Home schooling

[Midnight_Fairy]

those who complete endorse mainstream schooling;

do you think that the topics covered on the national curriculum are the best subjects to prepare for life? Yes, I would say so. Also anything extra the child needs (ie social skills- my son) we as parents endorse that and when he goes SN secondary, they will help out too.

Do you believe that the subjects taught are interesting for the children and teach the right things?
Definitely interesting. Mine are rarly sat in the class. They are always off out on mini bus or have visitors into school to show and teach them. They are always up doing something or other.
Is there anything you would change about what we learn in schools or the way we learn it? x

More provision for SN kids in mainstream but thats it. Oh and that ELSA should be in all schools as we are lucky enough to have access.

 

[summer rain]

The Scottish curriculum is quite different to the English one then, in some of the local primary schools here they are working a year or so behind as a class so they don't make the less able children feel flustered, my friend is from Finland and her kids attend that school-she used to home educate in Finland but is unable to here xx

Very sad. We work to the child's ability whatever that may be.

Nope, we are in England and I know my old schools and my childrens schools all work the same way as above.

The schools in East London/bordering areas of Essex most certainly don't and since that is where I live; those are the schools my children would have the option of attending. Many of the schools here the majority of children have english as a second (or third) language and also there are mainstream primaries where the majority of the children have special educational needs; the teachers can only spread themselves so thinly. I have heard the same recently about schools in Manchester and Birmingham as well and in my old school the streaming was very limited-I was top of the class in everything in primary school but stifled in the secondary system. Also my son has been doing Geography since year one, but it isn't part of the English curriculum until Key stage 2 (year 3 upwards)-

Absolutely outrageous. Is it the same with History too? Again, not the same up here at all.

Yes same with history also, they were only covered from KS2 onward in England and Wales until very recently-I have just found out today this has now been changed, in new guidelines issued in November but there are still no national curriculum based workbooks for either Geography or History at KS1 xx

I was quite shocked as I trained in England but that was many moons ago and I know that it was covered then. I think you would struggle to find any workbooks for History/ Geography up here too but that is just because it is not taught that way.

The whole Curriculum For Excellence is based on 4 capacities (Successful Learners, Confident individuals, Responsible Citizens, Effective Contributors) and the Learning Experiences and Outcomes all have these capacities as their basis. Active learning, outdoor learning and collaborative working are a key part of teaching and learning.

Learning outcomes for Early stages Social Studies are things like,
-I am aware that different types of evidence can help me to find out about the past.
-I have explored how people lived in the past and have used imaginative play to show how their lives were different from my own and the people around me.

This means that individual schools chose their actual areas of study within each subject. There is not a national rule that Mary Queen of Scots is taught in P6 for example.

Yes up until a few years ago Geography and History were part of the curriculum in England and Wales from age 5, they were when I was in school, but a few years ago it was decided to focus on the 3 Rs and so Geography, history and ICT were no longer part of the national curriculum in themselves before key stage 2 though you may have had some bits creeping into other subjects, i.e. history stuff creeping into English, map work creeping into maths, and the same with ICT but they weren't taught as subjects in their own right until the very recent changes. My sister did a work placement in a primary school a few years back with a class of 6-7 year olds and History and Geography were not taught at all to that age group at that point xx

 

[feeble]

those who complete endorse mainstream schooling;

do you think that the topics covered on the national curriculum are the best subjects to prepare for life? Yes, I would say so. Also anything extra the child needs (ie social skills- my son) we as parents endorse that and when he goes SN secondary, they will help out too.

Do you believe that the subjects taught are interesting for the children and teach the right things?
Definitely interesting. Mine are rarly sat in the class. They are always off out on mini bus or have visitors into school to show and teach them. They are always up doing something or other.
Is there anything you would change about what we learn in schools or the way we learn it? x

More provision for SN kids in mainstream but thats it. Oh and that ELSA should be in all schools as we are lucky enough to have access.

see (and i definitely dont think everyone should agree with me) i think that there are a lot of issues with what is actually taught in schools,

I dont think enough time is spent on things like growing vegetables, skills like personal hygiene, childcare, emotional development etc

I think too much emphasis is placed on glorification of the past, i learnt a lot about how fantastic it was when England was raping and pillaging around the world yet learnt little about modern politics, I dont feel religion was covered adequately and beyond a rudimentary glance at other cultures, there was little attention paid to any of them.

I firmly believe that much of school is about learning how to learn, research and develop your views on a subject which i think is vital and i thank my schooling for, however i do not agree that the curriculum offers the best subject matters to achieve that...

I would rather my children learnt about things that interested them and had some bearing on life and reality right now.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

In some ways I agree with you but I do think some of it is down to parents. I enjoy growing vegetables with my kids and would be sad if the lost interest because they did it to much at school. Again, same with personal hygiene, that's just part of our routine.

