Two years ago, my twelve-year-old brother got cancer. He was in public school, sixth grade. He’s fourteen now and perfectly healthy but he missed a lot of class in the mean time. My parents fought the school, teachers and administrators alike, attempting to get my brother educated during his illness.
That bad experience with the public school system led my parents to homeschool my brother for the past year. He works only three days a week, yet learns more than his public school peers. He still has one elective for which he attends public school, and he’s told us that, although he takes regular math classes, he’s conversant with his peers who take honors and advanced placement classes.
The most obvious and striking difference was the change in his personality. When he attended public school he talked and acted like his peers. He used their slang, dressed like they dressed, and had the same opinions and attitudes. Since he’s been homeschooled he’s undergone the transformation into an individual. Even though he still interacts with his peers daily, he talks differently and chooses his own styles. He’s naturally individualistic but his time away from his peers allowed him to recognize what parts of him were influenced socially and become his own person.
Ideally, the educational system would produce unique, thoughtful individuals but too often it produces cookie-cutter drones, spouting the same dull ideas. I’ve been fortunate to witness a young person escape that fate.
