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The past few years have been incredibly challenging for countless reasons (and that might even be an understatement). For parents, one of the toughest aspects was keeping our children on track while everything around us seemed to fall apart. Schools made commendable efforts to adapt, with teachers employing various methods for online lessons, yielding a mixed bag of results.
To simplify things, many educators supplemented their lessons with workbooks and independent assignments. Juggling our children’s educational demands alongside our own was a monumental task. My daughter, who has a perfectionist streak, was fortunate to have a tech-savvy teacher who integrated technology effectively into three daily Zoom sessions, along with about an hour of additional work. Despite her engagement during those sessions, she frequently required assistance from me every 15 to 20 minutes to keep up. As any parent can relate, balancing my own work alongside her schooling felt nearly impossible.
Yet, despite the difficulties of at-home learning, one thing is clear: I was not homeschooling my children.
While some families genuinely embraced homeschooling during this transitional period, the majority of us were engaged in distance learning. And there’s a significant distinction between the two.
I know this from experience, having homeschooled two boys—one in sixth grade and the other in third—over a five-year span. Together, we navigated the curriculum across seven different grades, with the eldest entering high school and tackling six subjects each year. The school district provided me with only textbooks and a list of California’s mandated standards, just like every teacher receives annually. There were no defined assignments or creative activities to replace reading chapters from the textbooks—only a lengthy printout outlining what our kids should learn, coupled with textbooks that reinforced core concepts.
This is where the role of a teacher comes into play: crafting a comprehensive plan to convey essential knowledge to students in a way that encourages retention. It’s a significant part of their job and one that often requires hours of preparation outside classroom time. When I was a homeschool teacher, I was solely responsible for designing all lessons.
Now, imagine if you had to plan all the virtual and supplemental activities for your children while also providing assistance during those lessons. It sounds nearly impossible, especially if you have other responsibilities.
That, my friends, is what true homeschooling involves.
While we certainly faced challenges, we were not engaging in homeschooling. Acknowledging this distinction does not diminish the struggle we all faced; rather, it highlights the extra effort parents made with remarkable resilience. More importantly, it acknowledges the hard work of thousands of teachers nationwide who navigated unprecedented challenges and deserve all the recognition and support they can get.
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Summary: The article emphasizes the crucial distinction between distance learning and homeschooling. While many parents faced significant challenges during the pandemic, it is vital to recognize the structured, creative efforts of teachers in creating effective learning environments. Acknowledging this difference honors both the hard work of parents and the dedication of educators.