I don’t know the answer to your question. I haven’t read any studies on this, psychological or otherwise. So many factors go into promoting citizenship that I suspect it would be very difficult to test this hypothesis.

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Here is my comment to Alistair’s post:

I’m glad you preface your post saying you don’t know much about homeschooling. This is shown very clearly by the questions you pose and the things incite your curiousity.

First off—no, most homeschooling parents are not too curious about what it’s like to be a public school teacher. Most people who are homeschooling their children attended school, and likely public school as children. Also, there is a significant portion of homeschooling parents who are public school teachers.

I am very carefully saying homeschooling parents rather than homeschool teachers. This is a very significant distinction. Most parents learn very quickly that “teaching” is not their role in a homeschooling family.

Once you and any parent understands that children are naturally curious and, like sponges, want to learn, want more information and will seek it out, then you are on your way to a successful homeschool experience.

Most of us who have homeschooled our children start out teaching but learn very soon that we are interfering with our children’s education by doing so. Children are not like little birds that require spoon feeding. Homeschool parents are at their best when we help our children find resources and assist them in the “how” of learning rather than the “what”.

If you can understand this one point, many of the other questions you ask are answered or become irrelevant.

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(Alistair Bomphray) On that note, if I could add another question to my previous batch, it would be, How do you determine if homeschooling is the best choice for your child? What are the determining factors?

(Me) Given that I’m available to homeschool both of my children, and both are bright, self-motivated learners, why am I only homeschooling one child?

Timing. Special Needs.

It never occurred to me to homeschool my older child. Instead, I spent many years working within the public school system, advocating for Gifted Ed programs. That was also when I started researching education, and comparing our schools to that of friends around the country.

By the time my son was in 1st Grade, I had a very good idea about what was available in our school district vs. that of other schools in Betheda, MD, southern, CA, and Westchester, NY. In our school, there is no Gifted Ed below 3rd Grade, and differentiation is not a panacea.

The timing was right to pull my son out of public school at the end of 1st Grade, before the frustrations set in. As bright as he is, and as articulate as he can be, his writing skills are relatively poor. He just can’t handwrite what he can say. This is where one-on-one assistance has been invaluable. He works on his writing skills, but we also use technology (including dictation) to let him express his thoughts.

With my daughter, we missed the window of opportunity to pull her out for homeschooling. She is enmeshed in the school culture. However, she is happy and thriving in her current school, a small alternative school that encourages creativity and project-based learning.

Both kids are in the right place for each right now. And, I’d say the determining factors are whether, or not, they are in a situation where they are engaged learners.

If there is one thing I’ve learned, it is that everything can change quickly. We can only make the right choice in the moment, and we’ll deal with the future when we get there.

Oh, and by the way, I do continue to learn from teachers in various settings. In addition to the teachers I follow online, I still visit school websites, and I question friends who are teachers. I learn from my daughter’s teachers. And, I still compare what my children’s friends are doing when we visit them in MD, FL, and CA.

Hey, what can I say, we’re a curious bunch!