Home school

by Globetrotter 30 Replies latest jw experiences

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  cruzanheart

  (((((Insomniac))))) I'm so very sorry you had to go through that.

  Love,

  NIna
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  Insomniac

  Aw, Nina, you're sweet. I'm happy now, though!
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  Gwydion

  My three youngest siblings were taken by my parents out of the JW cult and into a secluded new hideaway home where they were homeschooled for awhile, and now that they have experienced a year and a half of public school they are considering homeschooling again for the youngest two who are in 10th and 8th grades. My siblings are considerably lacking in social skills. My younger brother who is 15 gets so embaressed in public situations that when he was asked his birthdate by a cashier at a Target store, when they visited me last summer, he turned beat red stammered and couldn't even provide the correct answer. My brother who is now 21 can't even decide for himself what he wants to eat at a restaurant. Home schooling and the JW cult are detrimental to a kids psycological ability to interact as a normal person in society. There is so much I wish I could do for them to undo what has been done to them but the process is ever so slow. I sometimes wonder if my parents feel guilty about what they put our family through. In any case we are all paying for it now.
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  nightwarrior

  Well I will put the cat among the pigeons.

  I have home educated our two younger children at home for quite some time.

  I emphasise NOW, that even tho I was a JW, that was never the reason for taking them out of school... I feel that excuse is like a lame duck. (The ones that I met, were pathetic and embarrassing to say the least)

  I was unimpressed with the education that our children were receiving (both are very bright, intelligent people). I worked voluntarily at the school, and was totally disallusioned with the whole education system.

  18 months later I put them back in to school, and both did very well......... in fact far beyond what was expected on both age groups!!

  Secondary school, and again, totally unimpressed, we therefore gave the children a choice, stay in school or home educate, both opted for home schooling, and both are doing brilliantly.

  14 & 15 yrs old, drama school, computer, great social life (with school children, who are envious yeah right) both children are focused on future careers, know exactly what life is about (heck being a JW and the opposition since leaving has certainly been a social lesson).

  So all I can say is, everyone has an opinion, and entitled to it. All I know is that it has worked for us, and in the end that is all that matters!!!!!!!!!!

  So send on the guns.

  Note : one of our children was rated as 'special needs' needed one to one, concentration etc... hhhmmm... sorted that one out, he is so clever school bored him, so he became the clown of the class... and the teachers were not bothered.

  I can understand the need for social lessons, but our children can certainly hold a conversation and have a laugh with the best of us. both have strong opinions, and can hold a room. but are still children, enjoying growing up, and not having to be some young upstart having to impress the rest of the class to gain social standing be it gangs or whatever else is required in school these days.

  College now beckons... adulthood looms, but both are more than capable of coping with the big bad world as both Chris and I have made damned sure that the world holds no secrets to them.....our two older sons have certainly made sure of this.... so yes home schooling works if for the correct reasons........... but not religious NO WAY...........

  See ya

  Cath (Mrs Nightwarrior)
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  RunningMan

  As I mentioned earlier, there are good reasons to home school your children. We all know that the school system has its deficiencies. If you are a parent with the time, energy, and abiltiy to do a better job than the school system, then by all means do it. I'm sure there are some cases like this.

  Unfortunately, I personally have never seen a case where parents are home schooling because they can do a better job than the school. In the instances that I have seen, parents have made the choice because of their own neurosis, or the desire to religiously brainwash their child without outside interference. Needless to say, these cases usually fail spectacularly.
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  nightwarrior

  Running Man

  hhhmmmm Thanks alot.....other than this acknowledgement, your thoughts are not worth a sensible reply, so best ignore it!

  Mrs Nightwarrior
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  waiting

  Hi - haven't read this thread, but wanted to suggest anyone looking to homeschool their kids (or arguements against it) ought to read the latest thread by SC Guy.

  He's a home schooled jw, 17 yrs old. Very nice & highly musically talented.

  And totally under his parents' iron rule.
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  GentlyFeral

  I homeschooled both my kids for about ten years.

  It started at the beginning of middle school, when my son -- who had spent the last 2 years of elementary school in gifted/talented classes -- suddenly refused to go to school at all for a period of weeks. We actually had to drag him out of bed, dress him and drive him. Turns out he was routinely being bullied -- stuffed into garbage cans, assaulted in gym class, and basically never felt safe. We tried to deal with it by "going through channels," but the best the vice-principal could do was to offer to monitor the route he took between classes. It wasn't enough to stop the impulsive random attacks when the VP wasn't around. The bullies didn't even bother to persecute him for being a nerd or a JW -- it was enough that he was smaller than everyone else.

  His social skills were always adequate, too; he'd always been able to get along with anyone who realized that hitting someone is no way to begin a conversation.

  So I took him out of school and began teaching him myself. There were a couple of other families in local congregations doing it, and some of them were the "spiritually weak," intellectual families I always had a soft spot for. One of the most successful homeschool/JW families warned me to be careful -- that homeschooling "can take you right out of the truth" if you get too into it.

  So we got into it because the school system could not serve my son, and stayed in it for the intellectual adventures. A casual question like "What exactly are ninjas, anyway?" could turn into six weeks of PE and history.

  My daughter was doing OK in school at this time (she was in kindergarten), but walked in on us one day as we were making an alcohol-fueled still out of jam jars, string and copper pipe. "Mommy, I want to be in your school," she said.

  Neither of them ever graduated, but my son has been supporting himself for the past ten years and has blossomed into a gifted self-taught artist. My daughter is still very much a stay-at-home but has found her own ways of making a wide circle of interesting friends and continues to teach herself web design, fiction writing and god knows what-all. Some friends of hers have offered to teach her several forms of self-defense.

  GentlyFeral
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  2escaped lifers

  Greetings,

  We currently homeschool our two boys, both of whom were invited into the gifted programs when they were in the public school system. Our two main reasons for homeschooling them were that (1) my work situation was causing us to move rather often there for a while, and we thought it unfair for the boys to be bounced around different schools during the same school year, and (2) We wanted to give them the opportunity to learn at their own pace, as rapidly as they could. No religious reasons involved, as we are now ex-JW's.

  They are both bright, and well adjusted in social settings. They have quite a few friends in the neighborhood, some homeschooled and some in public school. Next year (school year) we will be enrolling them in some of the extra curricular activies and sports that the school systems where we live have opened up to homeschoolers to participate in.

  Overall we enjoy having the children with us more, and they enjoy the more flexible schedule. We fully intend both to go to college, and take advantage of whatever scholarships are available.

  However, while we were still JW's, many in surrounding congregations were homeschooling their children, with of course no future plans of additional education beyond their high school diploma or GED. Many weren't even using decent curriculums, and many counted field service, playgroud trips, camping trips, etc., as school time or school field trip time. Very pitiful education for many of these, and it showed in their general conversation and their basic understanding (or lack thereof) of the world around them.

  As one poster to this thread has already alluded to, I wouldn't suggest trying to homeschool your children unless you have the time, energy, and willpower to make them stick to the lessons (and to stick to it yourself). Also would suggest enrolling in some of the National accredited homeschooling programs with good curriculums.

  Anyhow, my 2cents...

  Best regards all,

  Brandon Bartlett
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  Globetrotter

  Outstanding. My business partner thinks I have a biased view against homeschooling. I may have, only because of the limited contact I have had with it. I am very happy to see it done successfully and for the right reasons.