(ThyBlackMan.com) To many it is evident that the face of education has changed throughout the years. School districts are losing their accreditation, in turn causing state governments to take over. Test scores for the United States are decreasing and students are dropping out.
According to the Huffington Post as of December 2010 the United States was ranked 14th by the OECD – Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. This figure however, is the nation’s ranking in reading and not the overall ranking of the country. However, reading does affect all other areas of study.
Then there is the rallying cry of, No Child Left Behind. This slogan has rang throughout the educational system for years. The No Child Left Behind Act also known as “NCLB”, was originally proposed by President George W. Bush in 2001. The legislation funds programs aimed at improving the performance of U.S. schools by increasing the standards of accountability for states, school districts, and schools, as well as providing parents more flexibility in choosing which schools their children will attend.
Some of the funding has been geared at supporting programs and resources for disadvantaged students. It is also designed to serve delinquent and neglected youth in institutions, day programs, and correctional facilities to assure they attain high academic levels of achievement. That’s ironic with the number of black men in our prison system. It seems our children have slipped through the cracks.
Even with all of the funding and the promises of no child being left behind it 
seems that many of our children have not been included. I will not quote numbers and stats since all we have to do is simply look around. Because sadly this is something many black folks know all too well. This leaves us wondering what about us? What about our children?
Students are sitting in classes and they are not learning. We can go back and forth blaming the teachers, parents, the educational system and even the students themselves. However, playing the blame game will not solve the problem.
Many parents, including myself have wondered if there are any alternatives to educational choices for our children. What can we do to save our children? What can we do to give them the best education possible and the education they deserve? Well some parents are aware that they have alternatives. Their choice is home schooling.
There were an estimated 1.73 to 2.35 million children (in grades K to 12) that were home educated during the spring of 2010 in the United States. It appears the homeschool population is continuing to grow (at an estimated 2% to 8% per annum over the past few years). Homeschooling is also quickly growing in popularity among minorities. About 15% of homeschooled families are non-white/non-Hispanic.
Many people choose home schooling for various reasons. Some parents are not happy with the performance of the public school system. They feel that as parents they can do a better than those trained and certified. Learning is more nurtured, education is tailored, a child’s interest can be fully explored and their self-esteem is maintained. It also leaves room for more independent thought and students can receive the one on one attention they may need.
As with anything there will always be disagreement and opposition and the same goes for education. Some people feel that students trained under traditional environments perform better in school and test higher on standardized testing than those that are homeschooled. However, according to the NHERI, home-educated students typically score 15 to 30 percentile points above public-school students on standardized academic achievement tests. (The public school average is the 50th percentile; scores range from 1 to 99.)
Those that advocate for home schooling stress that values are maintained, beliefs are central, family needs are prioritized, parents get to know their children better and there is more communication and an emotional closeness of the family. These are good points. However, all of these things can be achieved even when the child attends school outside of the home.
We also have to remember that all parents don’t possess the necessary skills to teach. Let’s be real. Everyone is not cut out to teach.
Now of course home schooling may be perfect for some people and I am sure a number of parents would love to have their children home schooled, but the fact remains that most parents single or not cannot stay home from work to educate their children. In today’s economy in most cases two incomes are needed, let alone one.
Also are you a parent that is patient enough to see your children nearly 24 hours a day? There will be no more sending the kids off to school and doing your own thing and more seriously you will be solely accountable for your child’s education.
So as with anything choices can be difficult, especially those affecting our children’s future. But there is help available. If you believe that home schooling may be an option for you or if you simply have some interest in researching home schooling there are resources and organizations that can assist you.
Black Home Schoolers Magazine http://blackhomeschoolers.com/
The National Black Home Educators http://www.nbhe.net/
Home School http://www.homeschool.com/
Home School Central http://homeschoolcentral.com/resource/
For a more intensive view of the No Child Left Behind Act you can visit http://www.ocvts.org.
Staff Writer; Eleanie Campbell
For more writings by this sista feel free to visit; SoulXPosed2U.
