Last night Caitlin returned home from a club happy and smiley-faced. Her friends (yes, she had been out of the house and mixing with other children!) had given her a card for giving such great interviews on the programme 15 Kids and Counting. It made her happy – see her face?!
There has been a lot of criticism out there regarding our homeschooling, with shouts of “Get them into school!” and, “You can’t teach children of different ages” and even going so far as to call me a rubbish teacher as one newspaper critic did.
I laughed at them all.
The programme didn’t have enough time to explain how homeschooling in our home works. It probably doesn’t work like it does with other homeschoolers (or home-educators, as many prefer to be known). There was only so much the show could cover but I’ve provided the links to why and how we homeschool in the post Glad it’s over – The truth about 15 Kids and Counting (and it wasn’t to keep them away from the outside world and negative influences as the show was edited to portray).
Why did it make me laugh? Because all the time complete strangers were commenting on how my children, and Caitlin in particular couldn’t be learning anything, that I wasn’t teaching well or that I was too stupid to teach she was demonstrating otherwise.
All the time people were saying how my children will never know how to mix with other people or learn “the proper things” and yet they couldn’t see that they were making these assumptions while they were watching her being interviewed and what they were saying wasn’t what they were seeing. Caitlin was relaxed with the interviewer, articulate, mature, intelligent, well-spoken and confident. Oh and by the way she isn’t 13 – she only turned 12 during filming so she was quite a bit younger than people believed.
I would confidently pit her against a 12 year old who was being educated in the local comprehensive because I know she is working to her full potential and ability which was the main reason we decided to home educate. Some of the things she is learning other 12 year olds won’t have even covered yet. Did she seem uneducated and a quivering, anxious wreck to you? Point made.
Homeschooling is still relatively “different” in this country and misunderstood. People equate homeschooling with not getting an education and not mixing with other people when nothing could be further from the truth.
It works well. We know that it works extremely well and for the critics of it I suggest you watch my daughter once again and then tell me it doesn’t.
I have nothing to prove. Caitlin already did that for me.
You may also be interested in reading how editing is used to tell a story that doesn’t exist:
15 Kids and Counting – Why I’m Not Dying for a Baby: http://www.largerfamilylife.com/2012/01/19/15-kids-and-counting-why-im-not-dying-for-a-baby/
As you say, she proved your point! And without being rude, she came across an AWFUL lot better than some “schooled” girls you come across!
I found Caitlin came across very articulate and intelligent plus all the boys gathered around the map and expressed interest and engaged with teaching , no easy feat at all, I’m lucky if my son sits on his bum at all lol, I found it interesting and will be looking further in to home education
I think that most people who critisised your homeschooling are just jealous because they couldn’t do it! It is so awful that this TV show has forced you to defend how you parent. Dont let them get you down x
Well said! Have you seen this video? It has gone viral here in the States. After less than a week, it already have 600,000 views. Check it out: Seven Lies About homeschoolers.
I tried watching this but it says I have a missing plug-in. It doesn’t tell me which plug-in that is though :-/
I didn’t watch the show but I follow your blog with great interest. I think you are very brave to home educate your children. It is something I am thinking about more and more but don’t think i will ever have the confidence to actually do. We are going to do a trial week over half term and we will see how it goes in the summer too. Congratulations on your family and thank you for sharing and inspiring others x
I am just so delighted with this article and your website in general!
As a home-educated child, now grown-up, I am (and was) constantly criticised with remarks about socialising, certification, the pure arrogance of my parents thinking they could do a better job, etc. etc…
I have never had a problem mixing with all ages/walks of life: I learnt Latin, Japanese, classical guitar, art, you name it. I have been to college, and I have had the job of being a manager of a small regional centre (of training and education, funnily enough). Now I am a mother of a bright two-year-old, with another on the way – and you can just guess what I plan to do about her education!