Online High Schools vs Homeschooling
Posted on July 7, 2008
Is there a difference between online high schools and traditional homeschooling? And, if there is, does it really matter?
A recent phenomenon is the number of online high school students who do not classify themselves as homeschoolers. The thinking, as expressed, is that they have just chosen an alternative way to earn a high school diploma and, in some cases, are even using a public school to do so.
Some reasons for this might be:
- Students only left their traditional public school at the high school level. Thus, no experience as a homeschooler at the elementary level.
- For many homeschoolers, there is a strong conservative flavor to their educational experience. The perception among some can be that the homeschooling movement is a conservative movement. If students and their parents don't self-identify with conservatism, they may not view themselves as traditional homeschoolers.
- The online high school students just don't make that connection. They are simply going to high school.
The question for homeschoolers is whether this is a good trend or not. It's difficult to know. The sheer numbers of students going online can be helpful in making the argument for homeschooling (because so many are doing it). However, these are not students, typically, who will help the argument. They do not self-identify as homeschoolers and some would be shocked to learn that someone classified them as such. So, these online high school families are unlikely to support the political agenda behind homeschooling.
How will this all end up? It's hard to know. Ultimately, I think it helps broaden homeschooling laws in the short-term. Eventually, though, I think that the future is that the number of online high school student who do not claim themselves as homeschoolers will grow. Will that be a bad thing? I readily admit that I have no earthly idea.
What do you think?
Thomas Nixon is the author of Complete Guide to Online High Schools. In it, he details how to earn a high school diploma online. The companion website, BestOnlineHighSchools.com, is the premier source of information on online high schools. Tom is also the manager of the college support website, CollegeAdvocates.com. His website is ThomasNixon.com.
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