Getting Started with Homeschooling
Practical Considerations for Parents of School-Aged Children
© Beverley Paine
Index
Homeschool
Australia
Evaluating Educational Materials
School learning and home learning are essentially different and therefore have very different requirements. However, as adults helping children to learn, teachers and parents have similar needs. The following is a list of questions designed to help in the selection of materials for any learning situation, and is especially useful when considering items such as curriculum, specific subject guidelines, or educational aids and toys.
- Is the material contemplated impressively whole, comprehensive and well-integrated with a carefully planned or sequenced development?
- Will the content usefully extend the child’s world (and therefore be at the child’s existing level of understanding with extension possible, offering them interesting experiences rather than mechanical exercises)? Is it open-ended, or instead limited in its application?
- Will it communicate, and make sense, to the children (and adult!)?
- Does the material include useful teaching/learning aids?
- How willing will the adult be to spend time with the material - is the information within it easily accessible and easy to implement, is it attractive to the adult?
- Does it really provide more than any other available source, including what the adult could provide from existing knowledge and materials already on hand?
- Does it comprehensively serve a definite purpose (need)?
- Does it offer plenty of material from which to select purposefully in trying to fulfil the aim of extending the child’s world?
- Does it use clear and un-biased language, offer aids such as questions, pictures, diagrams, definitions, glossary and references which will foster independent exploration?
- Once purchased, will it continue to be a preferred source over other materials available?
- Is it available from other sources, such as friends, other home educating families or libraries, for a more in-depth examination before purchase?
- Will it continue to be useful for a considerable period of time to warrant purchase? And is it recyclable?
Finally, you need to consider if the materials contribute to the learning activity for which it is being sought. Some items may look impressive, but actually replace true learning opportunities with ready made solutions and practices. These may not be relevant to the children’s individual learning needs, styles and rates of learning. Most home schoolers copy ideas and make their own ‘student workbooks’ and educational games and aids. As well as being tailored to the immediate learning need, the children have the opportunity to use and practice new skills when helping to make them!
It is easy to be tricked into believing some educational resources are really necessary by attractive packaging and effective advertising reliant on peer or societal pressures and values. Always look for simple and inexpensive or home made alternatives. In many instances you can save your money, and then spend it on something of real value you would not normally be able to afford.
When planning a learning program it is important to consider how much of your time you are willing to offer, and in what form. Some parents make themselves continuously available, and others have set times for interaction. Your other commitments often dictate the time available for home schooling activities.
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Excerpt from Getting Started with Homeschooling, Practical Considerations
© Beverley Paine, 1997
