I am a public school teacher/homeschooling dad and let me tell you I go to my job every day and simply cringe at the ever-declining skill sets of my 9th grade students. What they don’t know at their age is frightening. They don’t know ANY grammar (not taught in gramm...er...elementary school). They don’t know simple mathematical operations (can’t add, subtract, multiply, divide) and then are thrown into Algebra classes in high school). They don’t know the first thing about America’s history.
I believe much of this goes far in explaining their inability at social skills. They are forever battling teachers from a guilted complex. They come to classrooms every day and are asked to do that for which they are not prepared. The educational system has failed them and they must sit (compulsory education) and face their (and the school system’s) failure day in and day out. Put another way, they have been lied to...and at some point in time in high school, they know it!. Where the guilt comes in is that they have heard a smattering of attempts by teachers to actually try to offer education. They have, of course, passed on this. Public education no longer requires that you learn, but that you...comply. When they get a teacher (yes, like me) that actually tries to make learning matter, they are incredulous, offended, amused, outraged (on any day, any student can adopt any one of these approaches—keeps me on my toes...and in The Word!) Couple this with their parents’ own personal issues, poor training methods, twisted thinking (their child can’t read, but s/he is still a “Terrific Kid!”—if I see one more of those bumper stickers, I’m going to...nevermind), and you get what amounts to a walking time bomb. And, so, from time to time, you’ll see one or more of them “go off”.
One more thing...being the homeschooling parent that I am, I am aware of what it is they SHOULD know, or, more importantly, COULD know, while most of my colleagues aren’t. They have been dumbed down, as well, by ever-diminished requirements, course content that is heavy on “socialism-ization” and light on academics and development of critical thinking. The veteran teachers have suffered through the “water torture” of time, as American public education has devolved into, what can only be called, an absolute disgrace. And most of my colleagues don’t even know it! So, many of them just roll with it...while I, doing my very best impersonation of the weeping prophet, attempt to raise a still, small voice in the wilderness over my students’ inability to read, inability to work, inability to...(fill in the blank).
I often ask aloud, “Lord, what would you have me to do here?” He hasn’t moved me, but, rather, has given me a mind, a heart, and an ability to speak to teens, to persuade, to cajole, to exhort and, where necessary, to rebuke (this last one is where I can get into trouble—prayers, please). I eventually conclude (like Paul, when he refers to living epistles), that I am there to present to my students what ought to be, in terms of their education/socialization. I can tell you, though, the numbers of takers has been declining steadily over the past few years.
God Bless you for your heart and efforts.
The kids need people like you and it will have an impact on some of them.
It’s like the story about the kid throwing the starfish which were washed up on the beach back in the ocean. When challenged that it didn’t matter because he couldn’t save all of them, he commented that he could save some of them and it mattered to the ones he did save.
And there will be homeschooled children who opt for public high school and will appreciate what you are doing for them. They need you, too.
Don’t hesitate to ask for prayers for situations as they come up on the homeschool threads. I don’t see your name on either of my homeschool ping lists. I would be happy to add you to them if you’d like.