Home schooled students excel in life, academics
By MARY LODEN, Of the News-Tribune
This story on home schooling opportunities and college is the final part of a series on the rising trend of teaching youngsters at home.
The question of socialization often comes up when discussing children schooled at home, but more times than not it is a needless concern.
Many families today are active in home school groups, such as the Britt Home School Group, where the children meet for several hours each week or every other weeks for a shared class, art, music or a special party or field trip.
“In our group there were 20 other families doing the same thing so the kids always had someone to play with. We didn't feel like the odd man out. Twenty years ago that was not so common,” said Kay Johnson, of rural Leland, who has been part of the Britt Home School group for 15 years.
“At home you teach them to be polite, take turns, to share and learn that not everything is about them. You instill in them things you think are really important,” she said.
Even if they had not been part of such a group, “my husband and I have been in the ministry a long time as youth pastors. We are heavily involved in church and the youth group so our kids were not lacking in socialization,” Johnson said.
“And I've always been big on birthday parties and having friends over. My son is very respected in his crowd, kids look up to him. He's a positive leader for kids his age.”
Even Time magazine picked up on the question in an August 2001 edition. The article stated that home schooled children may be better students but wondered if they were better citizens.
In 2003 Home school Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) commissioned the largest research survey (of that time) of adults who were home educated.
Of the 7,300 adults, between the ages of 18 to 24, who had been home schooled, over 74 percent had taken college level courses compared to 46 percent of the general U.S. population.
When it came to government only 4.2 percent of those adults considered politics and government too complicated to understand versus 35 percent of the general population and they vote in much higher percentages.
Of the home schooled adults surveyed 71 percent were involved in a community service activity compared to 37 percent of the general U.S. population.
Eighty-one percent were members of organizations compared to 50 percent of non-home schooled adults.
Home schooled students are in demand. “Colleges contact me to recommend students - Yale, Harvard, Boston University - because they would like a certain number of home schoolers by a certain year,” said Wanda Burdick, of Wesley, who founded and still directs an entire campus for home school students in Grand Ledge, Michigan.
“Colleges are anxious to get home schooled kids because they know how to study, know how to work on their own, are more disciplined and have higher grades,” Burdick said. “Scores on ACT tests are generally 2 to 3 points ahead.”
Burdick was a pioneer in home schooling in 1984, teaching her two children at home before the concept was even considered legal.
She said she never dreamed it would lead to owning her own campus, guiding 57 teachers and having thousands of students all over the globe tune into her classes, either in a classroom or Online.
After six months of teaching her children at home Burdick said they were joined by another family, then another and then news spread by word of mouth.
“One mom taught math and French. I taught English, writing, literature, drama, speech and debate,” said Burdick, who is a licensed teacher.
“This was not meant to be a business. This was not something I planned, but today I have a campus that runs 800 students,” she said. “We look at this like a ministry, it's faith-based.”
When the number of families in her home school group grew too large to find a facility to meet in, Burdick said she bought a Christian school in Grand Ledge, Michigan, complete with a gym and auditorium.
The campus, which is listed legally as a tutoring service so it doesn't have to comply with the state's requirements for a school or university, has 57 certified teachers on staff and four full-time secretaries.
“Students can take one or two classes or all of their classes here,” Burdick explained. The students study at home under their parents' supervision and guidance and come to the school once a week to take their tests, do labs, meet with teachers and get new assignments.
The campus offers courses for the learning disabled all the way through college level. There are science labs, seven different foreign languages, computer labs and Web design offerings.
“And we offer music and debate. It's a pretty large operation,” Burdick said. “Some students drive four hours to attend.”
In addition to the classes offered Burdick created a library of reference materials and a book store where parents can check out material or buy curriculum. She also offers academic counseling and career planning.
Burdick said she has picked up a lot of college prep information over the years and gladly passes it on to her students.
“With college tuition increasing 6 to 17 percent every year and loans shriveling up there will be hundreds who can not finish their education or will be buried in debt when they graduate,” Burdick said. “You need to think outside of the box to find a way through, but you can't do this unless you prepare in high school. I believe in a solid education, but not in wasting money or time.”
She said she had 57 students from the campus graduate last year and of those, 28 had already received their Associates or Bachelor degree from a fully accredited school and they did it all online.
She said some online programs will let a student bank credits until they are ready to send their transcript to a college. Another way to earn college credit while in high school is to take AP courses or to pass a CLEP test.
The Burdicks, Wanda and her husband Jeff, moved to Iowa from Michigan one and a half years ago to be closer to their son, J.R. who now home schools four of his own children
Burdick was happy just helping teach her grandchildren and running the small dairy operation she and her husband started. Then she heard that some parents around the area were looking for a speech teacher
One interested student turned into an entire debate team that competes with the National Home school Debate League and then other courses started to be offered as well.
Now the Burdicks teach 18 students once a week at the Corwith Library and the home school program continues to grow.
"We do labs on site in chemistry and physical science and offer government, economics, world history and writing. We have a great time with it," Burdick said.
It looks like the only thing home schoolers are missing is the school building.
Story created Oct 14, 2008 - 14:02:49 CDT.
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