When Jeff and I enrolled our children in public school, we did not have the mindset that the school carried the full responsibility to educate them–they are our kids, after all. We believed and still believe that the weight of our kids’ education is and has always been, our responsibility, regardless of where the primary learning takes place.
We stayed active, not just with getting our kids to school on time–fed, cleaned, appropriately dressed, with supplies and homework/projects in hand–but in volunteering and contributing. We bought gift certificates from the local bookstores to gift our teachers. We wrote personal notes of support to express thanks or because we noticed when they looked wiped out at the end of the day. We attended meetings, helped with fundraisers, and volunteered to assist at the library, parties, fun runs, etc., and assisted kids with testing for their AR (Accelerated Readers).
We collaborated.
The teachers became our child’s primary educators. They chose that career based on their goals, interests and need to support their families. By enrolling our children in public school, we gave up the role of primary educators and made the choice to fulfill the role of active educational supporters to the best of our ability. We made it clear to our children that they had an important role as well–to focus on learning, and to treat their teacher and others around them with the same measure of love and respect they wanted.
We did not give up our rights. We did not lose our voice. We still cared about our kids’ education and saw every worksheet, homework, art project, and book they read.
Public and private schools are options in a growing number of valuable resources available for the education of our children. Just as with any other resource we utilize for our children, parents make a choice, and if we decide to add it to our toolbelt it by no means removes us from the equation. No, instead–we drop it through any of the empty loops on that belt and strap it on because as I said before, our children are, first and foremost, our responsibility.
Individuals have to take responsibility for themselves before they can adequately come together to form a beneficial collaboration.
Collaboration is not dependence.
Collaboration is not codependence.
Healthy collaboration is more of a symbiotic (interdependent) relationship; when two “wholes” come together to achieve goals to the benefit of both.
Leading and supporting roles are formed and agreed upon based on a mutual respect and evaluation of needs, strengths, weaknesses and desires.
In this day and time, parents have access to an endless array of resources for the education of their children. Most towns provide at least one public, private or charter school, if not several. In addition, there are local bookstores, learning centers and libraries that frequently host activities and programs. A glance around one’s family, church, work or community often will turn up mentors in multiple fields of study. Online and offline software offers everything from interactive learning games to full-scale, accredited school programs.
Regardless of the educational choice made it is always a collaboration between two (or more) parties.
Several years ago we decided to pull our children from the public school system and homeschool.
Yes, we still belong to a community.
Yes, we still realize our actions impact the whole, and the whole of society impacts us.
No, we are not isolationists.
We actively collaborate with companies where we purchase curriculum–letting them know when we need help, when we have a problem, when we are thrilled, and when we can be a support to others. We collaborate with friends and community in cooperative teaching settings. We collaborate with other home educators and homeschooling organizations by supporting them financially. We collaborate with our local library, learning centers, etc., as we are still part of the whole of society. We even collaborate with friends who teach in the local public and private school settings. They provide helpful advice, suggestions, etc…,and we donate many of the products that come our way for their use in the classroom.
Homeschooling isn’t going away any more than public or private schools; it is an educational model that has stood the test of time and proved itself. There are positives and negatives, but overall, it is my opinion it is here to stay.
Education will always be a collaboration of one kind, or another, which does not mean we all need to agree to teach the same thing, read the same thing, assign the same thing, etc. Education isn’t about control; it’s about our kids’ learning, well-being and future.
More choices and more active collaboration benefits ALL educators (home, public, private, charter). What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Think I’m shooting for the pie in the sky here?
Heather Sanders is a leading homeschooling journalist who inspires homeschooling families to live, love and learn. Married to Jeff, Heather lives in the East Texas Piney Woods where she currently home schools two of her three kids.