I can't speak for everyone, but I homeschool my granddaughter and you can't beat homeschooling for flexibility, opportunity for real-time learning, and choosing the curriculum. You can avoid the unnecessary busy-work, the useless memorizations and concentrate on true learning. That said, it is a very daunting task, never knowing if it is the best thing for the child's future. For a child with certain behavioral problems, it's about the only choice.

i think its upto the individual but if i had children i would rather send them to school because i think if they are at home they are missing out on interacting with other children their own age and making new friends. i have heard about cases where children are severly bullied at school and the parents have had no choice but to take their child out of school though.

I know very little about home schooling, but I'd have assumed that it would be far greater benefit to the child if they were taught at an official school, by qualified professionals in each area they learn, as well as the hugely social atmosphere of schools... That being said, I do feel that some schools (certain the one I attended) are becoming less about a true education, and more about simply "appealing to the share holders"... Meaning that home schooling offers a much more controlled, true education For example, my school did nothing whatsoever to stop widespread bullying, abuse, and classroom distractions, but spend very large amounts of money building larger and larger sporting facilities (School is for education, not for 'sport', or 'maths', or 'science'... Education is about learning everything, having single or very specific subjects being taught would be 'training' or 'specialisation', something you do after gaining your initial, broad education...)

Yes! If the child is not learning in the traditional school environment, they may be a candidate for homeschooling. If the school environment proves to be hostile or unhealthy for the child, certainly homeschool. If the child does not feel they are being taught to their needs, let them have their say in how their education ends up; they may want to be homeschooled, too.

This article I found at (http://www.deafhomeschool.com/essentials/decision/prosandcons.html) was very interesting (http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&safe=off&q=homeschooling+pro+cons&btnG=Search&meta= has lots more sites: The Ideal Placement Wild plants grow freely and abundantly. Place them in an environment with more nutrients and water and remove the weeds and they grow huge. School is like taking many different plants and growing them all in the same size pots with the same growing conditions in an effort to make each plant turn out like every other. Homeschooling is like the nurturing environment. Homeschooling is the ideal environment for deaf and hard-of-hearing children. It is much easier to meet many of their unique needs in a small, controlled, intimate setting. Homeschooling Pros The homeschooling parent has many advantages. * One-on-one instruction and interaction The homeschooling parent will have ample opportunities for one-on-one interaction with her child. This time makes it possible to develop an intimate knowledge of the child's academic strengths and weaknesses. This also gives the parent the flexibility to tailor each child's work to that child's particular needs. This one-on-one time also has pay-offs for the family itself...strengthening bonds, developing intimacy, nurturing deep relationships. * Intimate knowledge of child's needs, preferences and personal style The parent has a unique advantage in this area even when compared to the best of trained teachers. No one can possibly know a child like his parents. This intimate knowledge is the most solid foundation possible for guiding a child's education. * Deep investment in child's success Parents have a deep investment in their child's success. In addition to this, parents have a broader sense of what a child's "success" means (way beyond test scores). The school system has many goals and definitions of success, some of which may actually conflict with the goals of helping your child to attain success for himself. A parent's deep investment will lead him to search further for alternative strategies; he will experiment when current strategies are failing; and he will persevere through difficult times. Realistically, no school and no teacher will ever have that level of commitment to a child. * Ease of making accommodations in the physical environment The parent has great flexibility in making changes to the physical environment. She can simply move to a carpeted room to work with her child, or turn the t.v. captioning on. No IEP meetings, monitoring, or budget battles are necessary. * Customized curriculum While it does take some planning, the parent is able to customize the curriculum for her child. A parent has much greater flexibility when incorporating field trips, outings and hands-on work than is possible in a school setting. A customized curriculum might mean working on 4th grade math and 6th grade reading and college level science experiments, or it might mean significant use of hands-on activities. The parent has many choices that are simply not available within school structures. * Speed of instruction geared to student rather than the overall class This advantage is inherent in the nature of homeschooling, but still worth pointing out. The child will never be left "behind" the other students, nor will he have to sit through boring reviews of material he understands well. * Time savings There are many time savings associated with homeschooling. No commute time transporting children to and from school. No time spent educating staff and teachers on the proper use and care of assistive equipment. No time spent on evening homework. No parent-teacher meetings. No time spent in anguish over the deficiencies of services provided. * Social opportunities A wide variety of social opportunities are open to homeschoolers. They have the chance, each day, to interact with people of all ages in a variety of settings. Homeschoolers, through local homeschool groups, also have the opportunity to develop long-lasting, intimate friendships. * No struggles with the school system How much of an advantage this is depends on the family's level of involvement with the school system. If significant services are being provided, then, obviously, there will be much more interaction with the school system. For the most part, however, there will not be struggles over appropriate goals, issues over implementation of the IEP, monitoring to ensure services are being provided, etc. * Absolute choice of communication methods The communication method that the family chooses to use will be the communication method used. No argument, no battle, no struggle. Homeschooling Cons Are there potential disadvantages to homeschooling, in general, and specifically for deaf/hoh children? Absolutely! * Burn out Burn out is a very real risk, particularly for the parent who bears the main responsibility for educating the child (children). It is crucial that this parent (usually the mother) schedule nurturing and renewing activities for herself, including down-time, EACH DAY. Don't be afraid to use the resources available in the community such as classes and activities for the kids. Develop, and rely on, a strong personal support network. * Adult social isolation Spending the entire day with kids can lead to social isolation from other adults. It needn't. Nearly every town has a homeschooling support group. Schedule outings with friends. Make opportunities for social interactions with friends. * Financial burden The parent bears the full responsibility for purchasing educational materials for the child. Depending on the path chosen, these costs can be considerable. Purchased curricula are generally rather expensive. Costs can be reduced through extensive use of the library and careful planning. The internet is a tool that should not be overlooked. There are many thousands of web sites offering worksheets, lesson plans and ideas for activities. Our family has adopted a plan of "strategic gift requests". We ask grandparents to give gifts that help meet some of our homeschooling needs---a membership to the Mineral of the Month club, for instance, or season tickets to the ballet. * Parent may have to carry cost of therapies Services through the school system may not be available to the homeschooling parent, depending on the state and the local school district. * Possible legal consequences School districts have harassed parents who choose to homeschool children with special needs. The risk is slim, but real. Parents living in areas where the school system is known to be hostile to homeschoolers would do well to prepare themselves. Membership in the Homeschool Legal Defense Association could be useful. They will provide legal defense for parents who encounter legal difficulties related to homeschooling. * Difficult without the full-time commitment of one parent Homeschooling is difficult without the full-time commitment of one parent. There are families that homeschool in their after-work time, but this is rare, and probably not workable for a family dealing with special needs. Having one parent available full-time can lead to some significant changes in terms of finances and scheduling (parents working opposite shifts, for instance).