The emotional development I agree with, this is why my children are very lucky to have ELSA and I believe more schools should have it. x

 

[feeble]

what about the indoctrination in Geography and History?

the lack of understanding about modern politics and instead reams on reams of information about century old monarchs etc

I knew far more about Henry VIII when i left school than i did about the labour party for example

I knew nothing of the rise of feminism, barely anything about the soviet union and instead ONLY learnt about how fantastic Britain and America were for 'winning' the second world war.

It seems to be that the British curriculum is far too concerned with glorifying war and Christianity rather than suggesting methods and ways of forming proper opinions or giving real information about such things.

Why do we not learn about medicinal herbs? How to grow vegetables (i realise that is something you do with your kids but not everyone has space/ability to do the same) surely living in the world and learning through doing that should be what schools do?

 

[indy and lara]

Not the 'British Curriculum'. There is no such thing. We have a pretty good balance in Scotland.

-I did a higher in Modern Studies so had plenty of political education. Last year our P7s ran a mock election. They inbited in politicians, had candidates, held debates and worked through the whole process. Devolution is part of the curriculum too.

-RME in Primary School covers other religions more than it does Christianity. There is a balanced approach to RME and it is not just a nod to particular festivals.

-I do not know a teacher up here who has not been taught how to teach using a critical skills approach and it is a central part of how teaching and learning happens.

-We have been focussing on Emotional Literacy in Edinburgh for years now, working alongside the School for Emotional Literacy. Schools are now working with the Confidence to Learn Project. I myself was involved in an early pilot of this is 2000 so it has been in schools for a considerable time now.

-Working for Eco School status means many schools have developed their gardens and are growing flowers, veg and herbs.

Personal hygiene is part of the Health Curriculum but is surely something that should only back up what is taught at home anyway?

 

[morri]

I think it is important to know about history, but ofcourse it has to be done so that one doesn't lose as my teacher said the guide , there is a line (the red thread) that runs throughout the entire history and it connects to things of today.
(In germany you have history and geography from year 6 to year 10/12 optional 13.)
In primary you have an amalgasation which is called hsu which teaches about your very local(regional) surroundings and about things in general.(living close to the north sea you learnt that they have been building dykes her for many hundred years and how the different coast lines(3 or 4 different coastlines) are called )
Additionally though you have a subject here thats called politics/economics where you learn about modern parties, the working of a state and economy)
My school had its own little forest and biology classes can be held in it . They also have herbpatches too (and there is a pond and a smaller one that was entirely built by students)

 

[feeble]

unforuntely, i dont live in Edinborough.

I meant English Curriculum, i apologise, i am used to saying 'British' in pretty much every circumstance i must say!

I have friends with children who are a part of/have been a part of the schooling system who say the exact same things, not enough emphasis (if ANY) is placed on emotional well being, skills such as raising a family, cooking food, growing food, herbology, modern politics, how tax works, typing, i could go on and on

this IS a problem for many parents, however much people try and hide from it...

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I can see how in some cases that's true but I firmly believe school has more benefits for children in most cases. x

 

[feeble]

I totally agree there are benefits to school, i am not however convinced that those benefits cannot be found in homeschooling groups, other activities and a diverse social life.

 

[indy and lara]

unforuntely, i dont live in Edinborough.

I meant English Curriculum, i apologise, i am used to saying 'British' in pretty much every circumstance i must say!

I have friends with children who are a part of/have been a part of the schooling system who say the exact same things, not enough emphasis (if ANY) is placed on emotional well being, skills such as raising a family, cooking food, growing food, herbology, modern politics, how tax works, typing, i could go on and on

this IS a problem for many parents, however much people try and hide from it...

Aah yes, Britain and England.....a whole other thread. That aside, our education systems are quite different and the curriculum most certainly is.

I appreciate you are not in Edinburgh but you asked general questions and I was trying to answer them and give examples of how this is happening. Just saying yes and no is not terribly informative. I can only give examples from my own experience.

I am not trying to hide from anything but there are areas that I feel are a parents domain as opposed to be solely the responsibility of school. For me hygiene, financial education and how to raise a family are things that are in the family rather than educational domain. I have never thought it is the place of a school (or any institution) to be solely responsible for the whole education of a child. Just as my parents taught me things, we teach my daughter.

There has been a huge focus on emotional well being in Scotland for many years now. As I was saying, I was part of a pilot as far back as 2000. But Rome was not built in a day and pilots take time to become policy. In Edinburgh, the importance of Emotional Intelligence has long been recognised. Another example (one of many) of this being the work done alongside Fischy Music to develop childrens' emotional wellbeing through music.

