If I ever have children, I honestly think I would struggle with the idea of homeschooling them. Not because I think homeschooling is bad or that parents who choose it are doing something wrong. I actually understand the appeal of it. You have more control over what your child learns, what values are being introduced to them and even what kind of environment they are learning in. You can protect them from certain things and teach them according to your own beliefs. That sounds comforting as a parent. But knowing myself, I think I would still choose traditional schooling system.
One reason is that I like structure. I like knowing that there is a system, a routine and a certain way things are supposed to work. I think children also benefit from having that kind of structure around them. Waking up, getting ready for school, going to class, meeting different teachers, doing assignments, participating in activities and coming back home creates a routine that becomes part of their development. School is not just about sitting down and learning Mathematics or English. There are so many things happening around the actual lessons that can shape a child.
I also don't think it is enough for a child to be book smart. A child can be extremely intelligent academically and still struggle when it comes to dealing with people. They can know every answer in the classroom but not know how to communicate properly, work with someone they don't like, handle disagreement or speak up when they need to. And these are basic life skills you cannot completely learn from a textbook.
This is where I think classroom interaction becomes important. When children are put together with other children, they are naturally going to experience different personalities. Some will be loud, some quiet, some competitive, some stubborn and some very confident. They will have to learn how to exist around all these different people. Sometimes they will disagree. Sometimes they will work together. Sometimes they will lose a competition and have to watch someone else celebrate. Sometimes they will win and have other people cheering for them. All these little experiences are teaching them something. The cheers, the little rivalry, the excitement of being recognized for something they did well. Those experiences can build confidence and also teach children that sometimes you win and sometimes you don't.
Of course, traditional schools are not perfect. There are things I would probably disagree with, and I would still want to be very involved in what my children are being taught. I don't think sending a child to school means handing over the entire responsibility of raising them to teachers and the government. I would still want to know what they are learning, who they are learning from and what values are being introduced to them. I would want to have conversations with them at home and correct anything I feel needs correcting.
I would rather be involved in my child's learning than opt for a hundred percent controlled system. If a child spends most of their developmental years learning inside a controlled environment, they might become comfortable inside that environment but struggle when they eventually have to step outside it. Life is not a perfectly controlled classroom. You will meet people who think differently from you. You will encounter difficult personalities. You will experience rejection, competition, embarrassment, friendship, disagreement and pressure.
Children need opportunities to experience some of these things while they are still learning and while they have adults around them to guide them through it. So if I had to choose, I would choose traditional schooling, but I wouldn't also leave my child's education entirely to the school.
