The Real Pros And Cons Of Homeschooling

Oceana Setaysha
4 years ago

Homeschooling, it’s certainly not the route for everyone in the journey towards educating the next generation of Australians, yet it is undoubtedly growing in popularity.

More students are being registered as homeschooled by their parents every year, and the trend doesn’t appear to be slowing down.

So you might be wondering, what exactly are the benefits to homeschooling, and is it something you should consider for your own children?

Homeschooling can be done via Distance Education or by parents planning their own designated curriculum for the child. It has been popular in the United States for decades, and there are increasing numbers of homeschooling parents and carers in Australia.

What is the Difference Between Distance Education and Home Schooling?

Distance Education is where students are enrolled in one of the State Schools of Distance Education (there is one in every Australian State and Territory) to do all their academic work at home. Homeschooling is where the parents or carers of the child teach the children themselves and are responsible for the curriculum and education planning for their child.

Homeschooling is done for a variety of reasons including:

Religious persuasion
Bullying Incidents for the Child in Past Schools
The family is travelling and homeschooling is the only option
Lifestyle Choice
Overall dissatisfaction with schools in general
The child has special needs
Distances to the local school (particularly for rural students)

There are Australian National Curriculum guides for parents and carers who wish to homeschool their child.

First – The Legalities of Home Schooling

Homeschooling is legal in Australia for children between the ages of 6 to 17 years (or 5 – 16 years in Tasmania) and all children of schooling age MUST be registered for education whether it be the local school or homeschooling. In Queensland, all parents that wish to homeschool need to seek a yearly dispensation from the Department of Education or homeschooling is considered illegal.

Each State and Territory in Australia has different guidelines for homeschooling registration. See more information about homeschooling registration at Homeschooling Down Under

Well, there are pros and cons of homeschooling, as there are with anything else. Let’s have a look at them.

Next Page: The Pros of Homeschooling Your Child

The Pros of Homeschooling Your Child

We’ll start with the good news. There are lots of positives about homeschooling your children, some of which we’ve outlined below.

1. Educate How You Want

For some parents, the notion that they can choose what their children will learn is a strong motivator for moving to a homeschooling lifestyle. All of the basics are still covered, and in most states in Australia you’ll need to submit a planned curriculum to the relevant departments. However in the specifics there’s a lot more freedom, and you can choose to pass along your passions to your children, or educate them based on things that are relevant to them in their current surroundings.

2. No Social Pressures

Many parents choose to move to homeschooling after having consistent and emotionally troubling problems with social pressures in a traditional school environment. From peer pressure to self esteem to bullies, and even large class sizes causing boredom, it’s easy to see how kids fall of the wagon when it comes to a passion about education. Homeschooling allows kids to dress and act the way they want, without the stress or anxiety about fitting in. They live in the real world, not the strange hierarchy created in most schools, driven by changing trends and social immaturity.

3. Improves Family Relationships

Homeschooling, particularly if the entire family is involved, is a great way to improve family relationships. Siblings often drift apart as they grow older, with many school settings encouraging this as it is ‘uncool’ to be seen playing or even hanging out with your brothers and sisters. This isn’t true in a homeschooled environment, where siblings become a learning team, helping each other to achieve their goals. These relationships are particularly important to teens, and much of the rebellious and destructive behaviour inherent during this period isn’t present in homeschooled teens.

4. More Effective One-On-One Education

When you think about it logically, you can’t get much learning done in a busy classroom environment. In fact many teachers have noted in that past that a classroom might take an entire week to cover what a homeschooled student will grasp in just a few hours. The reason for this is that when the teacher has to worry about crowd control as well as education, things move slower. But as homeschooled kids are one-on-one, or in very small groups, they’re able to achieve much high levels of focus, and therefore much more directed learning. Another bonus is there’s no homework, as tasks are accomplished during the lesson, so there’s more time for leisure.

5. Freedom For Living

You often don’t realise when you’re children are in mainstream schooling that you’re locked into a system along with all the families in your state and country. You all drive to school at the same time, you all need to entertain your children outside of school at the same time, and you all take holidays at the same time. When you homeschool you’re stepping outside this system, and there are numerous benefits for that. For one thing, there’s nothing stopping you from taking several months off to travel and continue your children’s education. There’s also nothing stopping you from visiting museums, zoos and other attractions during the week, when they’re devoid of crowds. You can make choices based on what works for you, instead of what works for your school, which is definitely worth thinking about.

Next Page: The Cons of Homeschooling Your Child

The Cons of Homeschooling Your Child

Now that we’ve looked at the positives, let’s look at some of the reasons that you might choose not to homeschool your children, and to rely on public or private education instead.

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1. Uses Lots Of Parental Time

Obviously one of the biggest things working against your ability to homeschool is the amount of time that you have available to be there for your children. There’s no way to avoid the fact that homeschooling can take up a lot of parental time, and it can also be tiring to be there for your children 24/7 with no break wheel they’re at school. Generally homeschooling requires time on the ground, actually participating in the day-to-day learning experience of your child, as well as the pre-planning of those experiences to make sure they’re reaching educational goals. And yes, that is exhausting.

Homeschool Curriculum Checklist via pearsonschool

2. Can Be Financially Challenging

As well as being a time suck, homeschooling can also be financially challenging for families as it generally requires one parent (if you’re married) to forego a full-time job in order to homeschool. This can be a massive financial gamble, and a sacrifice, for families, especially those who are already struggling to stay in the green. Families that homeschool believe that while it may be financially stressful in the short-term, it’s a worthwhile sacrifice to see their children educated in their own way, but not all people believe this.

3. Fight Against The Stereotype

It can sometimes be difficult to explain to someone that your way of life isn’t the same as theirs, and we all have stereotypes to overcome. When it comes to homeschooling, stereotypes and generalisations about people who homeschool run deep, and many new homeschoolers aren’t comfortable with the assumptions people make about them and their families. Many people mistakenly believe that people who homeschool are religious zealots, and that their children are socially awkward, sheltered and either possessing savant-like intelligence, or are inherently slow. These stereotypes are rarely true, but defending them, and your lifestyle in general, can be exhausting and annoying. It doesn’t seem like much of a turn-off, but for some it can be.

4. Must Make Effort To Socialise

Socialisation happens at mainstream schools without too much of an effort from you as a parent. Kids play at recess and lunch, and they make plans to hang out after school, or do activities organised through the school like clubs and groups. However, if you homeschool you often need to have more of a hands-on approach to make sure your child has the opportunity to socialise with similar aged peers. Not all parents feel they have time for this, as well as for the time constraints of homeschooling, but there are always opportunities such as local homeschooling communities, many of whom organise group excursions, and outside-of-school sports teams.

Next Page: Where to Get More Information on Homeschooling

Where to Get More Information on Homeschooling

There are many great websites now that show you the different legalities State to State in Australia, and how to go about starting. They also offer packs on the Australian curriculum and teaching support options.

There is also a Support Facebook Page called ‘Australian Homeschool Network‘ that might be worth checking out.

Distance Education Providers:

Queensland:

Victoria:

Distance Education Centre Victoria

New South Wales:

Western Australia:

Northern Territory: