Why Is Homeschooling And Tutoring Taking Over?
/Back to school. In normal times, those are three words that almost every parent rejoices over. But this year is anything but normal. As the coronavirus continues to ravage the economy and dampen our social lives, returning to the classroom in the fall seems increasing less likely.
California appears ready to pass New York as the state with the most cases within days, according to numbers from Johns Hopkins University. It has recently been reporting about 9,000 new cases each day for a total of 397,870 on Monday, with cases growing globally as well.
While some parents are awaiting guidance from their local school districts as to how to handle the return to school, an increasing number of parents are turning to homeschooling or private tutoring as an alternative.
There are a number of reasons why homeschooling and tutoring is appealing to parents, including a desire for safety, a distrust for the quality of education that may take place at school, and a growing movement towards homeschooling by their peers.
Safety is a primary concern for parents right now, with the challenges of effective social distancing in the classroom.
“A lot of them are saying it’s Covid and I don’t feel safe for whatever reason, maybe they have particular preexisting conditions where they just don’t feel safe going to the public schools right now,” Monica Mason, a parent who homeschooled said.
A recent survey from the American Federation of Children shows 40 percent of respondents are more likely to choose homeschooling after coronavirus restrictions.
“We actually had to get a much bigger inbox for our email because it was starting to bounce emails at the end of the day,” said J. Allen Weston, the executive director for the National Home School Association.
Weston said parents are aggravated by school reopening plans and are now considering additional options.
“We’re hearing things like six-foot by six-foot chalk squares on the playground and that the kids can’t leave their square. We’re hearing isolation rooms for any kid that coughs or they get put in solitary confinement all day.”
Falling behind in school is another major fear for parents. Jacklynn Walters has homeschooled her oldest child for the last 6 years as she believes that it superior to what her local school system offers.
“I had a number of parents concerned about their child getting behind because they weren’t finishing that last little bit of their school semesters," she said. "It wasn’t something in my mind. I didn’t have to worry about my child getting behind or even in the future."
Homeschooling has become more popular in recent years. Data collected by the U.S. Department of Education reveals that homeschooling has burgeoned by 61.8 percent over the last decade. Now 2 million kids, approximately 4 percent of the total youth population in the United States, are being homeschooled.
People might have their own notions about who exactly homeschools, with visions of primarily "white, middle-class, and/or religious fundamentalist families," but the trend is no longer limited to this group. (Greene & Greene, 2007)
In fact, the number of African American homeschoolers has consistently expanded in recent years. ("Black", 2006,) A key discovery in the study "Strengths of Their Own: Home Schoolers Across America" revealed that there was no difference in homeschooling scores based on the student’s race, and that scores for both minority and white students in grades K-12averaged in the 87th percentile. (Klicka, 2006)
Here at the Learning Shack, we are aware of the difficulties this academic transition holds, and are dedicating ourselves to be a resource for parents who are questioning whether homeschooling or additional tutoring is the right decision for them. We can help you get started, we can help you find the answers, and empower those parents to know what they need to do to help their kids.
For more information on homeschooling or educational options this fall, please feel free to reach out to us here, or call 949-646-6689.