According to the Census Bureau’s Home Pulse survey, homeschooling for Black families rose from 3% in the Spring of 2020 to more than 16% as of the Fall of 2020, and stats are continuing to rise. Per the survey, Black communities are the fastest-rising demographic in homeschooling. As many Black families are still choosing to homeschool, is it a good fit for you and your family?
Homeschooling is truly a very big responsibility. Homeschooling requires an investment in not only time and effort on behalf of both the parent and student, it is also requires a huge financial investment as well as you are providing everything that a traditional school would (i.e. books, computers, science equipment, etc. etc.)
As summer is waning to an end, let’s see if homeschooling is right for you in the 2023-2024 school year.
The first thing to consider is, does your child want to be homeschooled?
It is very important to make sure that your child actually wants to be homeschooled. It is extremely important to involve them in this educational decision. If your child is not invested in the process, then it will not be a success. If they say that homeschool is a hard pass, then let them attend traditional school. You don’t want them to have any regrets about their education.
Have you investigated all of the options?
There are several other options that might work for your family. If you are considering homeschool, then traditional school is not necessarily on the list, but have you thought about private schools, charter schools, online school, hybrid learning options, etc.? Homeschool isn’t the only option out there. If you are interested in learning more about additional options to traditional schools, click here.
As a homeschool parent, you have to LOVE learning.
Remember, as a homeschool parent, you are the teacher, principal, and cafeteria lady/man. If you don’t love learning, than homeschool is a definite no-go for your family. You must love learning and be able to teach your child without judging, yelling, and belittling them. Additionally, you have to be willing to openly demonstrate your love of learning, teaching, and be willing to put in the time, if need be, for professional development.
A homeschool parent has to be at home on a full-time basis.
You can not homeschool if you are not physically there. True, there are many alternatives to a parent being present such as online homeschool, but even then, a parent needs to be present for supervision.
Are you an organized?
There are legal safeguards and benchmarks that you have to meet in most states, as a homeschool family. You need to make sure that you are keeping proper records of grades and other information. And, when the time is right, you will need to create a transcript and diploma for your child so that they can move on the next level!
What do you think? Would you like to give homeschooling a try for the upcoming school year? Well, if you would like more information to make your decision, visit the The Coalition for Responsible Home Education here.
