During an interview for an assistant teacher position that I was applying for, they asked which school my son went to. When I told them I homeschool my son, one of the interviewer’s response was “Wow, that’s a big responsibility.” Being that I really did want this job for experience for when I finish my K-8 BA, I let it slide and agreed that indeed, it is a big responsibility. By the end of the interview I already knew I was not going to get the job. Why? The fact that the conversation led back to my homeschooling several times during the interview and the questions that were being asked were a pretty big hint.
Is homeschooling your child a big responsibility? Yes, of course it is, but is it any bigger than being a parent? It is my responsibility to feed, clothe, and shelter my child. It is my responsibility to protect and care for my child. It is also my responsibility to raise a well adjusted and upstanding citizen. Are any of these responsibilities, or any of the ones I haven’t mentioned any smaller than the responsibility of homeschooling my child?
Being a parent makes my child’s education my responsibility. It is my responsibility to choose what education I think is best for my child. It is my responsibility to make sure my child receives the best education possible. It is my responsibility to reevaluate these decisions and make changes as needed. It is even my responsibility to decide if homeschooling isn’t working for us anymore and to send my child to school if this were to ever be the case. These are all responsibilities that I was well aware of and joyfully took on when I became a parent.
Being that this was the first time she had ever met me, and had never met my son, was it her responsibility to question my choices, capabilities, and responsibilities? Maybe it’s because I have met so many people who were opposed to homeschooling, and I am on the defensive. What do you think?
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