The basic issue about the desirability, or differently, of home schooling for children of ages 5-18 is the general question of what balance Must be struck between the wishes of the parents vs. the demands of the state? Must parents come to a decision, or the government come to a decision,
(1) what range of knowing the children Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to learn?
(2) what content Must the children be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to study to achieve the prescribed range of knowing?
(3) what materials and resources (books, videos, computers, laboratories, and so forth.) Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed for the children to access and use in their study?
(4) what intended learning outcomes Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed for the children to achieve through their study?
(5) what study activities Must the children be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to complete in their endeavors to learn the range of knowing that is specified by the intended learning outcomes?
(6) what assessments and evaluations Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to establish the degree to which children have achieved the intended learning outcomes?
(7) what uses (preparative, formative, summative) Must be made of the evaluation results of student achievement?
(8) what qualifications and characteristics Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed for many who are to teach the children?
The question as to where to strike the balance between the parents’ rights to conduct home schooling for their children and the government’s rights to mandate, permit and/or proscribe the ways, means and outcomes for compulsory education of children (ages 5 to 18) who are subject to the authority of the government is one that is under constant scrutiny, review and negotiation. Every generation engages in analysis, inquiry and debate in developing adequate answers to this question.
In jurisdictions where home schooling is permitted, there are abundant materials and extensive improve for parents who wish to conduct home schooling. The sources of materials and improve include government agencies, commercial publishing firms and special interest groups.
Parents who elect for their children to engage in home schooling are confronted with the same questions that any person taking on the role of teacher (whether professionally qualified and certified, or not) will have to ask, answer and provide necessary and sufficient justification for the answers. Those questions include
(1) what prescribed range of knowing do we, playing the role of teacher, wish to specify as intended learning outcomes for our at-home students to achieve?
(2) why do we want our at-home students to achieve this particular set of intended learning outcomes (what makes the intended learning outcomes extrinsically and/or intrinsically worthwhile)?
(3) what will have to the at-home students do and/or produce (including under what conditions and conforming to what criteria) to adduce necessary and sufficient evidence to prove their achievement of the prescribed range of knowing as specified by the intended learning outcomes?
(4) what intentional guided study activities (performed under what conditions, with what resources and within what time period) will maximize the probabilities that the at-home students will intentionally learn under guidance the prescribed range of knowing as specified by the intended learning outcomes?
Parents basically have three choices in dealing with these questions. They may be able to formulate their own individual answers. They may be able to use the answers provided in curriculum documents and materials which others (state authorities, commercial publishing firms, special interest groups, and so forth.) have already developed and published. Or They may be able to make adaptations of existing materials to suit the individual circumstances of their at-home students.
(1) what range of knowing the children Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to learn?
(2) what content Must the children be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to study to achieve the prescribed range of knowing?
(3) what materials and resources (books, videos, computers, laboratories, and so forth.) Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed for the children to access and use in their study?
(4) what intended learning outcomes Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed for the children to achieve through their study?
(5) what study activities Must the children be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to complete in their endeavors to learn the range of knowing that is specified by the intended learning outcomes?
(6) what assessments and evaluations Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed to establish the degree to which children have achieved the intended learning outcomes?
(7) what uses (preparative, formative, summative) Must be made of the evaluation results of student achievement?
(8) what qualifications and characteristics Must be prescribed, permitted and/or proscribed for many who are to teach the children?
The question as to where to strike the balance between the parents’ rights to conduct home schooling for their children and the government’s rights to mandate, permit and/or proscribe the ways, means and outcomes for compulsory education of children (ages 5 to 18) who are subject to the authority of the government is one that is under constant scrutiny, review and negotiation. Every generation engages in analysis, inquiry and debate in developing adequate answers to this question.
In jurisdictions where home schooling is permitted, there are abundant materials and extensive improve for parents who wish to conduct home schooling. The sources of materials and improve include government agencies, commercial publishing firms and special interest groups.
Parents who elect for their children to engage in home schooling are confronted with the same questions that any person taking on the role of teacher (whether professionally qualified and certified, or not) will have to ask, answer and provide necessary and sufficient justification for the answers. Those questions include
(1) what prescribed range of knowing do we, playing the role of teacher, wish to specify as intended learning outcomes for our at-home students to achieve?
(2) why do we want our at-home students to achieve this particular set of intended learning outcomes (what makes the intended learning outcomes extrinsically and/or intrinsically worthwhile)?
(3) what will have to the at-home students do and/or produce (including under what conditions and conforming to what criteria) to adduce necessary and sufficient evidence to prove their achievement of the prescribed range of knowing as specified by the intended learning outcomes?
(4) what intentional guided study activities (performed under what conditions, with what resources and within what time period) will maximize the probabilities that the at-home students will intentionally learn under guidance the prescribed range of knowing as specified by the intended learning outcomes?
Parents basically have three choices in dealing with these questions. They may be able to formulate their own individual answers. They may be able to use the answers provided in curriculum documents and materials which others (state authorities, commercial publishing firms, special interest groups, and so forth.) have already developed and published. Or They may be able to make adaptations of existing materials to suit the individual circumstances of their at-home students.
Category: Education Studies & Teaching
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