Compare and Contrast Essay: Homeschooling vs Public Schooling
A lot of people like to debate what type of schooling is best for their children. Public schools provide an environment with different types of people and help students adapt to what the world is like. Students learn very useful social skills and practice them every day to be prepared for future opportunities. Homeschooling, on the other hand, seems like a better option for many students as they struggle to balance their schedule, more often at the high school age. Now, especially with the pandemic going around, many parents are switching their children to the homeschool option.
Money can very often be an issue when parents decide on their child’s schooling. Public schools are typically less costly than homeschool curriculums. The reason why many parents can’t get homeschool, even if they want to, is mostly because of the cost. It is very stressful juggling a job and children in need of an education, and it just seems simpler to send them to public school.
Something that moves parents to deciding on homeschool for their children, is concern for their safety. Public schools may have drugs going around and people getting discriminated against and bullied. According to the CDC, 1 in 5 high school students reportedly experienced school bullying. That leads to a higher risk of suicidal thoughts and even attempts. And parents are trying to keep their children feeling safe in their home.
Being able to socialize in a healthy way is important to learn from a young age, so we can apply those skills in the future when you need to apply for a job interview. Public schooling includes more socialization than homeschool. Homeschool can teach some skills, but in public schooling it is “built in”, as students are pretty much required to communicate with classmates and teaching personnel. Some homeschooled students tend to feel very lonely. I myself have no friends, and sometimes think to myself that it would be way better to actually learn to socialize in a social setting instead of cooped up in a home sitting at a desk.
Schedules can be very important for teens as they start to be more involved in activities and even work. Public schools are on a pretty tight schedule and everything is laid out specifically by hours. While in homeschool, the schedule is very flexible and changeable. Having a pretty flexible schedule also helps with job opportunities. If a restaurant wants you to work from 8 to 10 AM, on a weekday, it would be really hard to juggle this and public school. While for homeschool, you can just watch the daily lessons later in the day.
Though there are many differences in homeschooling and public schooling, they both teach relatively the same subjects. Sometimes more or less, as it depends on if it is a religious based homeschool or public school. They both offer the basics, such as math, science, reading, writing (English in older grade levels), and also foreign language can be an option for older grades. In many homeschool curriculums there are plenty of options for Performing Arts and Family and Consumer Science. Though public schools may offer more in terms of elective courses, variety of sports and other extracurricular activities. Also, both options may use many types of media and sources to teach in a more fun or “hands-on” way. If it is alright with your on-site teacher, you can get creative while doing homeschool too. It isn’t as boring as some people perceive it to be. There are plenty of classes like art and science that offer hands-on activities.
Both schooling options can have downsides, and great sides to them. Money, safety, being social, and scheduling are all important factors in a healthy school experience, but at the end of the day, I believe what matters most is what you feel like fits you best and what makes you most comfortable.
