stuck inside all day, having no opportunity for socialization. But true socialization comes from interacting with the world around them and having the freedom to explore and make true friendships. |
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Let's Hope They're Not Socialized |
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Raising counter-cultural kids means that the traditional notion of socialization doesn't have much meaning. Centering on family rather than peer groups offers a new way of socialization. |
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Socialization: A Great Reason Not to Go to School |
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Karl M. Bunday |
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This "Learn in Freedom" article provides research supporting the positive socialization homeschooled children receive. Discusses research supporting the conclusion that homeschooled children have higher levels of self-esteem and communication skills, and fewer behavioral problems, than other children. |
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Socialization: Tackling Homeschooling’s “S” Word |
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Bridget Bentz Sizer |
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The mainstream perception of homeschool students is that they are an antisocial bunch, toiling away lonely hours at a kitchen table with only their parents for friends. But homeschoolers themselves will tell you that socialization—the “S-word,” as some call it—is really a nonissue.
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Socializing the Homeschooled Child |
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This youtube video from iHomeschool Hangout discusses the issue of socialization and homeschooling. Guests are Sade Tagbo, Sam Kelley, Jimmie Lanley, and Colleen Kessler. The hostess is Dianna Kennedy. |
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Special Ed: Factory-Like Schooling May Soon Be a Thing of the Past |
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Britton Manasco |
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Britton Manasco, writing for Reason Magazine, looks at the advantages of homeschooling, along with some interesting facets of home education. Discusses the benefits of encouraging independent thought and decentralized learning practices. The article also takes a look at the state of today's classrooms and the limitations of traditional notions of education. There is also a discussion of the use of technology in the homeschool environment and how this relates to the issue of socialization. |
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The How To’s of Homeschool Socialization |
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Heidi Ciravola |
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Is the only place to learn from others found within the four walls of a school? If we follow the logic that socialization only comes from school, are we then to assume socialization does not occur within the family unit, at church, or on any give sports team? How about during neighborhood play or at the local playground? And if we assume socialization is a process occurring throughout our lives then what happens when we are no longer within the four walls of elementary, middle or high school? You socialize a homeschool child, or anyone else for that matter by having them live their lives, be in their environment and around the people you would normally be around during the course of a day. |
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The Truth About Homeschooling and Socialization |
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Usually what is meant by socialization or the lack thereof is that if we isolate our kids from the public or private school culture, our kids won’t know how to survive in the ‘real’ world.
But the homeschool world has a lot more similarities to the ‘real world’ than any institutional setting. |
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What About Socialization? |
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If only homeschoolers had a nickel for every time they heard the question, "... but what about socialization?" That infamous socialization question, for any seasoned homeschooler, is quite a humorous one! Although non-homeschoolers worry that homeschooling may turn children into social misfits, we know that the opposite is true and that positive socialization is one of the best reasons to homeschool your children. |
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What Is Socialization Anyway? |
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Marci Goodwin |
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Many people seem to think that homeschool kids are all socially backward and sheltered. They feel that they need to be properly socialized or they won’t be able to function in the real world. And by properly socialized, they mean exposed to large groups of children their own age for 8+ hours per day so they can learn to act like the average child their age. Their question makes be wonder “What is socialization anyway?” |
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Why are homeschooled kids so annoying? |
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Dwija Borobia |
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The biggest concern among the concerned is socialization. In other words: homeschooled kids are annoying and weird, and you don't want your kids to be annoying and weird, do you? Well, why are homeschooled kids so annoying? Because no one tells them that the way God made them isn't cool enough. |
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