Why Homeschool?

omeschooling for us was truly a pioneering action. Both Rachel and I were products of a public school system where we were indoctrinated that education, or at least the kind of education that "mattered" in life could only happen in the hallowed halls and classrooms of the public school building. Educators warned us that a public school education was the prerequisite to "successful" life and the jobs of the future. We learned through the administration supported peer environment to ignore and reject the ideas, values and accomplishments of those outside the "public education fold". We can still remember the claims that socialization could only effectively occur within the public schools, and that anyone who did not submit themselves to this process would probably never amount to anything in life.

oth of us realized that the worldview presented to us in the public school was radically different than the one in which our parents tried to raise us in, however, in what seemed to be significant areas of life. When we began to have children, the inevitable questions surfaced in regards to raising children that all parents must ultimately resolve. The conflict within resulted in us evaluating the role of parents in our children's education and upbringing. We questioned what the goal of what our children's education should be. We wondered how the fundamental concepts of free will, original sin and redemption that are so central to a Christian based worldview should be presented to our children, and integrated with their ability to decipher and engage in life. We struggled with our children's exposure to peer and authority influence that challenged and ridiculed a Christian worldview and beliefs before our children had the internal tools necessary to evaluate the attitudes and ideas they presented. While all good parents desire for their children to be prepared to live a "successful" life, we wondered what this meant in terms of the education they should receive to effect this end.

hus began our journey as young parents some years ago, unsure of where these questions would lead us. Little did we know at the time that these questions would begin to affect every part of our lives, calling into question cultural assumptions and theological doctrines that we had previously accepted without evaluation. What we discovered along the way was that this journey called learning did not stop within the classroom walls of a school. We also discovered that many people lose this fundamental understanding of education because they do not understand the overall purpose that education plays in life, let alone the context in which an individual's education thrives.

e have provided some links below for you to personally explore these ideas. There are literally thousands of websites now in existence which provide many facets of this well-rooted and compelling ideology - that parents have the right and responsibility to direct the upbringing and education of their children! This has considerable ramifications to American society as we now know it, so these ideas should be thoroughly analyzed, evaluated, critiqued and debated with the purpose of striving to raise the next generation of children in the most effective manner. These few links will provide evidence of that debate, and a source of venues to engage in this great debate of our age. We wish you well as you consider "How should we then live?"

Homeschooling links

This is the link to our local homeschooling organization	Sonlight Enrichment Classes	We belong to the Sonlight homeschooling co-op where the teaching is shared between member families.	North Texas Home Educators Network
The official website of Practical homeschooling magazine			The Teaching Home is a Christian magazine for home educators with many helpful articles.
Significant homeschooling legal organization and homeschoolers resource in Texas	Home School Legal Defense Association is a nonprofit advocacy organization established to defend and advance the constitutional right of parents to direct the education of their children and to protect family freedoms.		Whole Heart Online Christian books, homeschooling and parenting resources and conferences.