History, Homeschooling and the Internet

I’ve been addicted to reading since I was three years old. I can’t help it, it’s what I do. 

For many years, well into adulthood, I spent several hours each weekend reading the voluminous Sunday edition of the Chicago Tribune. But it’s now a shadow of its former self, thanks to the Internet, which is where I do most of my reading these days.

I love having such a variety of interesting things to read. Once in a while, however, I hit on something really good, something someone has written that is so spot-on that I just have to share it with others. And have I got something good to share today.

Prolific writer and economic historian Gary North has written an awesome piece entitled “Public Education is Going Down” that clearly explains how the rise of the Internet is slowly killing public education. His theory is that, thanks to the growing availability of knowledge online at an increasingly lower cost, we parents are regaining the educational control that was lost centuries ago:

Home schooling is a throwback to the fifteenth century. It lets parents choose the content and structure of their children’s education. But it goes far beyond anything available then. One size does not fit all: all parents or all children. There is enormous diversity today, and it is getting even more diverse.

Read the entire article for yourself, and be sure to catch his last line. It made me smile  🙂

Black Home Educators Embrace Their Cultural Heritage

I was delighted to see this pro-homeschooling article in my hometown newspaper, the Chicago Tribune.

The article describes the increase in homeschooling among black families. Thanks to homeschooling, not only do these children escape the public school experience, but their parents can tailor their education to include their African-American heritage.

Many people homeschool their children for religious reasons. But we don’t often talk about homeschooling in terms of being able to emphasize our cultural heritage. Parents who take the time to teach their children about their cultural heritage give them something that they’ll always appreciate and cherish. I’m so glad that more and more Americans of all races and cultural backgrounds are giving their children this gift by homeschooling them!