Austin'sDodge

I also want to credit my parents. Without thier dedication and hard work I would not be the young man I am today. It will not always be easy but nothing worth it ever is.

CamperAndy

You should have stopped once you answered the question. The rest was biased and fluff but if it works for you that way, then good luck.

waldersha

And you should have stopped before you got into a topic that you are obviously ill-equipped to talk about. But, by the title under your name, I see this isn't the first time that you have done so.

Yes, the information is has a biased slant to it, it's a homeschooling site, but facts are facts. You suggesting that home-schooled kids are missing out on something in academic progress is incorrect. It is a well-documented fact that home-schooled children score higher on standardized tests than their public school counterparts do. If you don't or won't understand how a teacher devoted to a few students rather than a classroom of 25-30 leads to a better education I'm not sure how else to put it.

You are entitled to your biased opinion, no matter how flawed it may be.

wyododge

so where are your sources for this argument Andy. Why would a child have to be docile to take instruction. Are you an expert on Home schooling or were you home schooled and just describing yourself? Why would a charter school in an area you know nothing about, be better than home schooling. Can you back up your assertion with some documented facts?? What is wrong with religious schools. Do they also subvert the education of children??? The Evil churches pumping children full of hate for the infidels??? Somehow, any institution is automatically better at teaching someone's children then they are???

The fact that you are asking the question shows you think you are better qualified to raise his children then he is. Maybe a better question is at what point do you realize that you are butting into peoples business and personal issues and should consider accepting that maybe they are a better judge of their situation then you are? Or maybe, If I can't find a way to comment to this guy without insulting him or trying to prove that I am superior to him and everyone else, at what point do I shut the heck up?

Maybe you should read the first quote of yours. It is all biased Fluff. Except until now, nobody chose to jump on your case for it. This was a very informative thread until you started jumping all over people who dared to have a different opinion and decided to start trashing them.

Maybe next time you point a finger, you should look in a mirror first. Or better yet, just talk to your finger. It would help allot more people out.

wyododge

Okay, Okay, it was a scam. But hey my heart was in it!!! Trust me Dallas is WAY better than Wyoming in December. Just figured I'd offer it to your boy!!!!

As far as sortin da cows, just an excuse to get some grit in your teeth so you feel like you at least earned a beer!!! Makes it taste a bit better I think.

But in all seriousness you should be proud of yourself. We may not all make the right decisions, we may not make all the wrong decisions. But at least you are making A decision. You are taking action that you feel is best for your family. For that you should be proud. There are many around us all who have neither the guts, or the wherewithal to do the same. Hats off to you sir!!!

cbrahs

Thank you brother. That means a lot and trust me, if I lived closer, I would be right there helpin ya sort the critters












oh and drinkin your beer! LOL

ofcmarc

Looks like you have a decent plan.

Hvytrkmech

I guess its a geographical thing. My 3 kids all attended an accredited public school system. All graduated with honors, and all attended or are attending college. My oldest knocked out her masters degree in Occupational therapy in 4 years and is now back in school for her doctorate.

While I respect a parents choice and dedication to accept the responsibility of home schooling their children, to make such a broad statement is ignorance on you part.


Back on topic.


Chris, I appreciate you honesty and dedication to your son, I wish you the best in whatever path you choose.

CamperAndy

Wyo - I will do my best to answer your questions but you know me from my posts, any time someone talks in absolutes it gets my attention.


My source is my personal experience, out of about 15 home school families I know and seen them reach grade 12 equivalent only the ones that had submissive kids did well. Not a big sample but it is representative I believe.

Charter schools tend to be academically focused without the extra curricular distractions. They enforce dress codes and have smaller classes all good things for a learning environment. Rich indicated he did not think they were as good in his area as they are in Idaho, so he is better able to report on that, it was just a suggestion.

As for church based schools, as I said I think they would be better then home schooling. The problem I have with them is some tend to be very light on some of the sciences and there are some history issues but over all give a good education. Since Rich indicated he has found support in the church it seemed like a option that he had not mentioned exploring. I don't like them but one could work very well for Rich.

