How Condescending

In the Clarion Ledger Homeschooling: Some Regulation Required this drivel appeared

Verifiable academic standards should be an issue. The question usually asked, after resolving issues of academics, regards socialization. Can home-schooled children cope with social pressures, people skills? More is learned in a classroom and school setting than A-B-Cs. The state should ensure that kids have a chance to learn. Not every child is a Washington, Twain or Carnegie.

No, every child isn't a Washington, Twain or Carnegie, every child is an unique individual. Some other noteworthy homeschoolers are Christopher Paolini, the author of the best selling novel Eragon, the movie is now in theaters. I wonder why the CL didn't mention him. Could it be because it would have been impossible to turn him into a social retard? Then there is Ginger Turner , one of 32 Americans chosen this year as Rhodes Scholars, there are of course more famous and successful homeschoolers I could mention, but I'll end this with a normal 17 year old boy who was homeschooled in Mississippi by me. Thanks to homeschooling Jonathan was able to study at an advanced pace. When he took the ACT at 15 he scored a 28, which made him eligible for early admission to college. He started college at 16. At 17 he is in his second year of a Computer Science degree, he made the Dean's List, he was nominated for Who's Who Among Students and he holds a part time job at Sicily's Pizza (looks like he is handling social pressures and people skills just fine to me; but then what do I know I am just his Mom). All of this was accomplished under Mississippi's current homeschool laws, which in my opinion work just fine.

And why this sudden interest in homeschooling by the CL, could it be because the director of the Clarion Ledger's editorial department, David Hampton's wife, Peggy, is in charge of public relations for Jackson Public Schools? Could it be because the public schools in Mississippi are so inadequate that the only way they can make them look good is by bashing other educational alternatives - like homeschooling? Hmmmmmmmmmm..........................................

Funnily enough they pretty much concede that homeschoolers have academics covered, so they have decided to attack homeschoolers with the "socialization" issue. But homeschoolers with their field trips, homeschool groups, park days, coops, and various other activities have socialization covered far better then the public schools do. And if my local public schools are anything to go by their socialization lacks something; this recently appeared in the Sun Herald.

Compounding the disturbing revelation that brawls are a common occurrence at Bay High is the realization that officials with the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District left it to students using the Internet to inform the community of the fistfights.

Maybe the CL should worry a little more about socialization in the public schools. There were numerous followups in the Sun Herald that made our community aware of what a serious issue these brawls are. To read more about Bay High Brawls read my post Educational News, Socialization in Public Schools, and More Soundoffs About Bay High Brawls.