What Will It Take?

You Learned That You Really Can Homeschool

In February 2020, you may have believed there was no way you could ever educate your kids at home. Maybe you thought it would be too hard, that you were too impatient or disorganized or simply not smart enough. Or perhaps you had the confidence and the chutzpah to make it work, but the sacrifice of time or income somehow didn’t seem worth it.

Then COVID-19 hit. Suddenly, you and the parents of all 60 million K–12 students in the U.S. found themselves undergoing a mandatory trial run of homeschooling.

Necessity is the mother of invention. So, you figured things out, got the basics in place, and made it work. And you know what? You did a pretty good job. You even enjoyed it more than you thought possible. You also appreciated the freedom to choose what’s best for each of your unique children and the flexibility to pivot on a dime as needed.

Sure, home education came with more responsibility than taking turns in the school carpool, but it also came with much bigger rewards. And your relationships with your kids actually improved. Maybe, just maybe, you were onto something.

Then, sometime during the next several months, many of you had an epiphany: I can do this thing called homeschooling. And it might even be good for my kids.

Yes, it’s true. You really can do it! And it is good—really good—for your kids. Your kids probably loved being in the safe environment of home, nurtured under your loving care. No doubt they were glad to get away from the stressful rat race, the meaningless “teaching to the test,” and the unhealthy jungle-code socialization. Perhaps you found your children were more engaged than ever before and seemed to actually enjoy and, dare you say it, love school.

Many parents stepped out in faith and joined the homeschool movement this past school year. It wasn’t part of their plan, but drastic changes in the world forced them to be more intentional than ever about the education of their kids.

Maybe you seriously considered the possibility of homeschooling last fall but decided to give conventional schools another chance. As this school year unfolded, you became more frustrated with your school’s response to COVID-19. It could also be that some other irritation was on a slow boil, simmering in the background.

My question to you today is this: What will it take? Let’s take a quick look at the issues at stake.

The Issues at Stake

Let’s start with the elephant in the room. COVID-19 restrictions resulted in school-age children being required to wear masks, social distance, or move to improvised online teaching. None of this seemed practical, and it has proved to be disastrous for teachers, parents, and students.

Next, let’s look at safety. In-person bullying and cyberbullying. No kid wants to be subject to that torture. Bathroom privacy is even up for discussion. How about school shootings? Add sexual abuse by teachers and even peers. Shall I go on?

Then there is the overall sexual agenda. Premarital sex is practically an expectation, certainly common. Addiction to pornography is rampant among students. And today your students have to deal with pressure to accept homosexuality as normal. There is the promotion of the transgender agenda. In other words, throw biology and science out the window. As a result, girls’ sports are in absolute chaos. And sexual deviancy of all manner is on the rise. Just think of drag queen reading days for the elementary-age students.

Let’s do our best to remember that schools are supposed to be about education, character formation, and the assimilation of virtue. But socialization and the mass production of obedient citizens are much more important to those in charge. The record is undeniable. Conventional schools have become a dismal failure when it comes to academic achievement.

Some of you may have opted for private education. But tuition costs have skyrocketed. Some schools brag about how their institution is the best place to spend your $12,000 per student per year. Compare this to the $600 per student per year that homeschooling families average. Is home education really that much more efficient? Actually, yes!

We can’t have this discussion without talking about teacher unions. This year, their true colors have come out vivid and bright. They seem determined to not teach your kids. If they don’t get their way, then you can expect to read stories of a teacher strike in multiple cities across the country. Do you really believe they care about your kids? It’s hard for me to take them seriously.

Let’s touch on some priorities of the liberal agenda. You’ve got Critical Race Theory (the idea of oppressor versus the oppressed), Black Lives Matter (the Marxist organization), The 1619 Project (an attempt to say that slavery was the sole or primary reason for the founding of America), the push towards Socialism (versus free-market capitalism), Pro-Abortion (versus Pro-Life), and a full court press to remove God from all spheres of life.

Finally, we are living in what is undeniably a post-Christian time period. The American public school system is actively promoting and teaching the liberal agenda and pridefully mocking God. Students are being aggressively indoctrinated, and parents are letting it happen—some with a fight, some quietly.

Folks, what will it take? What will it take for you to get your kids out of the pagan schools of Egypt and into the Promised Land of Home Education?

Let me close with one more true story – from California. Brace yourself. It will sound unbelievable, but I’ll include a link so you can read about it yourself. There is a proposal to return to barbarism by having students chant to Aztec gods. I’m not kidding. You can read about it here.

Apologia is Here to Help You Succeed

Home education is an adventure full of all kinds of wonderful discoveries, and Apologia is here to help you along the journey. One way we do this is by publishing award-winning curricula and resources, including creation-based science, math, Bible and worldview studies, and planners. We also provide live, professional online teaching, and self-paced streaming video instruction — all with a proven track record of success for over two decades. We publish our curriculum in various formats to meet the unique learning style of your student, whether they be an independent (textbooks and student notebooks), auditory (audiobook MP3s), visual (videos), kinetic (activities and experiments), or social learner (online classes).

Finally, Apologia will affirm, encourage, challenge, and inspire you via supportive homeschooling podcasts, blog articles, e-books, videos, conversations, and practical information that we freely share with all who are part of our online and social media community.

I believe that you and other parents are being more intentional than ever about the education of your children. You already proved to yourself that you can homeschool. And it’s really good for your kids and your whole family. If you just finished your first year, I pray you will say yes to continuing this fall. If you didn’t take the homeschool step of faith last year, I pray you say enough is enough and begin an amazing journey with your family this next school year. Be strong and courageous. Live with no regrets. If there was ever a time for you to homeschool, it is now!

Walking by faith and enjoying the homeschooling adventure of a lifetime!

Davis Carman

Davis is the president of Apologia Educational Ministries, the #1 publisher of Creation- based science and Bible curriculum. He is the author of five illustrated children’s books designed to help parents instill a biblical worldview in the hearts and minds of their preschoolers. He believes that if there was ever a time to homeschool, it is now! You can hear more of what he has to say at the Let’s Talk Homeschool Podcast.

© 2021 Davis Carman