Myth: Quality Education Requires Lots of Money
According to my own cost estimates, I
have concluded that educating children at home is less
expensive than sending them to a "free" public school. I
include in my cost estimates the numerous expenses which
are laid upon parents who send their children to a public
school. There are the required school supplies,
transportation costs in driving to and from the school for
various reasons—registrations, emergencies, and this and
that meeting etc.—and shame shame on the parent who fails
to take time out from their busy schedule to attend a
meeting or conference. There are the gym clothes and shoes
etc., to be taken into account. Consider, too, the cost of
lunches, whether it be a "sack lunch" or a hot one
purchased from the school. One must also take into account
all the slips brought home from school "requesting" $5.00
or $10.00 for this or that. Regardless of whether or not
it's a requirement, clothing is a major factor which in
and of itself can easily be enough to offset the cost of
a complete homeschool curriculum.
In addition to the above, there is the peer pressure on a
child to conform to the popular styles—"Reeboks," designer
clothes etc. That also translates into pressure upon the
parents. The cost for a child entering into
extra-curricular activities can be staggering, but what
public schooled child doesn't? Although it cannot be
calculated in dollars, there are certainly some long term
costs related to peer pressure which can eventually become
very costly!
It remains
that homeschooling is less expensive than the free public
school even when parents order a complete course from one
of the many suppliers now marketing homeschool curricula.
Many parents, however, Virginia and I included, prefer to
develop their own curriculum which can be done very
readily by simply using the numerous resources close at
hand, such as: libraries, Sunday school supplies, the
Bible, as well as daily experiences. There are also
several homeschool suppliers who will gladly mail parents
a complete catalog of available supplies from which to
select.
It stands to
reason, however, that two plus two is still four and it
doesn't make any difference whether it is two Cadillacs
plus two Cadillacs or two pebbles plus two pebbles when
teaching children to cipher. In fact, most children would
enjoy throwing two pebbles plus two pebbles at bubbles
into the brook, anyway. Money is not the source of either
knowledge or wisdom. Expensive covers don't necessarily
mean it's a good book. Neither do more dollars spent
insure a better education.
To
Myths Menu