Whether people should homeschool is really dependent on the child/family dynamic, however, I think that there is a lot more to school than simply the curriculum. When I think back to my favourite times in school and favourite teachers, I rarely think of the lessons I learned from a book. It was more the social lessons and life lessons that really stand out. Playing on the Rugby team, joining clubs, and playing in the concert band were all very valuable. Favourite teachers include my OAC (Ontarians, you know what I'm talking about) English teacher, who could really make you feel like an ass, but when she did, you knew you deserved it and admired her wit as she did it. It was seeing friends on a daily basis, the cafeteria fries, the cheesy sex ed videos, and skipping afternoon classes to go smoke _______(fill in the blank) in the park across the street. For me, homeschooling could never replace this experience, but I'm also a teacher and hope not to become obsolete any time soon :).

i think that a kid gets only one chance to go to school and i think they should go.. they would regret not going to school cuz they have no great school memories.... school is where u make friends learn normaly have fun... u get to go on fieldtrips and in middle school u have more than one teacher and classes.. i can go on forever with how great school is and that ur kid will regret not going...

I think that this question is really more political that anything else. Regardless of pros and cons, whether or not people should be allowed to homeschool is a resounding yes. Whether they should or not, is a different question. The Constition gives US citizens many rights (not just certain rights). Education is a right and requirment, but where we get our education is up to us. We the people decide. I love living in Texas where the state pretty much stays out of your business. I've never met a homeschooling parent that neglected to educate their children. If anyone has, I would say that it is rare, and not the norm. So, yes, people should be allowed in this day and age to educate their children. Now more than ever. The resources are incredible. You can get texts on any subject. If your child excels in a particular subject, or has a keen interest in something specific, if is far easier to nurture this at home than at a sctructured school where every student has the same curriculum. The social aspect of homeschooling is moot. (Don't get me started on the words and phrases my kids come home from school saying, not all socialization is good). Unless you live in the middle of nowhere, you have to come in contact with people. The kids my kids play with aren't from their school (we don't homeschool, but I did as a child), we have kids over every week and it has no bearing on traditional school or homschooling. The vast majority of homeschoolers are in some sort of homeschooling organization so the kids can mix and mingle with other kids, and the moms and dads too, for that matter. Although we don't homeschool, if we need it, it is there for us. Its comforting to know this. I think its good for the school system to know that it has competition also (checks and balances). We all win when the options to education are open.