When homeschooling first took off many critics claimed that mere parents were not qualified or able to teach their children. They felt it was clear that only “experts” were able to properly school children. Clearly parents would flounder and fail. But as time passed it became apparent that in general children who are homeschooled had greater mastery of academic topics.
So then the critics turned to “socialization.” They again felt it was clear that children who missed out on the public school experience would not be able to function in society. That somehow being forced to be with other people all the same age in a prison like environment was an appropriate way to learn how to get along in life, and by missing out on this experience homeschooled children would suffer. But again as time passed it became apparent that in general children who are do just fine in getting along with others.
Janine and I saw this recently with our children. Last week one of my nieces got married. Our daughters were interacting with the rest of the wedding party just fine. They helped prepare for the reception. They helped serve at the reception. And they helped clean up. At times they were taking care of small children. They met many people they had never seen before in their life and they got along just fine. There were no comments about how socially awkward they were. On the contrary a few people complimented me on how wonderful the girls were.
It is always nice to see your children do well, especially when when the “experts” predicate failure.
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