As parents nationwide prepare themselves and their children for the start of another school year, a growing number of parents are taking the education of the children in their own hands. Coast to coast and everywhere in between, COVID-19 and its unpredictableness is pushing parents to seriously consider schooling at home.
What Are CDC Guidelines?
In May the CDC issued school reopening guidelines which include: strict social distancing tactics, all day mask-wearing, staggard attendance, and no gym or cafeteria use. Springfield Public school students wear masks and stay at one desk all day. Absolutely no gym use or extracurricular activities allowed. Already, Alton Public Schools opened fro one day before closing.
Why parents take control of their child’s education
While the students want to attend school, public schools are not so sure and families are caught in the middle.
“One day the school district says X and four days later they say Y,”
The authorities don’t always agree on what is best for the individual, let alone the city. Parents are asking questions:
“What am I supposed to be doing with my children when I am working full time?’
How Can I Do This?
Is This Trend Nationwide?
Yes. nationwide as well as worldwide! Homeschool applications are up 21% in Vermont. In North Carolina new homeschool parents filed online their intent to educate at home and overwhelmed the government system, crashing it. According to a recent USA/Today poll,” 60% of parents surveyed said they will likely choose at-home learning this fall.” [1]
Then there are the public schools trying to go virtual and charging parents fees of $150-$200 per student per week to attend. Florida was banning parents from removing students to homeschool until the public school officially began. Other schools won’t allow parents on school grounds. Parents are angry and frustrated.
Outside of the U.S. in Uganda parents are homeschooling because their schools are not set to reopen for a year. Portugal’s education situation is “chaos” [2], per Sylvia Copio who is president of a parents association.
There is no doubt that there is a rise in families that homeschool. Education may look very different in another year.
Notes:
- ^https://fee.org/articles/back-to-school-no-thanks-say-millions-of-new-homeschooling-parents/ (go back ↩)
- ^https://hslda.org/post/pandemic-drives-global-interest-in-homeschooling (go back ↩)
