Homeschooling Your Kids In India – Good or Bad?
What follows – Understand basic information on if homeschooling in India is legal, get to know why parents wish to homeschool their kids and what are all the challenges they face in India.
“I wish I could homeschool her” I said to my friend, when we had a crazy long conversation about when we should put our kids into school & where.
Amidst this pandemic, the thoughts about enrolling them into school doesn’t take a backseat. Online or offline, education seems to have been given a traditional hype in this messed-up society of ours.
No offence, I myself have been a part of this education system & I have learned things quite well. But still, I think every one of us will agree that it is not so organised.
The traditional education system in India is confusing. So many curriculums, so many schools, so many boards – phew.. For a mom to a toddler like me, it is literally frustrating. The pressure of putting the kid into the right school seems endless.
Thanks to pandemic, the concept of homeschooling is spreading nooks & crannies of the subcontinent like a wildfire.
Homeschooling, a word that I never knew before a couple of years, has occupied my mind like an obsession. For almost a year or so, I thought it was a strangely foreign concept, envisioning the costly wooden toys & exorbitant playgrounds all at home for one kid to enjoy & explore.
But, homeschooling is different. It’s not a curriculum or a predefined board of study. It’s a way of incorporating education in daily life in & around our safe haven – home.
I loved the way things are taken forward in the concept of homeschooling. This made me want to try it for my baby.
However, the success stories of homeschooling in foreign nations is entirely different from that in India.
Of course, it’s 100% possible, in fact, with so many advantages for your kid. But, it is also true that various intertwined aspects are to be considered before making the life-changing decision of homeschooling your kids, especially in India.
Confused about homeschooling your kids in India? Simply read on to know whether you should homeschool in India & if so, how?
What is Homeschooling?
Homeschooling is an alternative to traditional education where parents choose to educate their children at home.
Though the methods or curriculum followed may vary, it can obviously be customized depending on the child, family, and environment.
The Montessori method, Waldorf method, Reggio Emilia method, unschooling are a few of the methods popular for homeschooling in India.
It is also widespread to follow traditional syllabuses like CBSE or IGCSE in homeschooling. Such homeschooled kids are allowed to get certified by taking regulatory exams like IGCSE exams as private candidates.
Also, there are some institutions that accept students who are homeschooled without any certification too including the top-rated IIT & MIT.
Is Homeschooling Legal in India?
Forget about all the buzz with millennial moms of Instagram & Facebook about Homeschooling, first off – is it even legal in India to homeschool your kids?
The onset of the Right to Education Act in India that makes education compulsory for children between ages 6 to 14 has made the legality of homeschooling in India to remain in a gray area.
This right also specifies minimum norms for the school for elementary education.
However, homeschooling technically comes under the legal radar and has been implemented throughout the nation radically in different forms.
So, homeschooling in India is ACCEPTABLE, though currently, there are no regulatory laws or boards that allows or prohibits homeschooling in India.
Why Should You Homeschool Your Kid?
Homeschooling kids in India is not a new concept, yet not a popular one. However, the popularity has been increasing multifold recently. Especially after the COVID crisis, it has reached a peak.
Parents are willing to homeschool their kids because of the unbeatable advantage it can bestow their children with.
Here are a few reasons why you, as a parent, may choose to homeschool your kid.
- Every child is extremely unique and no schooling system can take the learning style of every child into consideration. When homeschooled, you devise the learning plans according to your child’s learning style.
- You can let your kid learn at their own pace. No pop quizzes or term exams to urge the kids to learn a concept within a timeline.
- Give your child the best possible attention while learning.
- Have control over what the child is taught and the method of teaching it effectively in their unique style.
- Give utmost space for your child’s creativity to flourish.
- No worries about violence or bullying, in case that bothers you the most.
Overall, a homeschooled kid grows to learn on their own, face life on their own, and be as independent as possible, which is said to be a bit lower in traditional education because locking up the children in the limited box in the name of the preset curriculum & ranking system.
However, homeschooling needs to be done with utmost care, compassion, and commitment to make it succeed. Otherwise, it is more of a hindrance to the child’s educational stage than assistance.
Related read: Believe it or not- You are lucky to have a disobedient child
Disadvantages of Homeschooling
With every ridiculously huge benefit comes a critical yet manageable con.
Homeschooling is, in fact, a tremendous boon for children – provided it is done with care. Else, the advantage may itself turn around as a disadvantage making it difficult to reverse.
The widely said concerns related to homeschooling in India include –
- Socialization with fellow children, teachers, and people outside of the family is limited in homeschooling.
- There are no regulatory laws or systems to standardize the educational process of homeschooling in India which may make the children less competitive in the real world.
- The learning may become monotonous because of reduced exposure to the outside world.
- As the children grow, the competitive learning syllabus can be difficult to be handled by the parent.
- Limited exposure to extensive learning materials, labs, and environments that regular school-going children can easily get.
- Setting up a perfect homeschooling environment to outwit all the above cons may be costlier than schooling them.
- Need for the parent to be extremely patient and ideal round-the-clock.
Homeschooling in India – A Good or a bad idea?
Just like anything would have a good and a bad side to it, homeschooling does too.
But, the catch is, it is too nice of an experience for you & your kids to actually ignore it.
So, when it comes to homeschooling in a typical Indian household, it is all about the family setup, the commitment by the whole family, especially the parents, the willingness to spend time with the kids, the financial strength to provide the kids with the right environment or at least the determination to step out, meet strangers, and expose them to socializing opportunities.
And moreover, you don’t actually need to know every subject or concept to homeschool your kids or teach them. All you need to know is to use the internet effectively & let them engage with more people often.
To sum it up…
Homeschooling can be the best that can happen for your kids, provided you give your best & are determined to provide them the environment to flourish with the support of you & your family.
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