AT ISSUE

My husband thinks we should start homeschooling our children. I love my children and want the best for them, but I just don't think I have the right kind of skills or the patience to do it.

I'm feeling the pressure and don't know what to do.

OUR INSIGHT

Bless you for wanting the best for your children. And your husband is a fortunate man to have a wife like you who seriously considers what he thinks.

As you work though homeschooling concerns and come to conclusions, you may want to consider these thoughts:

First, there is nothing in the Bible which says you should homeschool, so you are not being disobedient to the Lord if you don't do it. In recent years it seems some people have come to believe that those who homeschool somehow have a greater level of spirituality than others, but of course there is no truth to this concept.

People have been schooled at home throughout history when no regular school was available. But that's not what the contemporary homeschooling movement is about. It is a reaction to the horrible values taught in many of today's public schools and the declining quality of education found there. And why are the values and quality so bad? In the last analysis it is the fault of Christians.

Jesus has tried to tell us we are "salt and light" in this world (Matthew 5:13-16), but we don't want to obey. We pull our children out of the public school system and greater decay and darkness results. If we took the responsibility of being "salt and light" seriously, then Christians would control every public school board in the country. It is not a matter of making children the battleground, but it is very much about adult Christians taking proper responsibility in their communities.

By the way, this spiritual principle applies to all public institutions. We must be salt and light in government, health, human rights, consumer and environmental fields and in other areas as well as the field of education.

It is unpopular these days in conservative Christian circles to point out that homeschooling is an alternative way of educating children, but not particularly a superior one. Most Christian children are not homeschooled, and they're doing just fine.

There is nothing wrong with homeschooling, and those who are doing it for the right reasons, and are capable of doing it, should teach at home if they want.

You are faced with the question of your own suitability to teach. You should not teach if you do not have the gifts, training, ability, temperament or interest.

If you have any doubt about latent gifts you may have, then take one of the tests that career counselors offer to rate skills and interests. If you show aptitude, then you may want to take some courses about child development and teaching methods before you take the homeschooling plunge.

If there is no doubt in your mind about the unsuitability of your aptitude or gifts, be loving and firm, but do not allow yourself to be coerced into becoming a homeschooler. If your husband is a godly man, he'll understand. This approach will be the only way the best interests of your children can be preserved.

Don't rush into homeschooling. Weight all the factors carefully. Homeschooling will meet the needs of some, but it's definitely not for everybody.

-DLH