Comments by Japanese students regarding homeschooling

Question:
tell me Comments by Japanese students regarding homeschooling ??

Answer:
These are comments taken from a writing assignment I gave some of the advanced students of mine. They were prompted to write their opinions on the instution of homeschooling and back up their opinions with reasons. This was a follow-up to a discussion in class, based on an article about homeschooling that was in the ESL workbook Interchange 3 (page 24). This book is published by Oxford.

These students are 18-22 years old, enrolled at an "International Business College" which is basically a two-year vocational school, for the study of English and business subjects. The students we generally get are rather low level, but the ones who responded to this question were intermediate. I have fixed a few of their sentences with ][ brackets, but have not changed the content at all.

Enjoy the comments, and I look forward to any discussion they generate.

I don't like homeschooling. But I don't like school. I think we go to school to make friends. If I didn't go to school, I would not be able to make friends. I think most children prefer going to study in school. Because they can enjoy studying with friends and want to do things with friends.

And I think their mothers can't teach like a teacher. Their mother is their mother, so their mother is not a teacher. Children can't fit in.

So I think it is good for children to go to school.

- Atsuko

When I think about homeschooling system, I can't say it's good or bad, because it depends on their background or situation. If homeschoolers have good teacher, in this case their parents, then that's o.k. But I think they need to learn about [how] to communicate with other people. Another good thing about homeschooling system is, [it is] pretty helpful for homeschoolers who can't go to school. For example, [if they are] sick or the school is dangerous and so on. So, I think homeschooling system has good points and bad points.

- Tetsuya [who lived in the U.S. for two years]

I think it's good sometimes. Because Japanese school these days, teacher always says that "Study study study, enter a famous university!" I think many students can study [at their] own pace, but [if] some students have a big pressure, then they can't go to school if they want. That's not good way for people.

Regular school teachers maybe forget another important point. I think that is, enjoy, interest, and so on. Homeschooling has these important points. Homeschool students can relax more than regular school.

Anyway, it is important point that go to school everyday and teachers and another students make them go to school comfortably.

- Satomi

I can't say whether homeschooling is good or not. Because I didn't know about homeschooling until Jennifer [my niece] came [to Japan]. But if I can say something, and if I have children, I [would] let children go to school, not homeschooling. I want them to be sociable. When I was a child, I went to public school. So I could make a lot of friends, and I could talk [about] many things with them. I don't know which is better, homeschooling or public or private school. I think it depends on the situation at that time.

- Koji

I think I prefer going to school than homeschool, because if children study only at home, they can't meet same age children, so they can't make many friends. Also, I think some homeschooling students become selfish, not sociable. But it depends on how their parents teach their children in home.

- Misako

I don't like homeschooling. Because people who study at home don't care about rules. For example, homeschooling students don't know [what it is to be] late to school. And if usual students [are] absent from school, their teacher doesn't stop their class. So they can't be lazy. And homeschooling students don't make many friends. Next homeschooling students don't know about rude. Because usual students learn about it at school. And both their parents and their teacher teach them about being rude many times.

- Noriko

I think school is better than homeschool because homeschooler can't have good friend. I think they are not sociable. Even if homeschoolers are more intelligent than real students, it doesn't make sense. I think there are a lot of things more important than studying.

For example, to think about friends and meeting a lot of people, etc. School can teach them and they can experience that. But homeschooling can't teach. I think homeschooler become adult who has narrow vision.

- Kaori

I think homeschooling is one of bad ways to educate the children. Because they can't make a lot of friends. They can't know around people. [?] So it is so easy for them to be selfish and not care about people. In short, their knowledges are low level. It's not good for them. The parent's aren't teachers exactly. They can't study like students who go to private or public school in such an environment. I thin the poor student who can't go to school needs the system [of homeschooling].

- Sanae

I think it's good sometimes because a homeschooler can study many many things that we can't study at school. At school we learn many subjects that our school decides, but homeschoolers can choose what they want to study. They can promote their good points.

Some persons are poor at studying with many students. Others like studying at school with many students. I think we should choose [our own] preference.

- Kumiko

I think homeschooling is good for students who can't go to school. For example, sick, poor, living in long distance from school. But [at] schools, they can learn many things that they can't learn at home. For example, they can make friends others. And they help each other. I think important that not only study but also staying with others. I think school is better than homeschooling.

- Naomi

I don't like homeschooling. I think it's not good. Because children don't think of other people. If they child goes to school, he or she must put up with something [put up means 'endure']. For example, eating or using something. [If] you stay at home, you can all the time. But [if] you go to school, if someone uses something, you can't use it. If you go to school, your thinking is grown up.

If children stay at home, their parents can't go out all the time when they want to go. I think homeschooling students can't make a lot of friends.

I think homeschooling is not good for children and their parents.

- Yuko

I don't like homeschooling. Because if children don't go to school, they can't make a friend. And there are many kinds of persons. So they can learn a lot of things. For example, cooperation, helping each other, thinking of others. If their parents teach their children, maybe children will become selfish or narrow. So, I prefer going to school. I think school is better than staying at home.

- Tomoko

I think homeschooling isn't good for kids. Because their parents don't have teachers' licenses. So they can't have good educations. And in school, most kids can make many friends. I was so happy to make many many friends in my elementary school and junior and senior high schools. I don't think schools are the place where only for study. Children should go to school.