Some groups of people are of the opinion that homeschooling benefits children more than getting a formal education at school. In the following paragraphs, I shall outline the positive aspects of both views, provide some examples and discuss why I would choose the latter.
Many parents choose to provide their children’s education to be carried out at home. They may argue that in this way they can tailor the teaching content based on their own values. For instance, queer and trans parents are not willing to teach their offspring the same cis heteronormative material that is being taught at the majority of educational institutions today.
On the other hand, people who prefer to send their children to school might assert that school is not only about gaining knowledge solely from books, it is also about learning life skills through communicating with your peer group. An example can be learning teamwork by doing group sports at school. Nobody can deny the crucial role collaboration plays in conducting successful businesses.
While I acknowledge the importance of raising children according to our belief system, in my opinion, the advantages of going to school outweigh those of homeschooling. If schools had been completely useless we would not have the many amazing thinkers, scientists and changemakers in the world that we have now. I believe we need to trust our history of education while trying to address other issues by offering constructive criticism to schools.
In conclusion, although studying at home has some advantages, I lean more towards going to school, because I find learning social and collective skills more important than simply becoming a book smart.