Anyways, Em's quiet time over and I am away in the garden to start clearing out the veg beds.

 

[feeble]

With children in school for so much of life, and with aims to make the school day and age ever longer, where is this time allotted to families being together and learning together?

Its actually 'not' promoted at all.

Its all good and well saying parents are 'supposed' to teach their children these things, but a rudimentary glance at our society show these things actually aren't being taught at all, and the reasons 'I thought school was there to educate my children'

Its about what you think is more important, do i feel that my child should spent 80% of its time, learning about Henry VII, how fantastic war is and how boring maths is, whilst issues like raising a family, typing, tax returns, politics, how to achieve in life and survival skills should be crammed into the other 20%%?

No, i think that is a bad percentage of time given to issues which (I personally feel) are much, much more valuable to a child and a family.

Dont get me wrong, i am very glad there is an educational system available, some education is better than no education, but I do not for a second feel that a school can offer the same hands on, person/family centered development that a family can within a home, especially with the vast amount of homeschooling groups available.

 

[indy and lara]

And that is a fine reason for you to support homeschooling. I just don't agree with your view of school based education and your view does not match my own experience either as a learner or a teacher. I do not believe that schools should be responsible for bringing up a child. As a parent, that is my job. I make it my priority to be there for my child as does my husband.

Dont get me wrong, i am very glad there is an educational system available, some education is better than no education, .

I am not rising to that one. The education I received, the system I work in as a teacher and the one I believe my daughter will receive is not second class. I do not want a school to teach my child about raising a family or hygiene. These are our jobs as parents. As for time? You can always find it if you look.

 

[feeble]

rising? there is no need for it to be a right or wrong question so i am unsure why either of us needs to 'rise' to the other one (thats fightin talk and i am not up for it lol)

Many schools offer a second rate education, i am not saying you personally are sending your child to a school that is such, simply that many people feel they have no choice but to send their children to school which they KNOW are not going to offer them the best education.

 

[indy and lara]

Heavens above, saying that some education is better than none is a very sweeping statement and does suggest that you think ALL school based education is of poor quality. Of course I am going to disagree with that. I had a very positive experience of education in a state school in a deprived area and most certainly didn'tonly have 'some' education because my parents did not choose to homeschool. I also see outstanding practice everyday of my working life.

I would not say 'many' schools are poor but I agree that there are 'some' which are. These are a minority though.

 

[feeble]

then please explain why so few of our kids leave schools with a decent enough education? without GCSEs? or the ability to read or write?

if our system is flawless, why are these things increasing?

 

[RachA]

I know my son in only in reception but from what i know about the school that he goes to then the eduction he will receive there will be very well rounded. They cover a whole lots more there then i ever learnt at primary school.

I do agree that we shouldn't live in the past and totally go for teaching history as opposed to other things however i do think it's important to teach our children about our past in order to then learn about the future.

I don't think that we should be teaching such things like politics at primary schools as i think it's a pretty complex subject!

When i was at school there were lessons that taught about hygiene etc and i believe that those once a week lessons covered more than enough - assuming that they still do this at lo's school then i have no problem with that.


A lot of the things mentioned that schools lack to teach i believe parents should be teaching their children - mainly due to the differences of opinions in some things. For example, as a christian i want to teach my children that sex is for marriage etc, if i left it up to their school to teach them about these things and about child care etc then i don't think that their teaching would reflect my own views and beliefs.


I actually think that part of the reason that children are leaving school with a poor ability to read and write is because sometimes the emphasis is on other skills rather than reading and writing.


Quite honestly i take my hat off to anyone who can home school their children and give them a good education from it - i seriously don't think that i could do it.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I dont think anyone who sends their child to school should feel like a child gets a second best education. Thats just not true at all!

 

[lhancock90]

School or home education we all do what we feel is best for OUR children and nobody else has to right to question another womans decision!
My only query about home education is does it affect a child ability to bond with other children? Because thats one of the best parts of school, making friends, so if anyone here home educates do you also make sure your child gets interaction with other kids?x

 

[feeble]

Okay can i just say i NEVER used the term 'second rate education' that was someone elses assumption of what i said which i THEN clarified (before anyone else decides to jump on it without actually reading the info)

cheers

As for this idea of home schooled kids being unsocial, all the homeschooled kids i know are the most social people i know, they have very cool diverse groups of friends, they go to swimming clubs, sports clubs, home schooling clubs with other people, they spend their days with children of ALL ages and also adults meaning they can approach and communicate with people older or younger than them.

The social aspect is one of the biggest reasons i would choose to home school, because actually it makes for much much more sociable people who are not either quiet and forgotten or sticking out like a sore thumb in a crowd of 100s of kids.

its much more reflective of real life real experiences and real work situations.