You are obviously taken by the home school option and that is fine but try this on. If you are qualified to instruct your kids then you would have to agree that everyone could/should also do right by their kids by teaching their own kids. Now with that in mind think of all your friends and neighbors and see if you could believe they would all do a good job of teaching your kids. You know you can't agree that, that would be a good plan so there has to be an alternative for instruction other then home schooling.


His first part of the answer was all he needed. Look at the answer Rich left and you will see that it was concise (maybe tongue in cheek but concise) and that was all that was needed. The guy that posted a very biased link and then think that to show his superiority he should quote his IQ which would be a walk on score to get into MENSA was just fluff. The chart below shows the bell curve for IQ scoring and this guy indicates he is in the top .2%. If this were true then he should also know that not everyone is in that group nor is everyone in that top .2% able to deal with small kids and the pace at which they learn. I have worked with plenty of very smart people and the smartest ones don't need to throw a score up to impress.




No questions in this final rant but I hope it made you feel better.

Rich - Sorry for the hi-jack but as I said before I wish you luck and I am glad I don't have to make the decision you are confronted with.

waldersha

Andy, you are absolutely correct on one point. You have proven that there are some out there that are better off letting their children be taught by someone else.

I never said that there shouldn't be alternatives to home schooling. I never said that everyone should home school. I pointed to test scores that show that home schooled children do better on average on standardized tests compared to their public school counterparts. I also did not say that everyone who has ever gone to a public school is a complete moron who learned nothing in their time in the public schools. I came through the public school system and have done well. There were teachers there who were very good at what they did, and there were others who had no business instructing children. Some kids did well, some did not. For you to suggest that the only way to get a proper education is not to home school is also biased.

Why are there different religions? Why are there different political parties? Why are there different brands of cars? Well, that would be because no one choice is the ONLY choice.

It all comes down to, like I said in an earlier post, parents making the choice that fits best for their family. The original poster, Chris, has done his homework and decided that a home school option would be the best for his son. I fully support that. If he had said he was sending his son to a charter school, I would support that. If he was moving him to another public school, I would support that too. Point being, I do not know better than he what educational option would be best for his son. That is a choice that he and his ex-wife are better equipped to handle than I. He asked for opinions, I gave him mine.

waldersha

Congratulations on the achievements of your children. That is something to be proud of and I'm sure that you made the choice that worked best for you and your family. I'm also sure that at least a little of their learning came from parents who were involved and did some of the teaching as well.

Hvytrkmech

Thank you. I agree, dedicated parents are the corner stones to successful children, as you well know.

My youngest, now 21 was home schooled for 2 years by my wife, myself, and a tutor because of an illness that almost killed her. I can tell you with absolute certainty, it was the hardest time of my life. I have empathy for parents who step up to home school full time.

cbrahs

Hvy- a HUGE congrats to you, your wife and children for their accomplishments!

cbrahs

Andy. Not all charter schools have a dress code and have small class sizes. My ex girlfriends oldest son goes to a charter school and I saw some of the stuff he was assigned and it may had been very lacking and VERY left wing. Their grading scale has little to be desired as well.

One of the main problems is that my children live 25 miles south of me and their town is a small town with VERY limited choices with schools and has a great number of gang violence that my kids WILL not be a part of. My ex wife and I have made the decision to work as a team to educate our son to the best of our abilities. We have done our homework to find groups for support and to maintain the social aspect of his learning as well. Both of us have active social lives with Church and my son loves to hang around my friends and their kids when we work on trucks and shoot the breeze. If I could find a school worth a darn, either public or charter (can't afford private) I would go that direction. My cousin in Idaho (Eagle) is a school teacher, her parents are both school teachers (her dad is a principle) is going to start home schooling her kids starting in January. More and more people are doing this as the public school system has gone down the toilet. New Mexico has VERY few schools that are worth a darn and if they are, there is a waiting list to get in.

Hvytrkmech

Thank you Sir.


You seem to have done a lot of investigation into what you will be doing. It is for sure, a road not easily traveled. I admire and respect you parental dedication.

I for one would not change anything my wife and I have done or been through while raising our kids. With that being said, I can tell you that I would not want to go back and do it again. I am glad I do not have to weigh out decisions like that anymore.



God speed brother, your gonna need it.