Poll: Do you think you would have learned more if you homeschooled yourself?

<p>Okay I see. No, I included your quote among a list of quotes that I collected (it was long ago - when your post count was lower0</p>

<p>Socially, I'd be one ****ed up person.</p>

<p>"Book smarts"-wise, I'd be about as educated as I am today, because I don't feel I learned anything in school (that I remember) other than Algebra I. Most of my knowledge comes from my own initiative.</p>

<p>Inquiline, you collect people's quotes?? </p>

<p>That's kind of creepy, I'll be honest....</p>

<p>nah, I just collected quotes I found on homeschooling, that's all.</p>

<p>Socially: No
Bookwise: No</p>

<p>No, because I would have focused narrowly on my interests and neglected to learn anything about math.</p>

<p>absolutely not.</p>

<p>I really disagree. I believe that homeschooling shelters you from the way society is structured and works. Most homeschooled kids I've come upon either have the impression that they don't need to work with anybody else in order to get what they want, or they think everything is hunkydory.</p>

<p>This may be me just speaking politically, but I once got into a political debate with this homeschooled guy who said that "idiots don't get positions of power", to which I may have made a reference to our leadership in the US...in reply to this, he argued that our economy was better than ever! (As the US dollar keeps going down...)</p>

<p>Ugh if he really thinks the economy is hunkydory I invite him to come stay with me in Detroit... </p>

<p>People ignorant to how things really are in our country; socially, politically, and economically make me sad?? (not the exact right word but close enough). It scares me that these people are the "leaders of tomorrow".</p>

<p>Yeah, I'm not sure whether I can make the claim that all homeschoolers are somewhat ignorant of this knowledge, but I'm pretty sure that this kid would be a little more aware if he was in a public school.</p>

<p>I'm not saying all homeschooled kids are either. I'm just saying all ignorant people make me mad, sad w/e.</p>

<p>I wouldn't be better off if I taught myself for k-8. I learned way too many social skills and I wouldn't have been motivated enough to teach myself anything. Maybe for high school though. I tend to teach myself everything in my classes right now, anyway.</p>

<p>(junior in hs)</p>

<p>I would have learned more.. definitely...</p>

<p>Socially, I know homeschooled kids can interact with a lot of others through group classes or other activities and so on. But I think that there are certain skills and experiences one goes through reguarly attending an huge, diverse public school that really cannot be replicated by any number of activities. In hindsight, if I were given the chance to homeschool in 9th grade, I'd probably turn it down.</p>

<p>Bookwise, I think the reasion for 95% of my learning has to do with the thought of the next test or quiz, and I'd guess that the same reason holds for almost everyone in all of my classes. I've heard of homeschoolers who don't even take tests regularly, or who take "alternative" forms of tests to asses their learning. Those may be effective in some ways, but I don't think they reinforce learning in quite the same way as a nasty paper based test. Also, going to a public school has familiarized me with multiple choice exams, and I know some homeschoolers have contempt for those as "bubbling practice" and a waste of time, but I really think they are a pretty good way of figuring out how much someone knows.</p>

<p>InquilineKea - that <em>is</em> kind of creepy that you are collecting peoples' quotes on homeschooling. Shouldn't you ask their permission first? What are you planning to do with those?</p>

<p>No because I'm way too lazy.
When I try to complete a project during the summer, it takes me weeks because I work for 10 minutes and take an hour break, and then another 10 minutes, and take another break, and then I stop working for the whole day.
Socially, how could you learn more socially if you're alone most of the time unless you have a "homeschool" where there's outside people around you?</p>

<p>I almost turned to homeschooling in 10th grade against my parents' wishes, but I moved to a prep school instead.</p>

<p>I think very few have the motivation to succeed by teaching themselves. There is something to learning under coercion that is more effective than learning independently... for example, I've memorized about 50 pages of proofs for my math class this quarter. Would I have done this if I were not motivated by the prospects of an A? Probably not.</p>

<p>
[quote]
There is something to learning under coercion that is more effective than learning independently

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I agree.</p>

<p>Let's just say I would have learned how to ascend in Crawl.</p>

<p>book-wise, yes. socially, no.</p>

<p>definately definately definately would have learned more.</p>

<p>Yes, I would have learned more, but I wouldn't have been as well rounded. I always hated science and math, and loved reading. I'd probably be much more well-read than I am now, but I also wouldn't have been as well-rounded as I am now (I'm actually in a science and technology program at my school).</p>

<p>I've read about this techinique called unschooling, which I think is absolutely brilliant, and if I ever forget to use protection and have children :), and had the time and patience to be (god-forbid) a stay at home mom, I would certainly unschool them. I think I would have benefitted from being unschooled as a child, just because I was so advanced and intuitive as a young child, and I feel that the structure and rules of a school really took that away from me.</p>

<p>As for social skills, one of the most social people I know was homeschooled up until she entered high school. She just had to try to make friends in other places. Like, I don't bother making friends at my church or at camps unless I have to, because I already have too many friends to begin with, but this girl would make friends EVERYWHERE. (It did help that she is a pageant star)</p>

<p>Personally, I sort of went through some crazy stages before becoming the social butterfly (well, maybe a social elephant, if you want to incorporate my awkward-moment-making skills and crazy-horrible situations I have caused) that I am today. Up until kindergarten (when I was in montessori school learning my heart out) I was really quiet and brilliant). Then I transferred to a rich kids prep school for 1st and 2nd grades, and I was really popular. My parents got upset with the administration there and moved me to a religious school in the middle of 2nd grade, where I slowly regressed into a smart but socially awkward fat kid. Then in middle school I became popular again, until I transferred schools again and became socially awkward. Finally I entered high school, where I am now beautifully social, despite the ridiculous amount of time I spend on CC. </p>

<p>So, the equation for my socialolity is:
Social Quotient (SQ) = 1/GPA -Inner Happiness + Smileyness/Frowniness
And from this equation you can derive that the better my grades are, the more I study, the less social I am. So actually, if I was homeschooled, I wouldn't have studied as much, and I would have been more social. And seeing as I am already overly social, I probably would have exploded.</p>

<p>So, in conclusion, it's probably a good thing I wasn't home schooled.</p>