By guest author Abeka
These days, if you’re considering homeschooling your children, you’re not alone. Not by a long shot. Homeschool growth has trended strongly upward in recent years, in fact, 11.1% of U.S. households with school-age children reported homeschooling at the start of the 2020-2021 school year. This accounts for a 5.6% increase in homeschooling households compared to the year prior (census.gov). With everything happening in the world, homeschool programs are a popular option, and for many families, it is now their first choice over traditional school. Things have changed greatly in the world of education, most recently out of necessity due to COVID-19, but at Abeka we believe it’s all for the better. Homeschooling is now mainstream! Families no longer have to accept a one-size-fits-all approach to education, making it more flexible and customizable to each student. Homeschooling is here to stay, and here’s why:
1. Education that’s head and shoulders above
It’s pretty simple. There are a lot of parents who feel their child receives a better education at home. Did you know that the home-educated typically score 15 to 30 percentile points above public-school students on standardized academic achievement tests (chec.org)? It’s partly due to the freedom to choose a more rigorous, high-quality curriculum than what a traditional school would offer. It also has a lot to do with parents being active participants in their children’s education. Nobody cares more about their child learning! Then, with the best teaching technique applied for each individual student, the results can be outstanding. In the Abeka curriculum, for example, a teaching technique called the spiral approach is utilized. It’s all about retention, introducing concepts at age-appropriate times, then reinforcing and building to the next concepts.
2. A healthier, safer environment
Homeschool is a safe and secure academic option where parents create an environment, protected from any unhealthy influences and dangerous situations. It really comes down to the fact that in homeschool, your child is in your care and under your supervision. You guide every interaction and situation that your child will experience while providing them with an exceptional education.
3. A personalized one-on-one approach
Every child is unique. They have their own talents, strengths, areas needing improvement, and little developing personalities. They all learn differently. And who knows them better than their parents? With various homeschool methods, from online homeschool* to parent-led to mixing and matching, parents have the freedom to customize their child’s education. Each child can learn at their own pace and actually may move faster because they’re not waiting on other children to understand a concept or complete an assignment before moving on. The teaching style and areas of focus are tailored to the needs of an individual child.
4. The ability to incorporate Christian Beliefs
We know parents desire to have more guidance over all the influences that may shape their child’s character. But outside of homeschool or a Christian school, there aren’t many options for incorporating the Christian faith and values into the foundation of their child’s education. Fortunately, there are excellent homeschooling resources like Abeka, where every tool, resource, and textbook within the comprehensive, biblically oriented curriculum is based on Christian beliefs.
*Editor’s note. Government-funded online programs are not homeschooling; they are public school at home. Abeka here is referring to online class options, such as offered by Abeka and other curriculum providers.*
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