Education as a concept is traditionally bound to its institutionalised definition which postulates that it is the process of receiving or giving a systematic instruction at a school or university. The definition naturally implies that the process is bound to location, generally assumed to be a separate organisation located outside one’s residential area. However in the recent decades, a transformation has taken place with regard to the space in which this teaching-learning relationship could possibly be established. Homeschooling could loosely be defined as the education of children at home by their own parents. The concept dates back to the settlement of the first colonies in America, a time in which parents either educated their children themselves or hired a private tutor. Religion played a major motivating factor for the shift from public schools to home environments. Many religious families began to teach their children in faith-based environment that they believed were more closely aligned with their respective religious and moral beliefs (Gaither, 2008).
As a homeschooling education is one that is specially tailored to the needs of the children and the abilities of the parents, there are a variety of teaching-learning methods utilised. I have briefly covered the facets of a few approaches:
The Charlotte Mason Method
One of the oldest methods is the Charlotte Mason method of learning that is centred around the belief that children learn best from first-hand, real life situations. This method promotes a three-part approach to education, indicating that the child learns best from their home environment (atmosphere), should be encouraged to learn good habits (discipline) and should be imparted living thoughts and ideas as opposed to dry facts (life). Homeschoolers utilising this method give their children the time to play, create and be actively involved in real-life situations through activities such as taking a nature walk, visiting museums, reading “living books” which are academic books written in the form of a story. The Charlotte Mason method stresses over focusing on a singular task and the idea that knowledge is demonstrated from discussion and not test-taking.
Trivium
A second approach used commonly is the Classical Education approach based on the Trivium (a method of teaching children according to their phases of cognitive development). There are three phases of learning/thinking that a child grows through; Concrete (K-6th) wherein the children absorbs facts and build their educational foundations; Analytical (7th-8th) where the focus becomes more argument-oriented and logical and critical thinking is introduced; Abstract (9th-12th) where the students are more independent and are prepared for learning rhetoric, the art of speaking, writing and communicating. This approach emphasises language, literature and works to connect all fields of study.
Unit Studies
Certain homeschooling methodologies are also specific to a particular area of interest, which could either be areas of specialisations of the parents or interests of the child. Unit studies is one such method where a specific area of interest is used as a catalyst to develop an in-depth study that spans across major subject areas like Math, History, Science Art, etc. This approach is based on the idea of completely immersing a child in the study of one topic as we tend to learn more when fully engaged in one subject. Unit studies allow the curriculum to be modified to the subjective needs of each child.
Eclectic homeschooling
Eclectic homeschooling is an approach which combines the different styles of learning, wherein the parent forms his/her own homeschooling approach by borrowing from a number of different methodologies, curriculums and ideas.
Currently, the rise of technology and online resources have improved the rate of reliability on homeschooling for effective learning. As we spend time at home, it is not just the children and university students who are attending ‘homeschools’ but even all of us who are constantly learning and teaching on the Internet. Research has constantly revealed the benefits of homeschooling and parent-led teaching. Beginning as an alternative for parents who wished to send their children to more morally and religiously inclined spaces of learning, it has now grown into an option for those parents who want to actively participate in their child’s education. Not only are the children benefiting from the learning experience, but the teaching-learning interaction is one that is holistically molded from both sides. While the anxiety of awaiting the structure of the education system eats at us, it could also be a time to learn from trends that have come back in fashion.
* The author can be contacted on Instagram @sincerelysanah
