1. It's not boring as all get out.

I spent the first 5 and a half years of my education in public schools. There were, of course, times when I enjoyed learning things and talking to my friends. On the flip side, though, there were long stretches of monotony and boredom. And that was just grade school! I can't even imagine what it would have gotten like in middle and high school. I vaguely remember a class I took in 6th grade before I began to be homeschooled. "Conflict resolution" they called it. It was an entire class we had to sit through for 50 minutes a day on how not to get in a fight. Instead of teaching us something useful like math, history or science, we had to sit and learn that getting in a fistfight wasn't good for anybody.

I think it goes without saying that homeschooling was far more interesting. I was either doing something and learning, or I was enjoying my free time. I never had to sit through extended periods of monotonous lectures or stare at a chalkboard while a teacher catered to the slowest student in the classroom. I was able to learn at my own pace and enjoy it.

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Wikipedia states that “Home education, also called homeschooling or home school, is an educational alternative in which children are educated at home by their parents, in contrast to the compulsory attendance which takes place in an institution with a campus such as a public school or private school.”

Around the world Homeschooling has been increasing quite substantially over the last 4 years. In 2003, in the United States, approximately 1.1 million children were Home Schooled, up 29% from 850,000 in 1999. Recent figures show that Homeschooling in other Western Countries are also continuing to grow. For example, an estimated 50,000 children are considered "home-educated" in the United Kingdom; Australia - 26,500; and in Canada (as at 2001) it was estimated that 80,000 children were educated at home with the numbers continuing to increase.

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Homeschooling and Socialization of Children

Homeschooling is defined by Preiss (1989) as "the educational alternative in which parents/guardians assume the primary responsibility for the education of their children." This Digest will offer some background information on homeschooling and discuss conflicting viewpoints culled from research on the socialization of home-schooled children.

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Science Misconceptions Research and Some Implications for the Teaching of Science to Elementary School Students

In July, 1983, an international seminar on misconceptions in science and mathematics was held at Cornell University (Helm and Novak, 1983). Fifty-five papers were presented and 118 people registered for the seminar. The proceedings of this conference were published, with the papers grouped according to primary emphasis: theoretical and philosophical perspectives (8 papers), instructional issues (9 papers), research and methodological issues (12 papers), historical and epistemological perspectives (5 papers), elementary school science (2 papers), physics (11 papers), biology (6 papers), chemistry (1 paper), and mathematics (5 papers). A second international seminar is scheduled for the summer of 1987, also at Cornell.

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Twins in School: What Teachers Should Know

The incidence of multiple births has increased dramatically in the past two decades. The birth rate for twins, who constitute the most common kind of multiple births, increased 42% from 1980 to 1994 (Lytton, Singh, & Gallagher, 1995). Given this trend, it seems reasonable to assume that many teachers will have twins and other multiple siblings in their classes at some point in their classroom careers.

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Homeschooling

Homeschooling -- educating children under the supervision of parents instead of school teachers -- has grown steadily over the past several decades. In an earlier era, many children studied at home. But by the beginning of the twentieth century, schools had become commonplace and states had adopted compulsory school attendance laws. Only a few states allowed homeschooling as an exception to the attendance requirement. A few more required parents only to educate their children, without specifying the means.

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Science Fairs in Elementary School

Science fair projects have long been familiar events in schools throughout the country, and they have come to represent science in action, science as inquiry. The investigatory aspect of science fair projects fits wellwith current reform efforts guided by such publications as "Science for All Americans," "Benchmarks for Scientific Literacy," and the "National Science Education Standards." Classroom science is steadily being transformed into a process-driven, inquiry-based area of study, and science fair projects provide additional opportunities for students to become personally and directly involved in scientific investigation.

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Parenting Style and Its Correlates

Developmental psychologists have been interested in how parents influence the development of children's social and instrumental competence since at least the 1920s. One of the most robust approaches to this area is the study of what has been called "parenting style." This Digest defines parenting style, explores four types, and discusses the consequences of the different styles for children.

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Improving Student Achievement in Mathematics Part 2: Recommendations for the Classroom

The number of research studies conducted in mathematics education over the past three decades has increased dramatically (Kilpatrick, 1992). The results from these studies, together with relevant findings from research in other domains, such as cognitive psychology, are used to identify the successful teaching strategies and practices.

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Improving Student Achievement in Mathematics
Part 1: Research Findings

The number of research studies conducted in mathematics education over the past three decades has increased dramatically (Kilpatrick, 1992). Research findings indicate that certain teaching strategies and methods are worth careful consideration as teachers strive to improve their mathematics teaching practices. For the classroom implications of the research findings summarized here, please see the companion to this Digest, "Improving Student Achievement in Mathematics, Part 2: Recommendations for the Classroom"

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